Department of Environment

The work towards the development of the State Action Plan on Climate Change (SAPCC) has been conducted under the aegis of the Department of Environment, which is the focal point for climate change in the West Bengal Government.

West Bengal State Action Plan on Climate Change

The Government of West Bengal, through a consensus, has identified the key sectors and regions that are likely to be most vulnerable and require additional efforts over and above its existing programmes and policies. The sectors identified are - Water resources, Agriculture, Biodiversity and Forests, Human Health, Habitats and Energy. Additionally, two regions have been identified as most vulnerable, namely, the Darjeeling Himalayan region in its northern boundary and the Sundarbans at its coastal southern end. The adaptation strategies for each sector and the two vulnerable regions were identified through the following steps:

• A review of each sector in West Bengal (and the regions of Darjeeling Himalayas and Sundarbans) was undertaken.
• The current concerns of each sector and the regions were identified along with the institutions and the government programmes, projects and activities that are supporting development and, hence, addressing these concerns.
• An assessment of the current climate trends and the climate projection scenarios for the Mid Century (2021-2050) were made.
• The likely climate change concerns and the corresponding adaptation and mitigation strategies that would ameliorate the climate change concerns were identified.