Page - 207 - in Loss and Damage from Climate Change - Concepts, Methods and Policy Options
Image of the Page - 207 -
Text of the Page - 207 -
8 Non-economicLossandDamageand theWarsaw… 207
process. In the following, the term of non-economic losses is used synonymously
with non-market losses. Non-economic values are understood to be the object of
non-economic losses.
In recognition of the importance that non-economic values hold particularly for
vulnerable developing countries, NELDhas been included in theworkplan of the
Warsaw International Mechanism as a specific work area (UNFCCC Secretariat
2014). While not spelled out as such, the two central tasks that work under the
WIMwill be faced with concerning NELD are the development of instruments
(i) to avoid the risk of non-economic losses occurring ex ante and (ii) to respond
to unavoided losses ex post. A rich body of knowledge can be drawn uponwhen
developing approaches to both these tasks. Avoiding or reducing the risk of non-
economic losses will most likely rely on the integration of the value of potential
non-economic losses into comprehensive riskmanagement. Literature on adequate
assessmentmethodsandparticipatoryapproachestoadaptationplanningisavailable
inthisregard,includingontheintegrationofNELDintowidereconomicassessments
and thedrawbacksof such integration.Addressingunavoided losses, in turn, raises
questions of justice and questions of fair remedy (Wallimann-Helmer 2015) that
require further critical academic debate butwhose solutions ultimately need to be
politicallynegotiated.
8.2 NELD—CausalPathwaysandExamples
Impacts related toNELDasreported in the literaturearedirector indirect effectsof
climate-related changes thatwere experienced as adverse by those affected.While
theyare triggeredbyclimate-relatedenvironmental changes, theyarealwaysmedi-
atedbysocialfactorsthatdrivethevulnerabilityofahumansystemtoenvironmental
stressors, andby cultural factors that provide the context inwhich losses are expe-
riencedas such.The social andcultural factorsnotwithstanding, direct and indirect
causal pathways can be identifiedwhich show howNELD impacts are caused by
climatechange.
NELDcanbeadirect consequenceof climatechange, for example,when losses
are incurreddue tophysical damageofnatural environmentsor cultural sites.High
coral reefmortality due to rising sea-surface temperatures, as observed at a large
scale during the 2015/2016ElNino event (Eakin et al. 2016) is one such example
ofhowclimate changemaydirectly causenon-economic lossofbiodiversity in the
future, adding to the sizeable toll of economic losses associated with the loss of
biodiversity andother ecological functions (e.g.TEEB2010).Lossof territorydue
to sea-level rise presents anotherway inwhich climate changemay lead toNELD
(Albert et al. 2016). Indeed, projections over twomillennia show that under 3 °C
globalmeanwarming3–12countrieswill have lostmore thanhalfof their territory
due to sea-level rise (Marzeion and Levermann 2014). Non-economic losses and
damagesdirectlyrelatedtoclimatechangeareoftencompoundedbyhumanactivity
suchasmarinepollutionandunsustainablegroundwater extraction.
Loss and Damage from Climate Change
Concepts, Methods and Policy Options
- Title
- Loss and Damage from Climate Change
- Subtitle
- Concepts, Methods and Policy Options
- Authors
- Reinhard Mechler
- Laurens M. Bouwer
- Thomas Schinko
- Swenja Surminski
- JoAnne Linnerooth-Bayer
- Publisher
- Springer Open
- Date
- 2019
- Language
- English
- License
- CC BY 4.0
- ISBN
- 978-3-319-72026-5
- Size
- 16.0 x 24.0 cm
- Pages
- 580
- Keywords
- Environment, Climate change, Environmental law, Environmental policy, Risk management
- Categories
- International
- Naturwissenschaften Umwelt und Klima