This year’s spring floods have marked the spirits by their sheer magnitude and the number of people it affected; water levels in Lake Ontario were just a few centimeters below the highest recorded levels set in 1947[1]. Thousands of people were evacuated, thousands of homes were flooded and hundreds of communities were affected; in addition to the numerous roads that were closed, affecting the fluidity of traffic, and commuting in general.
When it comes to cleaning and assessing losses and damages, it is natural to wonder how often these spring storms will repeat themselves to such an extent. In response to this question, the Canadian Institute of Actuaries released the Climate Actuarial Index, which analyzes the frequency of extreme events[2]. The index confirms that over the past 50 years, the frequency of heavy rains has been increasing, and this is statistically significant. In other words, such floods will be repeated. The same conclusions apply for other extreme phenomena such as stronger winds, higher temperatures, and rising water levels .
Climate change has significant impacts at the social, economic and environmental levels. These effects are becoming increasingly known through the results of both Canadian (Natural Resources Canada) and International (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) scientific studies. In fact, they point to major impacts if nothing is done to adapt infrastructures and lifestyle habits. Worldwide, many citizens realize the gravity of the situation because they are already suffering the consequences. Moreover, on a global scale, prosecutions against government bodies that do not do enough to protect citizens are on the rise. Finally, international agreements and collaborations are multiplying. For example, in keeping with the Compact of Mayors, the Cities Climate Leadership Group (C40), regroups municipalities willing to help each other to reduce their ecological footprint.
As a result, the Canadian federal government is shifting its focus by diversifying its financial assistance programs to reduce environmental impacts and, on the other hand, to increase resilience. Some of the programs are specific to Canadian municipalities to encourage them to develop and implement strategic projects to increase their resilience by, for instance, protecting the built environment so that they continue to provide the same quality of services to citizens. The Federal and Provincial governments and some municipalities, already have a climate change adaptation plan in place; for instance, the cities of Thunder Bay, and Peterborough[3], and Lake Simcoe, in Ontario; and the cities of Sherbrooke, Gatineau and Montreal, in Quebec, have an adaptation strategy in place or are in the process of being implemented shortly.
Financial Assistance Programs
The Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) oversees federal programs that are relevant to identifying specific risks associated with climate change by the municipality, as well as impacts on the built environment, natural environment, economic activities, and municipal services. Carbon Consult Group supports municipalities in all the steps for each of the programs as listed in Table 1.
FCM also has a specific budget envelope to support municipalities that will have significant wage costs associated with climate change adaptation projects. Also, given the magnitude of municipal GHG emissions, it becomes relevant that they reduce them. Indeed, adapting to the consequences of climate change is even more difficult as economic actors, such as municipalities, have reduced their emissions.
The realization of GHG emission reduction projects is also likely to be funded up to 80%, for a maximum grant of CAD $175,000. Here are some of the project ideas listed by FCM:
- Water: Eco-energy improvements or construction of an anaerobic wastewater treatment facility using renewable biogas;
- Energy: improved lighting and insulation of municipal facilities; installation of an energy recovery system to convert waste energy into heat;
- Use of gases from the digestion of sludge from a wastewater treatment plant to produce heat and electricity;
- Community projects: stimulating the use of renewable energy; promote new financial tools that promote energy efficiency;
- Floods and droughts: develop natural assets such as trees, wetlands and streams.
Other examples of GHG emission reduction projects that are eligible for funding under the Municipalities for Climate Innovation program are available on the FCM website.
Funding in Ontario [4]
The Ontario government has put in place the Ontario Community Infrastructure Fund (OCIF), which provides steady, long-term funding for small, rural and northern communities to develop and renew their infrastructure. The total fund is increasing from $100 million per year to $300 million per year by 2018-19.
Conclusion
Climate change is real and is impacting most of our landscape. The trend is unfortunately rising and scenarios such as the one we were exposed to this Spring are more likely to become frequent. Municipalities are responsible to monitor and deal with the potential impact of climate change on their territory. Establishing an adaptation plan is one of the first steps needed to counter the effects of climate change and to adopt a resilient and responsible attitude towards possible environmental impacts on their territory. We invite you to contact us to identify the specific consequences that could jeopardize your infrastructures, economic activities and the health and safety of your citizens. At Carbon Consult Group, we have all the expertise to help you get the grants you can use to define the best adaptation strategies specific to your reality.
References:
[1] https://apps.mnr.gov.on.ca/public/files/flood-forecasting-and-warning-program/special-lake-ON-flood-watch_en.pdf
[2] http://actuariesclimateindex.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/ACI-Press-Release-2017-06-28-E.pdf
[3] https://www.amo.on.ca/AMO-Content/Environment/Climate-Change/Municipal-Climate-Change-Action-in-Ontario-(1)
[4] https://www.ontario.ca/page/climate-change-action-plan