Human activities release greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. These gases trap heat and are causing the world’s climate to change.

Climate change will affect different parts of the world in different ways. It is likely global temperatures and sea levels will rise, and weather such as rain, snow and wind will become more intense.

These changes will affect our lives, our health, economies, natural ecosystems and more.

Monitoring has shown that Tasman's climate is getting warmer. Tasman needs to be prepared for a future of changing climate. As well as mitigating the problems, we need to work together to ensure that we, as a community, are prepared and ready to adapt to our ever changing environment.

Council has considered the effects of climate change in our work programmes for many years. In recent times, we have moved to provide leadership and advocacy by adopting the Tasman Climate Action Plan which aims to drive reductions in Council emissions and improve resilience.

Through the development of the new Tasman Environment Plan, there is an opportunity to strengthen our commitment to managing the effects of climate change through both reducing emissions and adaption. The plan might for example promote renewable energy, infrastructure to support active transport and protect vulnerable communities, appropriate land-use management, environmental enhancement and restoration, and sustainable and resilient urban design principles.

Climate change mitigation means actions that help to slow and lessen global warming, focusing on reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

Through the new Tasman Environment Plan, there are several ways that we might help to mitigate climate change through policies to reduce emissions and support our environment. Some of these include housing intensification to reduce the need for car travel and promoting alternative modes of transport, supporting renewable energy generation, and promoting the use of carbon sinks through establishing indigenous and exotic tree planting in appropriate locations.

Climate change adaption is about getting prepared for the impacts of climate change. The best available science predicts increasing temperatures for Tasman, so the goal is to reduce our vulnerability to the harmful effects of climate change (like sea-level rise, more intense extreme weather events, and drought) by getting started on things that improve our resilience. Adaptation also means thinking ahead to how we can make the most of any potential opportunities associated with a changing climate. Council is already working in the adaptation space, and in particular there is a significant programme of work happening around coastal hazards and sea level rise through our Coastal Management Project - Responding to Climate Change.

In this episode of the Tasman Environment Plan podcast, TDC Policy Planner Diana Worthy talks hazards and climate change in the Tasman District.

Find out more about this topic at the links below:

• Climate change fact sheet
• How climate change is affecting the Tasman District
• Council climate action plan
• Coastal Management Project - Responding to Climate Change
• Natural Hazards