Page - 207 - in Loss and Damage from Climate Change - Concepts, Methods and Policy Options

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.