Key areas of adaptation measures in the residential environment according to the NAP

The National Action Plan (NAP) identifies the residential environment as one of seven key areas of focus for climate change adaptation. The main goal in this area is to create a high-quality legislative, institutional, professional and financial environment for systematic and complex actions of local governments in the process of adaptation to climate change in cities and towns.

The NAP focuses on the following key areas of adaptation measures in the residential environment:

• Legislation and planning:
  • Incorporating adaptation into legislation: The current legislation does not sufficiently take into account the issue of adaptation to climate change, which makes it difficult for cities and municipalities to implement the necessary adaptation measures.
  • Integrating climate change into planning documents: Planning documents should contain a comprehensive response to climate change, which requires their climate assessment and the creation of a separate adaptation strategy for each location.
• Methodological and professional support:
  • Creation of methodologies: In Slovakia, there is a lack of formalized methodologies for assessing the vulnerability of settlements, preparing adaptation strategies and evaluating their effectiveness.
  • Introduction of the professional support mechanism: Cities and municipalities often do not have sufficient professional capacity to implement a complex adaptation process. Therefore, it is necessary to create a professional support system that will provide them with the necessary information and expertise.
• Education and awareness:
  • Public administration education: It is important to ensure the training of municipal and state administration workers in the field of adaptation to climate change.
  • Public involvement: Increasing public awareness of the issue of climate change and adaptation is key to the successful implementation of adaptation measures.
• Funding:
  • Securing financial resources: Implementation of adaptation measures requires significant financial resources. It is necessary to ensure their availability from various sources, including the state budget, European funds and private investments.
  • Creation of motivational mechanisms: For municipalities, it is necessary to create motivational mechanisms that will support them in investing in adaptation measures, for example through co-financing from EU funds.

NAP emphasizes that adaptation of settlements to climate change is a complex process that requires cooperation and coordination between the state administration, local government, the business sector, the academic community and the public.

In addition to the mentioned areas, the NAP also focuses on specific adaptation measures in settlements, such as:

• Retention of water in the country and in settlements: Improving water management in order to mitigate the negative impacts of drought and floods.
• Reducing urban overheating: Support for building green and blue infrastructure, adaptation of buildings and public spaces.
• Improving infrastructure resilience: Ensuring the resistance of critical infrastructure (transport, energy, water management) to extreme weather conditions.
• Improving population health protection: Ensuring sufficient awareness of the health risks associated with climate change and the implementation of preventive measures. (Co2AI)