We are facing a range of new challenges as the world's climate changes. More days of extreme heat, higher intensity rainfall, extreme storms, reduced levels of overall rainfall, rising sea-levels and risks of future droughts are all predicted.
Climate Change Adaptation Strategy Refresh 2017
The Climate Change Adaptation Strategy 2009, the first of its kind in Australia, mapped out our approach for adapting to a changing climate. It undertook an in-depth risk assessment and highlighted key priority areas for action. The Adaptation Action Plan 2010 then outlined more detailed steps we would take to respond to the climate change risk assessment. Since then, over 100 actions have been completed and we have clearly demonstrated how a council can adapt to a changing climate.
There have been many changes since we published our Climate Change Adaptation Strategy in 2009. Melbourne’s climate context has evolved, population growth projections have increased, and global and national policy and regulations have changed.
The Climate Change Adaptation Strategy Refresh 2017 details how we will increase our existing efforts and implement new ways to work towards our vision of a city that is adapting well to climate change. We want Melbourne to prosper and thrive and continue to be a global leader in climate change adaptation. The refreshed strategy will build the resilience of our municipality to the impacts of climate change, so our community can continue to enjoy the things they value.
Heat Safe City Principles
The Heat Safe City Principles outline the City of Melbourne’s ambitions and priorities for adapting to extreme heat. They have been developed in response to community engagement findings and draw from existing City of Melbourne strategies. Implementation of the Heat Safe City Principles requires a mix of City of Melbourne-led delivery, partnering with other organisations, and advocating for change.
• Every member of the community understands their heat risk and knows what action to take to reduce their risk
• Every member of the community can access a cool public place within walking distance of their home
• Every resident has a cool place in their home.
• The city is cooled by increasing the quantity and quality of green infrastructure wherever possible
• The city is prepared for drought by increasing alternative water supply
• The city is planned and built to increase thermal comfort.
• Our staff understand how heat affects their safety and the delivery of council services, and take action to prepare for and reduce risk
• We prioritise the most vulnerable members of the community in decisions about heat risk
• We are innovative in how we design and deliver policy, services and places to reduce heat risk
• We partner with other organisations to maximise our impact and advocate for change.
For more information on how we’re tackling heat, visit our heatwaves page.
What you can do
For specific actions you can take to be prepared for climate change impacts, see Heatwaves and Water and flooding in MelbourneOpens in new tab.
Further to this, here are some actions you can take to keep Melbourne cool, healthy and liveable.
- Visit green spaces
- Grow a green roof
- Connect with other greening organisationsOpens in new tab
- Create a sustainable garden
- Help us to grow our urban forest
- Green the WestOpens in new tab
- Check your plant life balance Opens in new tab
- Use the Urban Forest Fund to fund your greening project
- Choose the right plants for your location
- Talk to our treesOpens in new tab
- Take a cool routeOpens in new tab
- Visit our 'sustainability at home' page
Climate Change Adaptation Strategy 2009
The Climate Change Adaptation Strategy is a comprehensive assessment of Melbourne’s climate change risks for 2010, 2030 and 2070. It outlines a risk analysis of the potential climate change impacts and possible implications for Melbourne.
We will continue to work with all levels of government to better manage and minimise the risks posed by climate change.
We face four key climate change risks:
- less rainfall and more chance of drought
- extreme heatwaves and bushfires
- intense rainfall and wind storms
- sea level rise.
Our Climate Change Adaptation Strategy assesses the likelihood of these risks occurring. It explores the impact on our critical urban systems, such as:
- water supply
- transport
- communications
- energy services
- emergency services
- built environment
- social systems.
There are many ways to build resilience to climate change. Options include:
- technological (green/cool roofs)
- behavioural (safety in flood water)
- managerial (maintenance practices
- policy-related (planning regulations).
Two key actions that offer multiple benefits for the municipality are:
- Harvesting storm water across the municipality – this helps with reducing drinking water usage, watering our parks and street trees, preventing floods, building our water system resilience and protecting biodiversity.
- Increasing the city’s passive cooling efficiency – the city centre can be up to 7°C hotter than less urbanised places so reducing heat levels will help counter rising temperatures.
