Mitigation and Adaptation Policies Related to Climate Change in Greece

Abstract

The scope of the present work is the presentation of the state of play of Greece concerning mitigation and adaptation climate change issues. First, the national commitments of reduction or limitation of the emissions of greenhouse gases (GHG) will be described. These commitments result from the Kyoto Protocol (KP), the Doha amendment of the KP, and the European legislation related to the Europe 2020 targets on energy and climate change. Then, the time-series of the GHG emissions of the country will be presented, both aggregated at the country level and at the level of the main source sectors. The trends of the emission time-series will be assessed using specific indices. Moreover, based on the latest official GHG inventory of Greece, the level of achievement of the national commitment under the KP and the expected surplus of GHG emission allowances is estimated. By the consideration of the official GHG emission projection scenarios, the progress of the country in achieving the emission reduction targets for the period 2013–2020 will be assessed, especially for the sectors that are not included under the Emission Trading System of the European Union. The effect of the implemented, adopted and planned mitigation policies will be also presented.

Although an over-arching adaptation strategy is not yet available in Greece, adaptation measures are currently under implementation as part of a broader network of measures that apply to the specific areas of identified vulnerabilities. A summary of these measures will be presented in this work. The main sector specific strategies and action plans on climate change adaptation issues will be also presented. These are mainly incorporated in the Rural Development Programme (RDP) 2007-2013 ‘Aleksandros Mpaltatzis’, the National Strategy for the Management of Water Resources, the General and the Specific National Frameworks for Spatial Planning and Sustainable Development, the National Biodiversity Strategy, and the National Action Plan for Combating Desertification.