Scottish Climate Change Adaptation Programme 2019-2024: strategic environment assessment post adoption statement

6. Monitoring

6.1.1. Section 19 of the 2005 Environmental Assessment (Scotland) Act requires the Responsible Authority to monitor significant environmental impacts arising as a result of the implementation of the plan, programme or strategy. The purpose of the monitoring is to identify any unforeseen adverse effects at an early stage and to enable appropriate remedial action.

6.1.2. The Climate Change (Scotland) Act 2009 requires the laying of an annual report on progress towards the current adaptation programme. This provides the opportunity to regularly evaluate the progress towards meeting the outcomes laid out in the Programme and contributes to the ongoing monitoring process of the environmental impacts of the policies and research outcomes.

6.1.3. In light of the comments received on the draft programme and the Environmental Report, a Monitoring and Evaluation Framework was included in the published Programme, with initial sets of potential indicators for Outcome 5 and Outcome 6. The monitoring and evaluation framework for the second Adaptation Programme builds on the monitoring foundation established in the first Programme and has been developed in response to specific recommendations from both the Adaptation Sub-Committee (of the UK Climate Change Committee) and ClimateXChange to ensure that we can effectively monitor the effects of the implementation in practice of the Programme and track progress towards the outcomes.