In the first half of 2024, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the European Environment Agency (EEA) introduced climate risk assessments and adaptation plans for their respective continents. The EPA states that climate change has created devastating consequences, including the costs of lives, disruption of livelihoods, and billions of dollars of damages. These impacts would become more intense in the coming years. Similarly, the EEA points out that climate change creates more severe consequences in Europe. Indeed, the EU has experienced extreme precipitation, large-scale floods, extreme heat, and large wildfires, resulting in dire impacts on agriculture, health, ecosystems, infrastructure, economy, and others.
After assessing the climate risks, the two most significant environmental agencies have identified some priorities the two governments should enact to mitigate the consequences of climate change. Indeed, the U.S. EPA will implement five key initiatives. They include (1) the integration of climate adaptation into EPA programs, (2) partnership with various stakeholders, (3) the implementation of measures to protect the Agency workforce, (4) the measurement and evaluation of performance, and (5) the identification and address of climate adaption science needs.
The EEA proposes some priorities that are even more progressive than those in the U.S. First, the agency identifies five climate risk cascades, including food, health, ecosystems, infrastructure, and economy and finance. In the next step, the EEA proposes specific priorities and policies that help mitigate each type of cascade. For example, to respond to the climatic-induced risks related to food, member states in the EU should develop sustainable and transformative agricultural practices. To alleviate climate risks related to infrastructure, the Union should improve the resilience of its infrastructure, including transportation, energy, and so on.
The climate risk assessments and adaptation plans from the two most significant environmental agencies highlight the severe consequences of climate change. It also implies that the U.S. and the EU are likely to be stricter on regulations related to GHG emissions and other environmental pollution activities. In other words, foreign firms involved in doing business in these two continents should be highly alert to new environmental regulations that are expected to come soon.
Author: Bao Hoang, Ph.D.
