A draft Resilient Islands Strategy was approved at the meeting of Full Council in July and we are now inviting the community to provide feedback on this document and the accompanying implementation plan
The strategy has been developed using funding received for the Climate Adaptation Scilly project and sets out specific local actions that can be taken by individuals, communities and organisations to reduce the risks associated with the physical impacts of climate change on the islands.
In recent years, the Climate Adaptation Scilly project team has met with stakeholders and held public meetings on all of the inhabited islands in order to discuss the project’s proposals for sea defence works and enable the community to view plans. The feedback received at these meetings was used to inform both the logistics of the works themselves and the development of the Resilient Islands Strategy. We hope the strategy will empower the whole community to reduce the risks associated with the physical impacts of climate change so we can all continue to enjoy the islands. We would really appreciate your views at this stage.
How to provide your views
To submit your feedback on the Resilient Islands Strategy and implementation plan, please send an email with your comments and the subject line ‘Resilient Islands Strategy Consultation' to adaptivescilly@scilly.gov.uk or address to Climate Adaptation Scilly, Porthmellon Enterprise Centre, St Mary's, Isles of Scilly, TR21 0JY between 15 September 2023 and midnight on 26 October 2023.
Consultation responses will be used to finalise the action plan and the implementation plan so they can be taken back to Full Council. Once approved these documents will be made available on the Council website and paper copies will be available at St Mary’s Library and at the off-island community centres.
If you have any questions about the plan or the wider Climate Adaptation Scilly project, you can also call the project team on 01720 620118.
Regional climate change adaptation planning
The Resilient Islands Strategy focuses solely on the Isles of Scilly, setting out actions that individuals, communities and organisations could take to cope with the physical impacts of climate change that we experience on the islands, such as the impacts of fog on travel. However, the islands are also captured by a wider strategy which focusses on risks facing Devon, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly as a whole.
Devon County Council has commissioned a wider Climate Change Adaptation Strategy for Devon, Cornwall and Isles of Scilly (CCASDCIoS) which offers a view of how regional collaboration on climate change adaptation may be undertaken by organisations. This regional strategy was funded by the Environment Agency, and commissioned on behalf of the Devon, Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Climate Impacts Group.
To find out more about this regional strategy, please visit the Climate Resilient Devon, Cornwall and Isles of Scilly website.
Further information
Climate Adaptation Scilly is a comprehensive package of climate change adaptation measures funded by the Environment Agency and the European Union intended to reduce the impact of the physical impacts of climate change on one of the most vulnerable parts of the United Kingdom. The key risks from sea level rise and reducing rainfall are being managed through coastal defence works against coastal flooding and erosion, and through installation of rainwater harvesting systems for businesses. A community strategy is being developed to help the islands adapt to ongoing changing climate conditions.
European Regional Development Fund
The project has received up to £1.97M of funding from the England European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) as part of the European Structural and Investment Funds Growth Programme 2014-2020. The Department for Communities and Local Government is the Managing Authority for ERDF. Established by the European Union ERDF funds help local areas stimulate their economic development by investing in projects which will support innovation, businesses, create jobs and local community regenerations. For more information visit https://www.gov.uk/european-growth-funding
