Two ways to deal with climate change are mitigating it by reducing emissions, and/or adapting to the climate change we cannot avoid.
I have always believed that adaptation is 'harder' than mitigation in the sense that adaptation is much more locally specific and therefore cannot always be translated easily to other areas. I believe it is easier to build a wind turbines in the Netherlands and using the same technology in Italy, than to irrigate tomatoes in the Netherlands and to use this technology in Italy. The irrigation technology must be adjusted with regard to water availability, water requirements (which highly depend on the climate), the soil where the crop is cultivated, shadow on the field...
Indeed, there are difference in wind turbines (for instance off-shore mills). But in general, is it true that adaptation is more difficult to upscale than mitigation?
Dr. Janka, definitely adaptation is more difficult than mitigation. During adaptation you are changing the physical or behavioral characteristics by which it becomes better suited to the say for environment. Here you have to adjust in ecological, social or economic systems in response to actual or expected climate stimuli and their effects or impacts. But mitigation is the action of reducing risk or reduction in frequency or minimization of potential impact. That is more easy to achieve.
Yes ! definitely adaptation is more difficult than mitigation . many points are mentioned by MR Tarafdar . However one major point is related policies and programme. As adaptation is generally promoted by policies and programme and in practice the program hasn't worked as planned due to its social, ecological and economical complexity.also political agendas are always dominate. There's not really one simple solution for untangling these policies. That's one reason climate adaptation won't always be as straightforward as we might think.
Certainly, adaptation is more difficult than mitigation. I have two possible reason why.
a) Psycological, we always tend to think of a solution than accepting the current situation as an alternative solution. Human mind works that way.
b) Adaptation will require time. It is as simple as putting back a chaotic system into equilibrium or a chaotic system achieving new equilibrium. Certainly, it will be a longer process and harder than anything else.
Thank you all very much! Your answers are highly appreciated!
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