C-Change:Managing Adaptation to Coastal

Environmental Change

presentation to the Richmond County Council,

October 14, 2008

Dan Lane, Telfer School of Management, University of Ottawa

Co-Director ICURA Project14 October 2008 1Richmond County Council Meeting

IPCC 4th Assessment:Climate Change and Water

“Higher water temperatures and changes in extremes, including floods and droughts, are projected to affect water quality and exacerbate many forms of water pollution (high confidence).

In addition, sea-level rise is projected to extend areas of salinisation of groundwater and estuaries, resulting in a decrease of freshwater availability for humans and ecosystems in coastal areas.”14 October 2008 2Richmond County Council Meeting

Ice fields erosion

14 October 2008 3Richmond County Council Meeting

Mount Hood, Oregon, Late summerNo snowAs the climate warms up, mountainous regions may experience lower levels of snowfall. This image shows Mount Hood in Oregon at the same time in late summer in 1985 and 2002. Image

14 October 2008 4Richmond County Council Meeting

North Carolina Beach, Winter

14 October 2008 5Richmond County Council Meeting

14 October 2008 Richmond County Council Meeting 614 October 2008 6Richmond County Council Meeting

Container ship in Halifax harbour 2003

14 October 2008 7Richmond County Council Meeting

Saint Johns Anglican Church, Oyster Pond NS. 2003

14 October 2008 8Richmond County Council Meeting

Halifax 2003

14 October 2008 9Richmond County Council Meeting

“We simply have no evidence that implementation and testing [for emergencies] has taken place. This means Canadians have no assurance that essential government operations will function during emergencies.”

Canada 2008, p.6; CTV News, September 18, 2008

14 October 2008 10Richmond County Council Meeting

We believe that use of scientific and traditional knowledge, together with better understanding of the economic value of healthy coastal ecosystems, can help change the political discourse that eventually determines societal pressures. Societal responsibility and responsiveness can only increase as we improve the flow of pertinent and useable scientific information.

14 October 2008 11Richmond County Council Meeting

This report offers a preliminary examination of the potential costs to the island nations of the Caribbean. …we compare an optimistic scenario and a pessimistic one. Both scenarios are based largely on the 2007 report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate

Change (IPCC).

The cost of inaction, or the difference between these two scenarios, may be seen as the potential savings from acting in time to prevent the worst economic consequences of climate change.

14 October 2008 12Richmond County Council Meeting

Arichat Shoreline 1910

Source: http://www3.ns.sympatico.ca/j.josse/jeannesmain.htm

Source: http://atlas.nrcan.gc.ca/site/english/maps/climatechange/potentialimpacts/coastalsensitivitysealevelrise

C-Change: Managing Adaptation to Coastal Environmental Change

• Competed with over 100 Letter-of-Intent proposals for first SSHRC sponsored IDRC-ICURA competition (November 2007)

• 1 of 9 proposals chosen for invitation (April 2008) to submit final proposal (due October 22)

• Ottawa (June) and Port-of-Spain (September) planning workshops

• Funded award is $2 million over 4 years• Budget shared between Canada and Caribbean

partners

Research Process

Strategies

Methods

Activities

Time/Milestones

CommunityEngagement

Scenario Development

Construct Policy Options

CommunityEncounter

Database Development

Analysis of CumulativeCommunity Eff ects

Measure VulnerabilityAdaptiveCapacity

DevelopCapacity

SSM

SD

GIS

VI

AHP

Outcomes• Local workshops

– gather info, priority + feedback

• Co-learning among partners• Support tools

– mapping, analysis

• Training – community members + academics

• Contribution to Community strategic planning– DIMA links

• Governance advice – linking Community to EMO, NRCan

• Monitoring and Evaluation procedures

Although the consequences of disasters can be similar, knowing the risks in your region can help you better prepare.

Find out about risks in your region:www.GetPrepared.ca1 800 O-Canada

Conclusion

1. Propose Isle Madame as ICURA partner and seek Council’s support for participation

2. Work with Council, DIMA, EMO, community and sectors to develop a “community-based plan”

3. Partner with Université Sainte-Anne to encourage community out-reach and information

4. Encourage training 5. Maintain strategies and opportunities for

employment and planning

Merci/Thanks

• Questions?

ICURA Team MembersCaribbean Workshop, Sept 3-7, 2008