In Ireland a high-level government working group to tackle the threats of coastal land loss and flooding has yet to be established, almost five months after it was announced.
That is despite increasing warnings by scientists that Ireland is critically unprepared for the sea-level rise and storm surges that are coming with climate change.
A report published in recent weeks points to serious weaknesses in the Government’s planning.
“Ireland is highly exposed to climate-change impacts on coastal environments, with all major cities and many regional population centres located by the sea,” it warns. “The sea level around Ireland is projected to rise under all future scenarios and will continue to do so for hundreds to thousands of years.
“Discussions about what is valued about our coasts, together with the limited resources available for approaches that seek to protect against or accommodate climate-change impacts, will be challenging politically and for individuals and needs to be engaged with sooner rather than later.”
It is expected that sea levels will rise globally by between half a metre and one metre in the lifetime of a child born today.