Download Canada submission on NWP FINAL

Canada’s contribution to Call for submissions in the area of ecosystems,
interrelated areas such as water resources and adaptation under the Nairobi
work programme
Canada appreciates the opportunity to contribute to the Nairobi Work Programmes invitation for
submissions on the area of ecosystems, inter-related areas such as water resources, and adaptation.
Our submission focusses on lessons learned and adaptation planning addressing ecosystems, drawing
primarily from recent national science assessments of climate change impacts and adaptation.
Canadian Context
Canada is home to major portions of the world’s polar regions and tundra, boreal and temperate
forests, grasslands and aquatic ecosystems, including the Great Lakes and territorial waters in the
Pacific, Arctic and Atlantic oceans. These ecosystems contain about 10% of the world’s forests and 20%
of the world’s freshwater. They also provide niche space for more than 70 000 species of mammals,
birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish, invertebrates, plants and other organisms.
The variety of ecosystems and associated processes is the natural capital that provides the foundation
for much of Canada’s economic and social well-being. The services provided by these ecosystems,
including flood control, tend to be highly undervalued in traditional economic analyses. However it is
increasingly recognized that healthy ecosystems and biodiversity are vital both for their own sake and
for the maintenance and enhancement of economic sectors (such as agriculture and tourism) during
periods of rapid environmental change. A toolkit to assist in building capacity to use ecosystem services
assessment and to help reflect those services in environmental management and decision-making, will
soon be published by the Canadian Councils of Resource Ministers.
Climate change, interacting with other human stressors such as pollution and landscape fragmentation,
is having clear impacts on ecosystems in Canada. Those impacts include changes in species
distributions, life cycle timing (phenology), fish and wildlife health, and disturbance regimes, many of
which have direct implications for human health and livelihoods.
Canada’s Arctic and the importance of Indigenous knowledge
While ecosystem impacts of climate change are evident in all regions of Canada, they are most visible in
Canada’s Arctic. Indigenous observations provide a powerful complement to other scientific monitoring,
and in Canada provide insights into changes in species, changes in population numbers, declines in
animal health and changing migration behaviour. The importance of subsistence harvesting (traditional
foods) remains very high in most Indigenous communities, with ecosystem impacts affecting food
availability, travel safety (across sea ice) and culture. Innovative governance structures (comanagement) developed specifically for northern contexts are under increasing pressures from
communities in their limited ability to deal with some of these impacts. At the same time, it is
recognized that traditional knowledge, cultural values, social networks and flexible use of resources
provide significant capacity to adapt. New programs are designed to take advantage of that capacity.
For example, community-driven projects of the Climate Change and Health Adaptation Program
inherently take a multidisciplinary approach to adaptation work, integrating the science and traditional
knowledge streams to allow communities to move effectively from research to implementation.
Adaptation and the role of protected areas
In Canada, protected areas are a key aspect of adaptation planning with respect to ecosystems and
biodiversity. Protected areas provide habitat for native species and opportunities for adaptation,
migration, and natural selection processes through maintenance of viable populations and genetic
diversity. In this way, establishing and expanding protected areas contribute to enhancing ecological
resilience to climate change, while also increasing sustainability and well-being of communities through
the provision of ecosystem goods and services and economic diversification. The federal government
and several provinces and territories are increasingly considering climate change adaptation when
planning expansions of their parks and protected areas.
Recent protected area establishment in Canada includes a national network of Marine Protected Areas
in Canada’s three oceans and the Great Lakes. A new initiative that will facilitate meeting Canada’s
marine conservation targets was announced at the recent Conference of the Parties to the Convention
on Biological Diversity. Canada’s plan includes the proposed Lancaster Sound National Marine
Conservation Area, and several proposed Oceans Act Marine Protected Areas. Recent examples of
terrestrial protected area establishment include creation of the Nááts’ihch’oh National Park Reserve
(Northwest Territories) in 2012, Sable Island National Park Reserve (Nova Scotia) in 2014, Mealy
Mountains National Park Reserve (Newfoundland and Labrador) and Qausuittuq National Park
(Nunavut) in 2015, as well as the currently proposed Thaidene Nene National Park (Northwest
Territories). The four new national parks have added over 27,400 square kilometres of protected area.
In addition to the conservation of intact ecosystems, it is necessary to connect protected areas through
sustainably managed landscapes and waterscapes. Large-scale habitat connectivity has not traditionally
been a priority in land use planning in Canada but this is changing. For example, the Province of Ontario
had developed a tree planting program to create corridors between core natural areas and the most
densely populated, fragmented landscapes in Canada.
Also important are strategies aimed at reversing prior degradation through ecological restoration. In
Canada, protected-area agencies are developing and applying ecological restoration techniques for
individual species, biotic communities and whole ecosystems. These programs involve experimentation,
modification, and adaptation, and create a culture with a capacity and willingness to adapt to change.
Guidelines for restoration techniques (Ecological Restoration for Protected Areas: Principles, Guidelines
and Best Practices, IUCN 2012) are now commonly used in many parks and other protected areas in
Canada and internationally.
Collaboration is fundamental to ensuring that adaptation actions related to other sectors (e.g. built
infrastructure) do not negatively impact biodiversity or the ability of ecosystems to respond to change,
and that actions aimed at helping biodiversity to respond to climate change also bring societal benefits.
Key players include conservation organizations, local community groups, Indigenous communities, and
industry. Successful engagement leads to more responsible decision-making and promotes sustainable
approaches to natural resource stewardship. There are many examples of effective engagement and
collaboration in Canada, ranging from citizen-based monitoring programs to overseeing policy
development at municipal, provincial/territorial and national levels.
Urban Ecosystems
In addition to the valuable services provided by intact and restored natural ecosystems, vegetation plays
a critical role in urban adaptation in Canada, particularly with respect to extreme heat and flood control.
Trees can play a critical role in reducing heat-related illnesses and deaths by reducing urban heat island
effects. Communities across Canada are taking action to expand the urban tree canopy to help keep
cities cool. They have developed a range of approaches from passing tree bylaws, developing
adaptation plans, retrofitting streets to add more greenery, and developing mapping tools to help
determine where to plant trees to maximize the benefits to the community. Similarly, well managed
urban ecosystems can play an important role in stormwater management.
Green infrastructure, such as urban parks and low impact development (LID), can enhance resiliency,
optimize water and wastewater treatment costs, and improve watershed health and the local economy.
LID technologies are designed to mimic the natural movement of water, helping to reduce the volume of
runoff, removing nutrients, pathogens and metals. They also help to restore groundwater and stream
flows, support waste water dilution, protect fisheries and enhance well-being. Canada is in the process
of establishing a new type of protected area in an urban setting. Located within the Greater Toronto
Area, Rouge National Urban Park will be the largest urban park in North America, integrating riparian,
aquatic, and wetland habitat improvements with agricultural enhancements undertaken in cooperation
with park farmers, Indigenous partners, environmental organizations, educational institutions and other
stakeholders.
Case studies of Canadian experiences with urban forestry and stormwater management from Health
Canada and the Credit Valley Conservation (in southern Ontario), respectively, will soon be uploaded to
the Nairobi Work Programme Adaptation Knowledge Portal. One key common characteristic of these
case studies is the critical importance of engagement and collaboration across a wide range of
stakeholders including governments, industry, civil society and individual citizens.
Sources: For more information and original references on the material included in this submission please see Canada in a Changing Climate:
Sector Perspectives on Impacts and Adaptation (Chapter 7) and Canada’s Marine Coasts in a Changing Climate (Chapters 3 and 5). Additional
information was provided by Parks Canada, Health Canada and by Credit Valley Conservation.