Action needed to avoid flood crisis

MANY European cities are advancing plans to combat the effects of climate change, with some coming up with novel proposals that could be of interest here — especially in the wake of the huge damage caused by floods in Cork and several other Irish urban areas in 2009.

The clear message in a new report by the European Environment Agency (EEA) is that preventative action needs to be taken now.

Or must we, in the time-honoured Irish way, wait for something near-apocalyptic to happen before deciding to act? Around three-quarters of Europeans live in cities. Urban areas are particularly at risk due to climate change and the report warns that delaying action will be much more costly in the long-term.