Impacts, Vulnerabilities, and Adaptation to Climate Change in Establishments with Major-accident Hazards in Italy

The main scientific sources agree that, in the next decades, European and Mediterranean regions (including Italy) will have to face the negative consequences of climate change, which are producing extreme events with an increase in frequency and/or intensity of: a) extreme temperatures (heatwaves); b) ultraviolet radiation; c) heavy rainfall; d) drought; e) wildfires; f) strong winds, etc., etc. In the absence of drastic and immediate mitigation policies (which address the causes), climate change is bound to continue, making complementary adaptation actions (which address the consequences) necessary at various levels, aimed at limiting the vulnerability of exposed systems and strengthening their resilience, while preventing or reducing the risks associated with climate change.Industrial activities, particularly those falling within the scope of the legislation on major accident hazards (European Directive 2012/18/EU), almost never take into account adaptation measures to the effects of climate change. Although never explicitly highlighted, various parts of Directive 2012/18/EU can be combined into a single strategy that takes climate change adaptation into account. The purpose of this article, following the institutional experience of the authors, is to provide useful elements for the climate adaptation of industrial establishments with major-accident hazards, with the aim of revising and integrating: safety reports, emergency plans (both internal and external), documents related to the control of urbanization surrounding these establishments, documents related to domino effects, etc. etc. In this way, the negative effects of climate change can be reduced on: 1) the safety and health of workers and citizens living near industrial plants; 2) the environment; 3) economic damage to production.