Global

Slow-onset events (SOE) such as sea level rise, desertification, salinisation, ocean acidification, loss of biodiversity and forests or glacial retreat fall under loss and damage (L&D) from climate change impacts under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and are increasingly threatening the environment and people's livelihoods. Irreversible SOE are closely linked to non-economic losses (NEL) such as health, human mobility or loss of ecosystem services. Neither L&D from SOE nor NELs have a dedicated funding stream.
Effective management of slow-onset impacts such as coastal erosion, desertification and sea level rise and their often-transformative impacts on communities and countries has remained relatively unexplored in terms of policy and finance responses. Drawing on relevant global experience, this paper investigates recent approaches to planned relocation as one possible response to climate change impacts and considers principles to inform the design of a fair and effective funding system.
This paper reviews the evidence on slow-onset events presented in the Special Report on Climate Change and Land (SRCCL) and the Special Report on the Ocean and Cryosphere in a Changing Climate (SROCC), both published in 2019. It analyses how the reports, and recent literature cited in them, deal with the eight types of slow-onset events, specified by the UNFCCC: increasing temperatures, sea level rise, salinization, ocean acidification, glacial retreat, land degradation, desertification and loss of biodiversity.
Elsevier, Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability, Volume 50, June 2021
Slow onset events by definition occur gradually and it might be expected that policy-makers as a result pay less attention to them than to immediate risks or ‘shock’ crises. If this is true and what can be done about it are important issues for climate change policy-making, given the gradual nature of many climate related issues.
Elsevier, Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability, Volume 50, June 2021
This article synthesizes recent empirical literature on human mobility linked to slow-onset impacts of climate change. Through a review of the CLIMIG database from 2015 to 2020, it assesses the state of knowledge on human mobility related to slow onset events by distilling peer-reviewed articles across world regions, with particular attention given to developing country contexts.
This book chapter advances SDGs 11, 13 and 15 by discussing how arctic natives learned to cope with their environments but are now faced with the threat of the climate crisis.
Elsevier,

Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability, Volume 50, June 2021

Sea-level rise poses a significant threat to Small Island Developing States (SIDS) due to the concentration of people, assets, and infrastructure in coastal zones. This review assesses literature on key emerging topics in sea level rise including: the lasting impact of near-term mitigation on long-term sea-level rise; new global coastal vertical elevation data and their impact on existing sea-level rise projections; and the interaction of sea-level rise with other hazards, including salinization, tropical cyclones and extreme precipitation.

This paper aims to contribute to the limited understanding and recognition of soil ecosystem services (SoES) in spatial planning. In light of its critical role in climate crises and due to its global degradation, soil has drawn considerable attention in the recent global agenda. As one of its vital services, soil serves as a terrestrial carbon pool, which significantly contributes to offset greenhouse gas emissions in the atmosphere (EEA, 2012).

Elsevier,

Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability, Volume 50, June 2021

As sea level rise drives saltwater farther inland, drinking water supplies of some coastal cities will be contaminated. This paper evaluates how climate change is shifting the location of ‘salt lines,’ the zone where coastal fresh water meets the ocean, and implications for drinking water management. It focuses on changes from climate, as opposed to water overuse or water quality mismanagement, and reviews recent literature along three dimensions. Firstly, the paper reviews regulations on salinity in drinking water.

Elsevier,

Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability, Volume 50, June 2021

Climate change has affected diverse spheres and its impact is being witnessed worldwide. Soil, the basis of human sustenance, is both directly and indirectly affected by climate change. Soil erosion, vegetation degradation and soil salinisation are becoming prevalent, causing a threat to future food security. Saline soils are found mainly in North and Central Asia, Africa and South America. Various factors such as excess irrigation and poor drainage, groundwater salinity, sea level rise and intrusion, irregular rainfall contribute to the process of soil salinisation.

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