Download Climate Change Adaptation in New Brunswick

Climate Change Adaptation in
New Brunswick
Dean Mundee
New Brunswick
Department of Environment
Climate Change Adaptation Initiatives
• Province has been working on or completed several
initiatives and projects including:
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Provincial Climate Change Action Plan
NB Coastal Areas Protection Policy
Including adaptation into provincial approvals
Impacts of Sea-Level Rise and Climate Change in
Southeastern New Brunswick Project
– Health Canada study on Emergency Preparedness of Coastal
Communities to Climate Change Project
– Climate Change Adaptation Strategy for Atlantic Canada
– Regional Adaptation Collaborative (RAC)
Climate Observations in NB
• Temperature
• Snow pack
• Sea level rise
• Extreme storm events
Up 0.70 C
Down 25% (N) and 50% (S)
Up 30 cm
5 X as frequent
NB Climate Change Action Plan
• 5 Areas for “Adaptation”
– Provincial risk assessment
– Climate proofing development decisions
– Provincial Planning Policy
– Manage development of coastal areas
– Management of natural resources
Climate Change Action Plan
• Develop an integrated Provincial Planning
Policy
• Develop a comprehensive water management
strategy
• Adopting Coastal Areas Protection Policy into
regulation
• Address Forest, Fishery and Farming
Management issues
• Consideration of a changing climate in Tourism
Planning.
NB Department of Environment
• NB Watercourse and Wetland Atleration Regulation Adaptation included in the review process for the permit
applications.
• For example, the $38 million dollar Cap-Bimet Condo
development project was designed to account for sealevel rise and storm surges. The proponent also hired a
consultant to evaluate potential flooding of the access
road, buildings and infrastructure. This study changed
the design of the project.
NB Department of Environment
• NB Environmental Impact Assessment
Regulation
• Presently considers adaptation in the review of
all projects.
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For example:
Eider Rock Oil Refinery – Saint John
LNG terminal - Saint John
Upgrades to Route 1 Highway (Saint John to St.
Stephen)
– New subdivisions
– New waste water treatment plants
NB Coastal Areas Protection Policy
• Provincial Policy since 2002
• Manages land use development in the coastal zone by protecting
coastal features and setting standards for development in or near
coastal areas.
• It will be linked to the provincial land use planning process
• Objectives of the Policy include:
– Protecting flora and fauna
– Protecting inland areas from flooding
– Reducing the risk and impact from coastal flooding
• Next steps – proposed Coastal Designation Order (regulation)
NB Department of Agriculture
• Presently:
– Encouraging farmers to use terracing to reduce soil
erosion.
– Protecting and improving riparian zones – funding
program and collaborative projects with farmers, and
local watershed groups.
• Near Future:
– Evaluating the need to improve dyke system to
protect agricultural land from sea-level rise
NB Department of Natural Resources
• Presently:
• A coastal erosion data base – determining the
coastal erosion rates for properties in NB –
primarily along the eastern coast of NB.
– Presently over 10 years of data
• Forest insect population and disease monitoring
– e.g. they have found that the gypsy moth has been
moving further north.
– This information may lead to pest management
strategies.
NB Department of Transportation
• Presently:
– Incorporating sea-level rise and future flood
predictions into bridge design and construction, new
road construction and culvert sizing. For example,
the proposed Pointe du Chêne bridge has been
designed specifically to withstand storm surges,
coastal flooding and sea-level rise.
NB Emergency Measures Organization
• Developed an integrated incident management
system – to build emergency management
capacity at the regional and local level.
• LIDAR mapping and modeling of the Saint John
River Valley.
• New ortho-photos for the Saint John River
Valley.
2008 Saint River Flood
• Spring 2008 record level flood of the Saint John River
• Department of Environment and Emergency Measures
NB worked closely with other federal, provincial and
local partners to address flood issues.
• Lessons learned from the 2005 Saint John River flood
helped prepare for and reduce the impacts in 2008.
Maugerville, NB Spring 2008
Inland Waters - Flooding
Hydroelectric Dam - Grand Falls, NB
Grand Falls Gorge on the
Saint John River under
normal flow conditions
Inland Waters - Flooding
Hydroelectric Dam - Grand Falls, NB
Inland Waters - Flooding
Hydroelectric Dam - Grand Falls, NB
NB Power Generating
Station, May 2008
Inland Waters - Flooding
Hydroelectric Dam - Grand Falls, NB
Inside the NB Power
Generating Station, after
flood waters receded
Project: Impacts of Sea-Level Rise and Climate
Change on the Coastal Zone of Southeastern New
Brunswick
• Environment Canada led project with federal,
provincial and local partnerships
• Developed and mapped sea-level rise and
flooding scenarios for coastal communities in
southeastern New Brunswick
• Community consultation and capacity building
Impacts of Sea-Level Rise and Climate Change on the
Coastal Zone of Southeastern New Brunswick
• The goal of the project was to measure the impacts of
climate change and sea-level rise in support of
sustainable management, community resilience and the
development of adaptation strategies for these impacts
(Environment Canada).
• Completed in 2006
Source: Environment Canada
Project: Emergency Preparedness of Coastal
Communities to Climate Change (storm surge)
• Health Canada led project with federal, provincial and local
partnerships
• Two day emergency exercise with local decision-makers and
emergency responders in the Spring of 2007.
• Exercise based on major storm surge of coastal communities
(Town of Shediac, Village of Cap-Pele and others)
• Test of communities abilities to respond to emergency situation
related to a storm surge.
Cap-Pele, NB
Climate Change Adaptation Strategy for
Atlantic Canada
• NB participating in an agreement by the Atlantic
Provinces to address common issues related to
adaptation
• The Atlantic Provinces, and the Insurance Bureau of
Canada submitted a Letter of Interest to develop
projects and tools for municipalities, planners and
engineers to use to adapt to climate change.
• We will build capacity in Atlantic Canada to address
issues of adapting to climate change
Thank you/ Merci
Lemeque, NB