Ports must adapt, just not react, to climate change

In the face of accelerating climate change, ports are confronting a new operational reality. Once considered stable bastions of maritime commerce, these coastal infrastructures are now on the front lines of environmental volatility. Rising seas, increasing wind speeds and extreme temperatures are very real present-day disruptors.

For ports, the implications are profound. These are not just environmental challenges; they are strategic, financial, and logistical ones. The question is no longer whether climate change will affect port operations, but how ports will adapt to ensure resilience, continuity and competitiveness.

“As a deep-sea port we know first-hand the pressures that extreme weather and sea level rise can place on operations. Our project with Ricardo has given us practical, prioritised actions that protect our people, assets and operations, while ensuring continuity for customers. Climate resilience will be built into our long-term planning, keeping the Port future-ready.”

- Chief Business Officer at the Port of Tyne, Ashley Nicholson

The climate challenge: a multi-hazard landscape

Ports are uniquely exposed to a range of climate hazards:

• Rising sea levels threaten quay infrastructure with projections indicating an increase of up to a metre in some regions by the end of the century. This could render existing berths unusable and demands costly elevation works in preparation.
• Surface water flooding is driven by more frequent and intense rainfall and is already disrupting operations. Ports with extensive hardstanding and limited drainage are particularly vulnerable.
• Extreme heat is emerging as a risk to both infrastructure and workforces. Outdoor employees are a growing concern, especially for outdoor roles. Heat stress, unsafe conditions and reduced productivity are becoming operational realities, while rising temperatures can degrade stored goods, tarmac surfaces and sensitive equipment.
• Storm surges and wind events compound these risks, amplifying the potential for damage and disruption by halting crane operations reducing throughput and reliability – with damaging consequences to customer confidence when recurrent issues.

These hazards do not operate in isolation. Their interactions – such as flooding during storm surges or heatwaves following infrastructure damage – create complex risk profiles that demand integrated responses – especially for key asset classes which consistently emerge as high-risk in evolving climates, including electrical infrastructure, transport networks, and automotive and bulk storage terminals.

Adaptation: from strategy to action

These vulnerabilities are being observed today; ports must move beyond risk identification to proactive adaptation. Effective climate adaptation in ports requires six strategic pillars:

1. Flood resilience: Retrofitting substations, upgrading drainage and implementing sustainable urban drainage systems (SuDS) are essential first steps.
2. Storm surge preparedness: Establishing thresholds for quay height interventions and exploring modular sea defences can mitigate long-term risks.
3. Thermal adaptation: Enhancing HVAC systems, insulation and building design ensures infrastructure remains functional under rising temperatures.
4. Futureproofing: New developments must be elevated, well-drained and designed with climate resilience embedded from the outset.
5. Workforce safety: Providing shaded areas, heat safety training and revised work schedules protects staff and maintains productivity.
6. Emergency planning: Early warning systems, alternative access routes and robust contingency protocols are vital to maintaining operational continuity.

Prioritising these proactive actions in order of risk severity, feasibility and cost-effectiveness to ensure ports are balancing long-term resilience with short-term viability.

Monitoring over modelling

One of the most important shifts in a climate adaptation strategy is the move from reliance on projections to investment in real-time monitoring. While climate models offer valuable scenarios, they cannot predict localised extreme events with precision.

There are many opportunities for Ports to gain valuable insights from existing services which monitor: hourly rainfall and temperature; river and tide heights; and wind speed and directions. Investment in automated alert systems could also be considered. Monitoring such data enables ports to identify emerging trends, set actionable thresholds and prepare a proportionate response in anticipation.

A networked environment

Ports do not operate in isolation and any disruption to their operations can ripple through supply chains, impact tourism and emergency response capabilities. Improving the climate resilience of ports can inherently support energy systems, transport networks and regional economies.

This complexity is compounded by the spatial constraints, legacy infrastructure and regulatory hurdles affecting the sector. Any progress to adapt to changing climates must be planned carefully, strategically and collaboratively with all implicated stakeholders consulted.

A call to leadership

Climate change is a present-day challenge. Ports must proceed with adaptation now, not just for their own survival, but for the resilience of the industries and communities they serve.

Using our extensive experience in climate change adaptation for Government and business, Ricardo can deliver comprehensive climate risk assessments and adaptation strategies for ports wishing to gain insight to the level of risk facing their operations.

Our insights into both climate science and likely future policy drivers help us to provide tailored climate adaptation strategies in-line with best-practice and aligned with UK Climate Change Act requirements, enabling ports to confidently and strategically prioritise investment and actionable adaptation measures. Our strategies aim to translate climate science into practical engineering and operational solutions, many of which could be implemented immediately with low cost and high impact.

Our climate adaptation work includes:

• Regional Adaptation Support Tool (RAST) methodology: Ricardo develops strategies to prepare ports for current and future policy and financial adaptation requirements, including requirements from regulators and lenders to disclose climate risks and conduct climate scenario analysis. 
• Climate Vulnerability and Risk Assessment (VRA): Using UKCP18 and Copernicus climate data, Ricardo assesses a port’s exposure to hazards including sea level rise, rainfall, heatwaves and storm surges complemented by site visits and stakeholder workshops to understand operational sensitivities and adaptive capacities. 
• Adaptation planning: Ricardo develops a suite of targeted adaptation actions, mapping already existing actions and proposing other options including floodproofing, enhancing drainage systems, raising quay heights, upgrading power systems and implementing sustainable urban drainage solutions (SuDS).
• Flood risk assessment report: to assess the specific flood risks (pluvial, fluvial, coastal) for each asset at risk.
  Through data-driven analysis and reports, ports can be empowered to respond to real-world conditions rather than relying solely on uncertain projections, improving agility and confidence in planning. Tailoring outputs for Board and senior decision-makers can support communication of the current and future policy and financial adaptation requirements, including those of regulators and lenders around disclosure of climate risks.

Rely on Ricardo’s experience to move from reactive risk awareness to proactive climate resilience  preparedness – ensuring your port remains a reliable, safe, sustainable and commercially competitive hub for maritime activity in a changing climate.

Building climate resilience in port infrastructure Rising sea levels, intensifying rainfall and more frequent extreme weather events pose significant risks to port infrastructure, operations and safety. For the Port of Tyne, a major UK deep-sea port, stakeholders were becoming increasingly concerned about how climate change could impact future operations and worked with Ricardo to understand the implications of evolving climate conditions on operational continuity and infrastructure resilience. Learn more >