Regional Government completes second Monitoring Report on Regional Programme for Climate Change

July 14, 2025

The Regional Secretary for the Environment and Climate Action, Alonso Miguel, announced that the second Monitoring Report of the Regional Programme for Climate Change (PRAC) has been completed and published.

According to Alonso Miguel, "the PRAC establishes mandatory biennial assessments to monitor the degree of implementation, adequacy and effectiveness of measures aimed at mitigating and adapting to climate change effects in the Azores. This practice ensures that the Programme remains aligned with regional strategic targets for climate change."

"The PRAC is a regional public policy planning tool with a specific focus on climate change mitigation and adaptation. It was designed to ensure a structured, comprehensive and multisectoral response to the challenges posed by this phenomenon, especially in an island territory that is geographically dispersed, such as the Azores archipelago," he explained.

Alonso Miguel also mentioned that the Regional Government has developed a firm and structured response for mitigation, but above all for the Region's adaptation to climate change effects, through the implementation of the Regional Programme for Climate Change. The latter has been implemented through the LIFE IP CLIMAZ project, which provides for an investment of around 20 million euros in the Region.

Alonso Miguel emphasised that "the report now published is a compilation of information collected from the various entities promoting the measures included in the Programme, namely from regional public administration services, the business sector and municipalities in the Autonomous Region of the Azores."

The Regional Secretary responsible for the environment pointed out that "the monitoring carried out not only helps us to assess current progress but also to compile all the information necessary for future decisions regarding the revision or reformulation of the PRAC to keep aligned with emerging climate challenges as well as the national and international commitments made by Portugal."

Alonso Miguel also emphasised that “mitigation and adaptation to climate change require coordinated and effective action, and this report highlights the commitment of the Autonomous Region of the Azores to pursuing a path of sustainable and resilient development, remaining at the forefront of climate action.”

The Regional Secretary explained that, compared to the first PRAC implementation report, "a further 5% of the planned measures have been implemented and another 13% have already been initiated, mainly in sectors such as Transport and Mobility, Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Sources, Spatial Planning, in addition to Coastal adaptation, Ecosystem Conservation, Waste Management and the Circular Economy."

At present, six years after the approval of the PRAC, out of a total of 145 planned measures, 14% have been fully implemented, 65% are in the implementation phase, , while the implementation of the remaining 21% has either not started or, if it has begun, has not yet been reported to the Regional Secretariat for the Environment and Climate Action.

The government official revealed that, according to the responsible entities, some of the planned measures are not suited to the current reality of the Region, and for this reason, they have not yet been implemented. This reinforces the importance of the monitoring process as a tool for revising the PRAC, ensuring that it remains consistent with strategic goals and adapted to the regional context.

Alonso Miguel recalled that "according to the legal and strategic framework in force, and considering the results achieved in the PRAC monitoring reports, the Regional Secretariat for the Environment and Climate Action recently launched a tender procedure to revise this Programme, an estimated investment of about 400 thousand Euros. It is intended to update its methodology, aligning it with the latest regulatory instruments and consolidating an integrated approach to climate change mitigation and adaptation in the Region to the effects of this phenomenon.”

“Simultaneously, the strategy adopted has also been leveraged in the development of other fundamental tools, such as the Azores Flood Risk Management Plan, the drafting of mapping for mitigation and adaptation to climate change effects, and the installation of a flood warning system in at-risk hydrographical basins. The Azores Drought and Water Scarcity Plan will also be approved shortly," he continued.

The government official emphasised that "in response to the impacts caused by extreme weather events, which are becoming increasingly severe in the Region as a result of climate change, the Legal and Financial Scheme Support for Climate Emergency was created in 2022. It represents an additional relief tool that has been instrumental in supporting our families and businesses affected by material and property damage, as well as losses caused by bad weather."

“Since its creation in 2022, this support mechanism has been activated on 12 occasions, assisting, so far, to more than 100 applications from Azorean families and companies, representing an investment exceeding 350 thousand Euros,” he concluded.

The report is available for consultation on the Climate Action and Environmental Assessment Portal (www.azores.gov.pt/Gra/srrn-ambiente).