Cork City Development Plan 2022 - 2028 Volume 1

Chapter 5 I Climate Change and the Environment

International, National and Regional Context International Climate Change Policy 5.5 In an international context, there is a long history of policy and framework initiatives focusing on climate change. These date back over three decades and include the United Nations ‘Framework Convention on Climate Change’ (1992), the Kyoto Protocol (1997), the European Union Adaptation Strategy (2013), the Paris Agreement (2015) and the United Nations ‘Transforming our World: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development’ (2015) which lists the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) which provide a blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable future. SDG No. 13 specifically addresses climate action by requiring ‘urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts by regulating emissions and promoting developments in renewable energy’.

5.4 Actions that tackle climate change and environment degradation often help to protect and enhance the environment. These, together with more considered use of natural resources, form a major part of climate action. This Chapter contains climate and environment action measures which complement and integrate with the Core Strategy, Strategic Objective 4 and other chapters of the Plan and wider strategies at a national, regional and local level. See also Table 5.1 in this Chapter, as it addresses the following considerations in turn: • International, National and Regional Context • Cork City Climate and Environmental Action: Local Strategies and Commitments • Energy Efficiency and Use of Resources • Renewable and Low Carbon Energy • Sustainable Urban Drainage and Green and Blue Infrastructure • Scheme Sustainability Statements • Cross-Cutting Climate Change and Environment Policy Objectives

Building Climate Resilence

Mitigation Action To Reduce Emissions That Cause Climate Change

Adaption Action To Manage The Risks of Climate Change Impacts

Water Conservation

Sustainable Transportation

Disaster Management & Business Continuity

New Energy Systems

Local Food

Flood Protection

Education

Complete Communities

Clean Energy

Energy Efficiency

Urban Forest

Infrastructure Upgrades

Figure 5.1: Making Cork a more climate resilient City – an overview of climate mitigation and adaption measures. Image Source: TeachersPayTeachers.com (TpT).

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Cork City Development Plan 2022-2028 I Volume 1

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