Climate models project that heavy precipitation events intensify with climate change. It is generally accepted that extreme day-long events will increase at a rate of about 6–7% per degree warming, consistent with the Clausius-Clapeyron relation. However, recent studies suggest that subdaily (e.g., hourly) precipitation extremes may increase at about twice this rate. Conventional climate models are not suited to assess such events, due to the limited spatial resolution and the need to parametrize convective precipitation (i.e., thunderstorms and rain showers). Here we employ a convection-resolving model using a horizontal grid spacing of 2.2 km across an extended region covering the Alps and its larger-scale surrounding from northern Italy to northern Germany. Consistent with previous results, projections using a Representative Concentration Pathways version 8.5 greenhouse gas scenario reveal a significant decrease of mean summer precipitation. However, unlike previous studies, we find that both extreme day-long and hour-long precipitation events asymptotically intensify with the Clausius-Clapeyron relation. Differences to previous studies might be due to the model or region considered, but we also show that it is inconsistent to extrapolate from present-day precipitation scaling into the future.

Heavy precipitation in a changing climate: Does short-term summer precipitation increase faster?

Soil and Water : Physical Principles and Processes  By Daniel Hillel (Physiological Ecology: a Series of Monographs and Treatises) Pp xiv + 288 (Academic: New York and London, January 1971) $14; £655

Soil and Water

Nature-based solutions (NbS)-solutions to societal challenges that involve working with nature-have recently gained popularity as an integrated approach that can address climate change and biodiversity loss, while supporting sustainable development Although well-designed NbS can deliver multiple benefits for people and nature, much of the recent limelight has been on tree planting for carbon sequestration There are serious concerns that this is distracting from the need to rapidly phase out use of fossil fuels and protect existing intact ecosystems There are also concerns that the expansion of forestry framed as a climate change mitigation solution is coming at the cost of carbon rich and biodiverse native ecosystems and local resource rights Here, we discuss the promise and pitfalls of the NbS framing and its current political traction, and we present recommendations on how to get the message right We urge policymakers, practitioners and researchers to consider the synergies and trade-offs associated with NbS and to follow four guiding principles to enable NbS to provide sustainable benefits to society: (1) NbS are not a substitute for the rapid phase out of fossil fuels; (2) NbS involve a wide range of ecosystems on land and in the sea, not just forests; (3) NbS are implemented with the full engagement and consent of Indigenous Peoples and local communities in a way that respects their cultural and ecological rights; and (4) NbS should be explicitly designed to provide measurable benefits for biodiversity Only by following these guidelines will we design robust and resilient NbS that address the urgent challenges of climate change and biodiversity loss, sustaining nature and people together, now and into the future

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/gcb.15513

Getting the message right on nature-based solutions to climate change

In March 2010 Ofcom was directed to provide the Secretary of State with a report on climate change adaptation. The Direction asked us to summarise our functions and assess the possible impacts of climate change in relation to these functions. The letter accompanying the direction clarified that the report should provide proposals for ongoing monitoring and identify barriers to action. This report, agreed with DEFRA, is our response to this request.

Climate Change Adaptation

Nature-based solutions (NBS) find increasing attention as actions to address societal challenges through harnessing ecological processes, yet knowledge gaps exist regarding approaches to landscape planning with NBS. This paper aims to provide suggestions of how planning NBS can be conceptualized and applied in practice. We develop a framework for planning NBS by merging insights from literature and a case study in the Lahn river landscape, Germany. Our framework relates to three key criteria that define NBS, and consists of six steps of planning: Co-define setting, Understand challenges, Create visions and scenarios, Assess potential impacts, Develop solution strategies, and Realize and monitor. Its implementation is guided by five principles, namely Place-specificity, Evidence base, Integration, Equity, and Transdisciplinarity. Drawing on the empirical insights from the case study, we suggest suitable methods and a checklist of supportive procedures for applying the framework in practice. Taken together, our framework can facilitate planning NBS and provides further steps towards mainstreaming.

/pdf/planning-nature-based-solutions-principles-steps-and-555kn3jfqr.pdf

Planning nature-based solutions: Principles, steps, and insights.

https://researchonline.gcu.ac.uk/ws/files/40209925/1_s2.0_S004896972032372X_main.pdf

Saša Vranić

Papers

Towards an operationalisation of nature-based solutions for natural hazards