"While urgent action to reduce emissions is vital, so is action to reduce Scotland's vulnerability to the impact of our already changing climate. Some degree of climate change is unavoidable, as the impacts over the next 30 to 40 years have been determined by our past and present emissions. We cannot prevent these, but we can adapt."
- Stewart Stevenson, Minister for Climate Change
June 24, 2008
Scotland's climate is already changing. Even if we reduced all greenhouse gas emissions to zero, global temperatures would still rise. Reducing emissions is important, but it can only reduce the scale of climate change, not reverse it.
We expect to see Scotland's climate become warmer, wetter and stormier. Some of the changes may provide positive opportunities, and some may have negative effects. But together, they mean it's not business as usual.
The Scottish Government is seeking effective options to help reduce Scotland's vulnerability to the unavoidable consequences of climate change. Scotland's Climate Change Adaptation Framework will have an important role to play in helping to reduce our vulnerability to climate change. The Framework will set out strategic principles for planning in a changing climate. It will identify roles and responsibilities for key decision makers throughout Scotland - and offer them leadership, guidance and a consistent approach. The Framework will also identify some early priority actions, but adapting to a new climate is an ongoing process and the Framework is just the starting point.