Assessing costs of climate change for Austria
Objective
The objective of COIN was to assess the costs of climate change adaptation measures for cities. Climate scenarios were interpreted, and all sectors of the Austrian National Adaptation Strategy were explored.
Project description
Methodologically, the project combined: Scenario-Based Impact-Field-Assessment to capture impacts in the greatest possible detail; Computable General Equilibrium (CGE) analysis to capture cross-sectoral linkages and economy-wide effects; and Qualitative Analysis to capture additional non-market effects where monetisation is deemed inappropriate or impossible.
The project focused on the elaboration of socio-economic pathways and climate-induced costs in cities through studies of all larger cities in Austria in the context of urban green areas. The current volume of urban green areas was extracted from land use maps, and the cost impacts of preventive measures were assessed to mitigate heat island effects to ensure local climate comfort. As preventive measures, additional green spaces and the planting of trees were considered, and costs for different climate change scenarios and conditions were estimated.
Main conclusions
- Climate change will affect Austrian cities in different ways, both impact-wise and cost-wise.
- Among the federal state capitals, Vienna will incur the highest costs, while the cities of Innsbruck and Klagenfurt will have the lowest estimated costs to adapt to climate change.
- Final outcomes of the project have been published in book form, and can be downloaded here.
Funder
Austrian Climate Research Programm (ACRP)
