Adapting the capital

Mayoral plan addresses climate change risks to London

London’s vulnerability to the effects of climate change has spurred mayor Boris Johnson to announce what is billed as the first ever Climate Change Adaptation Strategy for a major city.

Johnson stresses that he remains committed to the carbon-
cutting objectives of his predecessor Ken Livingstone’s Climate Change Action Plan for London. The new strategy, he says, is “parallel and complementary”. But it’s all high priority stuff, with hotter, drier summers and warmer, wetter winters predicted – and 15% of the capital considered to be at ‘high’ risk of flooding, including ten hospitals, 75 tube stations and nearly half a million houses. 

Key action areas of the adaptation strategy include reducing fluvial and surface water flood risk, cutting down on the demand for water, and limiting Londoners’ exposure to high temperatures. The strategy promises a citywide urban greening programme, with green spaces and tree-lined streets absorbing rainwater and helping cool the city. There’s to be an ‘Urban Heat Island Action Area’, taking in the central London boroughs, where new developments will put special emphasis on such things as green roofs and mechanical cooling systems. Compulsory water metering “where feasible” is on the agenda too, along with action to promote rainwater harvesting and greywater recycling in new buildings.

Samantha Heath, chief executive at the London Sustainability Exchange, hopes to see more done to meet the needs of the most vulnerable. “A decent home in London must mean thermal comfort with good ventilation,” she says, calling for a major retrofit programme to achieve it. – Giovanna Dunmall

7 October 2008

Giovanna Dunmall