At a glance
This page is for small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) operating in coastal areas. These businesses are diverse in size and sector but share a common interest in understanding and managing the risks and opportunities associated with a changing climate. Typical coastal SMEs include:
- Tourism and hospitality businesses, whose operations, assets and visitor demand may be affected by changing environmental conditions.
- Retail and service businesses, which may face disruptions to premises, supply chains, staff availability and customer access during climate-related events.
- Primary production and marine industries, including fisheries, aquaculture and coastal agriculture businesses that rely on healthy ecosystems and stable environmental conditions.
- Property, construction and infrastructure-related businesses, which may need to consider future climate risks, changing regulations and adaptation measures in planning and investment decisions.
- Professional and trades businesses that may need to prepare for climate-related impacts on their workforce, operations and clients.
A key question for these businesses is what climate change means for their assets, operations, employees and customers, and how they can build resilience while continuing to thrive in a changing coastal environment.
And remember that climate change can also create opportunities for innovation, improved efficiency, new services and stronger business resilience.
Highlighting resources useful for SMEs
Climate change is creating risks for businesses in Australia's coastal regions. Coastal flooding, erosion, rising sea levels, extreme heat and storms can damage premises and equipment, disrupt supply chains, affect employees and customers, and interrupt business operations.
These risks can change over time. Even if your business is not directly exposed to coastal hazards, your ability to operate may be affected by disruption to roads, utilities, suppliers or the wider community.
Tools and resources in CoastAdapt can help you understand the climate risks facing your business, identify practical ways to reduce those risks and plan for future change.
Below are topics and resources you may find useful (click for dropdown list)
- Working with limited time and resources? You don't need to undertake a complex risk assessment to get started. Check the minimum steps in What's the least I can do? to decide what next steps are needed.
- Check out the climate adaptation toolkit developed for small business by South East Councils Climate Change Alliance.
- More high level advice may be worthwhile if you require a complex site-specific coastal hazard assessment, major capital investment or decisions with significant financial consequences. A specialised adaptation consultant can help assess risks and develop adaptation options, read how to work effectively with consultants to make the most of their expertise and your investment.
- Understand the impacts of climate change in coastal areas.
- CoastAdapt has two tools to help you identify risk at your coast.
- Shoreline Explorer tool – three data sets – shows at present-day vulnerability and erodibility. If you haven't used Shoreline Explorer before, read this guidance first.
- Sea-level Rise and You tool shows future sea-level rise and inundation.
If you haven't used SLR & You before, read this guidance first.
- You can find out more about the extreme storms that affect Australia and their impacts: Tropical cyclones and East Coast Lows.
- What if these events get more complex? Read about compound or cascading events
- More general information on climate hazards in NCCARF's synthesis summaries.
- Then you can do a first pass risk assessment to see if you need to take further action. If you haven't done a first pass risk assessment, read the basics first.
- Once you have an idea of which hazards are important, you can do a first pass risk assessment to see if you need to take further action. If you haven't done a first pass risk assessment, read the basic of three levels of risk assessment.
- You can also work through the more comprehensive decision support tool in CoastAdapt, C-CADS, which includes a lot more tools and guidance.
- Consider an adaptation pathways approach, which can help you sequence adaptation once triggers for change are reached.
- What is the role of insurance in climate adaptation?
- if you are seeking funding you can get tips and templates for developing a business case
- Depending on your industry, you may be able to a grant to help your business adapt or try a new approach: get tips for grant writing.
- Get some guidance on monitoring, evaluating ad learning (MEL)
There are several non-climate stressors that come from businesses.
Many of these could be addressed by making your business more environmentally sustainable – e.g. reducing light pollution, underwater noise pollution, or plastic use, or runoff from building sites.
Read case studies on:
- Preparing small business to adapt: a South Australian toolkit
- Innovation is needed to reduce coastal vulnerability
- Business resilience beyond disasters: a model for regional recovery
Watch a short film from Adapt NSW and the Northern Rivers Living Lab:
Environmental consultant James Foster shows that adaptation means building backup plans into business strategy – applying lessons from sailing and disaster recovery to help Northern Rivers businesses navigate climate change and bounce back from crisis.