Climate projections

The government's climate projections (UKCP09), published in June 2009, provide information on how the UK's climate may change over the 21st century. They show us how our weather might change if we don't reduce greenhouse gas emissions but they also set out the unavoidable climate changes that we already need to adapt to.

The UK Climate projections offer overview information such as key findings for the whole of the UK and for 16 regions, and also projected changes for variables such as temperature and rainfall across different time periods.

Based on the UKCP09 projections for the South East we are likely to see:

• hotter, drier summers, which is  good new for tourism but leading to increased heat stress as well as subsidence and lower crop yields
• warmer, wetter winters which could lead to increased flooding and transport disruption
• more frequent storm, high winds and heat-waves and
• less frequent cold snaps.