Water and Climate Change Adaptation

This report by the OECD highlights the range of expected changes in the water cycle and the challenge of making practical, on-site adaptation decisions for water. It offers policymakers a risk-based approach to better "know", "target" and "manage" water risks and proposes policy guidelines to prioritize action and improve the efficiency, timeliness and equity of adaptation responses. The report highlights the benefits of well-designed economic instruments (e.g. insurance schemes, water trading, water pricing), ecosystem-based approaches and ‘real options’ approaches to financing; and through individual country profiles, provides a snapshot of the challenges posed by climate change for freshwater and the emerging policy responses.