Australia: Queensland climate adaptation strategy - Biodiversity and ecosystems climate adaptation plan
The Biodiversity and Ecosystems Climate Adaptation Plan (the Plan), seeks to lay the groundwork for a future of more collaborative and strategic problem-solving, planning and on-ground action to minimise the negative impacts of climate change on Queensland’s biodiversity and ecosystems.
The Plan was developed under the Queensland Climate Adaptation Strategy 2017–2030 (Q-CAS) which is part of the Queensland Government's Climate Change Response. The National Climate Change Adaptation Research Facility (NCCARF) and Cath Moran Ecological Consultancy led the development of the Plan using a participatory and collaborative approach to engage researchers, policymakers, planners, on-ground managers and people working in engagement and advocacy. The Queensland Department of Environment and Science funded the Plan’s development.
The Plan provides Queensland with a reminder of the changes already impacting on our natural systems and of the changes still to come. The Plan draws attention to what the sector sees as a key issue: inadequate prioritisation in the decision-making of Queensland's economic sectors of the adaptation of Queensland’s biodiversity and ecosystems.
Section 1 of the Plan describes its scope and outlines how it was developed. Section 2 summarises the risks from climate change for Queensland's biodiversity and ecosystems and highlights the climate-change impacts already being experienced. Section 3 summarises existing work in the sector and identifies gaps and barriers to management for the adaptation of biodiversity and ecosystems. Section 4 of the Plan presents the actions recommended by the sector.