Workshop of the French Presidency on the "Impact of climate change on European civil protection" 1st & 2nd February 2022, Paris (France)
According to the United Nations Office for Disaster Reduction, climate-related disasters (Human cost of disasters, an overview of the last 20 years 2000-2019, UNDRR & CRED, oct. 2020) increased from 3,656 between 1980 and 1999 to 6,681 between 2000 and 2019, an increase of 83%, resulting in considerable loss of life and property. In the field of civil protection, the year 2021 was characterised by the record number of 114 activations of the Union Civil Protection Mechanism (UCPM), breaking the previous record set in 2020 (102) .In fact, the simultaneous activations, linked to the forest fires in the Mediterranean area, during the summer led to unprecedented levels of pressure.
The European response proved to be equal to the stakes as we witnessed on Greek soil the largest operation ever deployed. The solidarity of the Member States made it possible to avoid the worst. However, a threshold has been crossed and a return to the past appears complicated, if not impossible. Indeed, the outlook for the effects of climate change is not encouraging: Europe is warming up and fast, faster than any other region in the world.
Concerned about this worrying issue, the French Presidency wants the European Union to be at the heart of the response to the major challenges of our time, such as global warming. Therefore, during its mandate and in the field of civil protection, the French Presidency will strive, in coordination with the Czech Republic and Sweden, as a trio of Presidencies, to strengthen solidarity, preparedness and effectiveness of response in the context of crisis management in the event of natural, man-made and health-related disasters. In this framework, all the events that will be organized in the first semester of 2022 are intended to contribute to the overall reflection on the European civil protection response to climate change, based on the existing tools of the Union civil protection mechanism (UCPM). In addition, Council Conclusions dealing with climate change are currently being discussed in the Council group dedicated to civil protection, the PROCIV group.
The French Presidency is indeed committed to creating a permanent link between strategic thinking and operational implementation and the impact of climate change is the common thread that we have chosen to run through these six months. In this regard, the workshop on the "Impact of climate change on European civil protection" aimed at drawing up, together with the Member States and the Commission, an objective inventory of the consequences and impact of climate change, in order to better understand, mitigate and protect against them. Its conclusions are intended to enrich the debates conducted under the draft Council Conclusions. The chosen format of the workshop was a plenary conference followed by three working sessions based on thematic areas and the moderation was carried out by General Bruno Ulliac, professional fire-fighter and head of the European and international affairs unit within the General Directorate of civil protection and crisis management - DGSCGC.
The opening speeches by Mr. Stéphane Thebault (Deputy director for international affairs, resources and strategy - DGSCGC) and Ms. Julia Stewart-David (Acting Director of the Disaster Prevention and Preparedness Directorate, ECHO. B, within the Directorate General for Civil Protection and European Humanitarian Aid Operations, DG ECHO), gave the general elements of context. Then, three international experts: Ms Véronique Ducrocq (Météo France), Ms Christina Corbane (DRMKC) and Mr Carlo Buontempo (Copernicus, C3S), presented the consequences of climate change, as well as the tools for forecasting and anticipation.
The work focused then on three workshops, led by a panel of specialists:
- Early warning, alert and population information systems moderated by Mr Karim Kerzazi (Head of the bureau in charge of alert, public awareness and education – DGSCGC), Lieutenant Colonel Henri Claude Pothin (Battalion chief at the Reunion island Departmental Fire and Rescue Service - SDIS 974) and Ms Olimpia Imperiali (Team Leader of the Situational Awareness Sector, DG ECHO B3, European Commission);
- Preparedness and operational planning moderated by Mr Michel Gouriou, (Head of the bureau in charge of planning, exercises and lessons learnt – DGSCGC), Colonel Stéphane Helleu (Director of the Haute-Saône Departmental Fire and Rescue Service - SDIS 70);
- Capacity response moderated by Lieutenant Colonel Yannick Durocher (Battalion chief at the staff officers headquarters, Western Defense and Security Zone), Lieutenant-Colonel Emmanuel Chapeau (Project officer at the European and International affairs unit – DGSCGC), and Ms Camille Besnard ( French Presidency Project officer at the European and International affairs unit – DGSCGC).
Regarding the discussions carried out within the workshops, the 2021 amendment of the Decision No. 1313/2013/EU on a Union Civil Protection Mechanism, enounces that "climate change is leading to an increase in the frequency, intensity and complexity of natural disasters within the Union and worldwide, and thus to a need for a high degree of solidarity among countries". This postulate was the core of the debates. As a corollary, the potential avenues for adapting the UCPM, particularly in the anticipation and preparation phases, to face climate change, were identified and discussed collectively. These avenues are in fact an extension of the first milestones set by the Commission's expert groups working on "Disaster's prevention and risk management", "Early warning system" and "Capacities".
Our knowledge of the phenomena and our response to climate change will depend on our realism and pragmatism, as well as our ability to integrate risk assessments into a long-term strategy. As such, the French Presidency invited the Member and Participating States, based on the interim reports produced by the groups of experts as well as the existing tools of the mechanism, to identify the levers facilitating a territorial analysis, in a cross-border, transnational and multi-sectoral dimension. Past experiences should allow us to move forward in anticipation, mitigation, planning and operational implementation. The experiences (lessons learnt), best practices and skills acquired by some must benefit all.
In a complementary approach, the French Presidency also wishes to build on the work initiated under the Slovenian Presidency on the EU's disaster resilience goals (DRGs) and on scenario building, by progressing in their transposition and integration into the European civil protection knowledge network following a systemic approach.
The conclusions of the workshop highlighted the following needs:
- to strengthen cross-border and multi-sectoral synergies;
- to initiate reflections to match risk analysis and coverage, work on disaster resilience objectives and the development of scenarios to define deployment or pre-positioning plans for capacities;
- to capitalise on the EU knowledge network and the DRMKC to create centres of expertise with a risk-based approach and networking on the European territory (with references to the NEMAUSUS project);
- to encourage closer links between the ERCC and the national civil protection authorities of the Member States for integrated risk management.
