73797 Sharing Knowledge and Learning from Cities No. 3 – June 2010 Aerial view of Durban harbour. © eThekwini Municipality Thinking Globally, Acting Locally: Institutionalising Climate Change within Durban’s Local Government Prepared for Cities Alliance by Debra Roberts of the Environmental Planning and Climate Protection Department of eThekwini Municipality. Overview D urban (eThekwini) is unusual among for instance, heat waves, heavy rainfall and storm cities worldwide in having a municipal surges, and sea-level rise. It also addresses the government that has developed a locally ecological changes and water supply constraints rooted climate change adaptation strategy. linked to climate change. International agencies pay This brief considers four institutional markers too little attention to adaptation, as the reduction behind local government approaches to climate of greenhouse gas emissions (mitigation) has been change: prioritised. This brief stresses the importance of building local knowledge and capacity on climate 1. The emergence of climate change advocates change risks and adaptive responses. Without such among local politicians and civil servants; knowledge and capacity, decision makers will see 2. Climate change as a significant issue in environmental issues as constraints rather than as municipal plans; essential underpinnings to development. 3. Staff and funds allocated to this issue; and This is the third in a series of Notes on climate change and cities. The first Note considered what 4. A serious consideration of climate change city governments must do regarding climate issues within local government decision- change. The second discussed the links between making. climate change adaptation and development, and Considerable progress has been achieved regarding the kind of support city governments need from the second and third markers but less so for the national governments and international agencies first and fourth. This brief highlights how climate to deal with these. The fourth will consider how to change issues need to be rooted in local realities build a city vulnerability risk map for both disaster that centre on avoiding or limiting impacts from, risk reduction and climate change adaptation. The CIVIS series shares knowledge and learning arising from Cities Alliance projects and other activities in slum upgrading and city development strategies. It also serves as a platform for policy dialogue and debate among city development stakeholders, including national and local governments, donors and slum dwellers to impact change in the lives of the urban poor and advance the urban development agenda. www.citiesalliance.org 2 Introduction Attention to Climate Change With 3.7 million inhabitants, Durban is the largest The first serious discussions on climate change port and city on the east coast of Africa and one of took place as part of the forward planning of South Africa’s most important urban centres. The the Environmental Branch. This became the local government structure responsible for manag- Environmental Management Department in 2003. ing the city is eThekwini Municipality, and it has The feasibility of establishing a climate protection become a leader in the field of local environmental programme was considered in 1999, but it did management. not progress because of a lack of resources and the need to deal with other “higher priority� Prior to South Africa’s 1994 democratic transition, development matters. environmental management at the local government level received very limited attention. In 2000, the Environmental Branch received Post-1994, the process of democratisation and approval from eThekwini Municipality’s executive committee to take part in a USAID-funded Cities for new local government structures included a much Climate Protection campaign, working with ICLEI– revised development agenda that sought to right Local Governments for Sustainability. This led to the wrongs of the country’s apartheid past and the municipality’s first greenhouse gas emissions address basic needs — for example, jobs, housing, inventory, which recorded emissions attributed and education — for all South Africans. Local to local government activities. A greenhouse gas government was, and is, a critical player in meeting inventory in 2007 extended the scope to cover all these objectives, given its direct interface with emissions. It also led to an energy efficiency pilot local communities and its pivotal role in service project auditing energy usage in two municipal provision. A new environmental management buildings. The project showed that low-cost and mandate was also included. no-cost energy interventions could cut energy use This commitment to environmental and by more than 15 per cent, with the costs repaid in development agendas created a growing tension under five months and with an annual CO2 savings between urgent development priorities and the of some 340 tonnes. Nine additional municipal need to integrate environmental concerns into buildings were audited, and a range of low-cost planning and decision-making processes, often for and no-cost interventions were identified and the first time. For many, environmental concerns implemented. are thought to be less significant than development priorities. Thus, the environmental management agendas of cities such as Durban focused initially The Need to Build on issues that were relevant to local development Institutional Understanding pressures, such as addressing air pollution. However, these activities generated little interest Environmental matters that could not be related within government, in part because they did directly to the development agenda, or that were not contribute to an understanding of climate of less local and political significance, such as change and what it means for Durban and its biodiversity, garnered little attention. surrounding areas. The highly technical nature of the work meant that it was undertaken primarily by consultants and overseen by municipal staff with little understanding of why this action was required. 3 Various other climate change initiatives were To address these issues, the Environmental implemented between 2002 and 2005, including Management Department initiated the MCPP . In a landfill gas-to-electricity initiative in three landfill its first phase, the MCPP worked with the Council sites. While these initiatives engaged some of the for Scientific and Industrial Research to translate city’s lead decision makers in climate change issues global and regional climate change science for the first time, their highly technical nature and into an understanding of local level impacts. the lack of clear links to Durban’s needs and its This effort highlighted how Durban was likely development agenda meant that little discussion to experience an increase in the number of hot occurred on the need for a municipal climate days with temperatures exceeding 30°C (86°F); change plan. how the distribution of rainfall might change, causing impacts on water availability, agricultural productivity and food security; and how damage Mainstreaming the Climate could be expected from extreme events such as flooding. It also outlined the possibility that Change Debate migration of people from other, drier areas in the country would increase, placing a greater burden From a local government perspective, the extent to on already stressed resources. which an issue such as climate change becomes successfully institutionalised in day-to-day The second phase resulted in the development of operations, planning and decision making can be the Headline Climate Change Adaptation Strategy. evaluated by using four institutional markers. Once the range and extent of the local impacts of climate change were better understood, it 1) The emergence of an identifiable became apparent that adaptation, rather than political/administrative champion(s) mitigation, was likely to be the immediate priority, for climate change issues. as discussions within the Municipal Council’s Economic Development and Planning Committee This was helped by the participation of the head of made clear. A “headline adaptation strategy� was the Environmental Management Department in an developed for a range of key sectors, clarifying advanced environmental management programme the relevance of climate change issues for in 2004. The programme was designed for virtually all departments and agencies within the professionals in leadership positions in the global municipality. The strategy also outlined the kind south, the nations of Africa, Central and Latin of adaptation actions that might be appropriate in America, and much of Asia. Most are characterised these sectors. This work has subsequently been by less developed or severely limited resources deepened through the development of specific and high levels of poverty. The programme adaptation plans for the water, health and disaster helped provide the knowledge base needed management sectors. to initiate and develop the Municipal Climate Protection Programme (MCPP), and underscored • Health the importance of capacity building at the local Some impacts are direct, such as heat waves government level in institutionalising complex and extreme weather disasters. Others arise environmental issues such as climate change. It through disturbances to ecological processes, for also became evident that local government would example the distribution of infectious diseases, not take climate change seriously if it was seen freshwater supplies and food availability. Certain only as a global issue without clarifying the local groups – including the elderly, children, and low- level impacts. 4 approaches to both the supply side (such as changes in water supply) and the demand side (differential pricing, public awareness campaigns and statutory requirements, for example). There is a need to evaluate the capacity of infrastructure to supply water within an uncertain climatic future so that it can cope with variable rainfall and increased flows during flooding events. There is also a need to understand future demands. • Coastal zone Coastal environments, settlements and infrastruc- There is a need for better data on how Durban’s biodiversity is affected by climate change. ture are exposed to storms, associated waves © eThekwini Municipality and storm surges, river flooding, shoreline ero- sion and an influx of biohazards – algal blooms, income and immuno-compromised individuals for example. These risk factors may intensify with – are particularly vulnerable to these impacts, climate change and are of particular concern to and the municipality would have to respond to Durban, given the city’s naturally erosive coastline. the greater risks they bring. A number of steps The municipality is investing heavily in developing need to be taken, including educating the public, the city’s coastline for tourism, and it should take developing community response programmes, into account likely climate change impacts. Extreme ensuring continued electricity supplies in all weather events in 2007 provoked discussions re- conditions, promoting the provision of more shade garding the need to manage the strategic retreat of and increased water efficiency, developing an some existing coastal infrastructure from vulnerable extreme climate public early warning system, and areas. undertaking research that improves understanding of the linkage between health and climate change Possible impacts of climate change on Durban’s in Durban. coastline, particularly with regard to sea-level • Water and sanitation rise, have already been incorporated into the municipality’s work over the last two decades, and Durban already faces constraints on its water this approach is expected to continue. It includes supplies, with water resources under threat mapping of 1:50 and 1:100 year flood lines for both in terms of quantity and quality. Climate rivers, with an associated programme to inform variability affects water resources through periodic droughts and local short-term water shortages. citizens. New developments need stormwater Changes in rainfall distribution and increased management plans to ensure that excess runoff temperatures will also reduce the capability of is contained on site. In addition, development existing infrastructure (reservoirs, for instance) to setback lines and potential erosion lines have store sufficient water. Management techniques, been identified along the coast. Such mapping can particularly those of integrated water resource show sites at risk and be used to develop plans to management, can be applied to adapt to the manage flood risks, identify the most vulnerable hydrological impacts of climate change and thus communities, and avoid future development in reduce vulnerabilities. Adaptive responses include flood-prone areas. 5 Durban’s coastline is vulnerable to erosion. © eThekwini Municipality • Biodiversity • Key infrastructure at risk Increased temperatures and the resulting impact Infrastructure design is generally based on past on water resources, water temperatures and river climatic conditions. However, they are no longer flows could have adverse effects on biodiversity accurate indicators for planning, maintenance and through increased evaporation from water upgrading. New guidelines are needed to ensure safety and quality of life and to reduce long- bodies, loss of important habitats and changes term costs. It may be necessary to revise road in species’ migratory patterns, for instance. The construction standards and avoid routes at high risk challenges faced by wetlands – development of flooding. pressures, drainage and groundwater abstraction, to name a few – could be exacerbated by changes • Food security and agriculture in precipitation and its implications for water Support is needed for local agriculture, and attention availability. The first step is to develop better data on should be paid to the impacts of climate change on how the many effects of climate change are likely to commercial agriculture. Half of the food consumed impact biodiversity. by the rural poor is produced locally, so adaptation within this sector is critical if food security is to be ensured in the future. 6 Research Centre in the UK, which also helped to build further the capacity of staff within the Environmental Management Department in the areas of climate change science and impact assessment. 2) The appearance of climate change as a significant issue in mainstream municipal plans. As a result of the work outlined above, climate change concerns are increasingly influencing strategic planning. This is reflected in the need for Planning new development in less vulnerable areas is one the development of an MCPP within the Integrated way to reduce disaster risks from climate change. © eThekwini Municipality Development Plan. The city’s open space system plan is in the process of being re-mapped, and research is being undertaken to determine how best to “climate • Disaster risk reduction proof� the biodiversity resources that the system Durban’s disaster management strategies have protects. It might also include the following: planning focused on technological disasters (the city is an for the creation of corridors that will facilitate the important industrial centre) and natural disasters southern and altitudinal migration of species; enlarging such as flooding. They do not engage with existing core conservation areas to increase the developing the citywide health emergency plans size and range of protected altitudinal gradients; and required in response to climate change. There is also identifying areas for improved matrix management, a need to shift the focus from response to disaster for example, where improved management of the more formal urban landscapes can help improve the risk reduction, minimising hazards, reducing exposure ecological viability of core conservation areas. Given and enhancing coping and adaptive capacities. More that the open space system already covers some emphasis should also be placed on enhancing early 74,000 hectares, any change to its spatial footprint warning systems, building more resistance into will have a significant impact on land acquisition, construction and infrastructure, relocating people and development planning and natural area management infrastructure away from high risk areas, and planning within the municipality. new development in less vulnerable areas. The third phase of the MCPP involved developing an urban integrated assessment framework, a computer-based model that facilitates evaluation and comparison of strategic development plans and policies within the context of climate change. Such a model provides strategic input into a city’s Integrated Development Plan (IDP), thus allowing climate change considerations to be factored into long-term planning and budgeting and the development of appropriate adaptation and mitigation responses. Since little work was available to show how this could be done, the eThekwini Municipality team established research Durban is an important industrial centre. collaboration with the Tyndall Climate Change © eThekwini Municipality 7 With regard to longer-term planning, climate climate protection considerations into political and change has begun to feature significantly in the administrative decision making is unlikely to be a stakeholder discussions that are taking place within smooth process. Anything that affects budget lines the Imagine Durban campaign. A municipality- and the city’s current desired development path will led project that focuses on integrated, long-term be contested. planning, the campaign is mobilising stakeholders – including government, non-government and civil society organisations, faith-based groups, tertiary institutions, business organisations and residents – Conclusions to imagine where they would like to be in the future. It emphasises that the planning choices made today Reasonable progress has been made in Durban will affect generations still to come. to mainstream climate change concerns within local government, given the pressing development 3) The allocation of dedicated challenges and resource constraints. The key to resources (human and financial) to climate unlocking this process was capacity building of key change issues. local government personnel who, in turn, could build local interest and identify local resources Implementing the MCPP clearly requires more – making the likelihood of sustainable climate staff and resources. This necessitated institutional protection interventions greater. Such an approach change, as no formal climate change mandate required the support of strong climate change existed within the municipal structures. As a result, political champions. Where these champions a new branch, approved in 2007 was created within have begun to emerge, however, there have been the Environmental Management Department to suggestions that they will not receive the support deal with climate change and climate protection. of political colleagues who favour a stronger As a first step, funds were secured to fill the development agenda. This in turn may cause a new management position in the climate protection level of political tension going forward. branch. The name of the department was also changed in 2009 to the Environmental Planning and In Durban, climate change concerns were Climate Protection Department to reflect this new mainstreamed within various municipal short- role. term and long-term planning processes. They also acted as a catalyst for the development of a new 4) Incorporating climate change assessment tool to facilitate the incorporation considerations into political and of climate change concerns into the city’s long- administrative decision making. term planning. This will help reduce the tensions While the response to climate change does between development and environmental priorities not yet affect day-to-day decision making in by allowing decision makers to better understand the municipality, local government leaders are long-term development. beginning to acknowledge its significance. The The need for local government to prioritise storms and high tides in Durban during 2007 adaptation over mitigation emerged very early on and afterwards caused extensive infrastructural in the development of the MCPP . This suggests damage and helped raise awareness of the kind of that in cities of the global south, donor funding is impacts that may be experienced in a climatically better spent on capacitating people – especially changed future. Of course, the integration of around issues of climate change adaptation – rather 8 than on supporting often ad hoc climate change innovation is often a key factor in catalysing mitigation projects. Durban’s experience also shows meaningful activity by both provincial and national that embedding responses to climate change within governments. local government activities requires not only that the global debate is made relevant locally, but that it is framed within a broader social/environmental Based on the article by Debra Roberts titled justice framework. This would ensure that local “Thinking globally, acting locally – institutionalizing government’s development agenda and climate climate change at the local government level protection agenda are meaningfully linked. Only in Durban, South Africa� , Environment and in this way will climate protection concerns affect Urbanization, October 2008, Vol. 20, No. 2, pages decision making and resource allocation at the 521-538. Available at http://eau.sagepub.com/ local level. In South Africa, this local level action is content/vol20/issue2 critical; past experience has shown that municipal 1818 H Street, NW Washington, DC 20433 USA Tel: (202) 473-9233 Fax: (202) 522-3224 www.citiesalliance.org info@citiesalliance.org