The Trudeau government promises to better equip the various regions of Canada so that they can face the impacts of the climate crisis, which are constantly growing. A first national funding envelope of $1.6 billion was also announced on Thursday, an amount that is below the demands of Quebec municipalities alone.
Recognizing that “the climate is changing” in Canada, the federal government has unveiled the outline of its future “Canada’s National Adaptation Strategy: Building Resilient Communities and a Strong Economy”. This document will be subject to a final period of consultations before the publication of the first gender strategy for the country.
It must be said that the impacts of the climate crisis are already being felt in Canada and that they will be increasingly severe over the next few years, even if we drastically reduce our greenhouse gas emissions.
Canada is warming two to three times faster than the global average. In Quebec, for example, since 1950, the average temperature has increased by 1°C to 3°C depending on the region. This, however, is only the prelude to what lies ahead if global climate action continues to lack ambition. “Mean annual temperatures in Quebec could continue to increase by 3.5°C by 2050 compared to the 1981-2010 period. By 2080, these changes could reach more than 6°C”, according to what emerges from a report produced at the request of the federal government and published last August.
Result: heat waves will be more and more frequent and intense, coastal erosion should increase and threaten various infrastructures, including roads and buildings, while forest fires are likely to be more numerous and devastating. Elsewhere in the country, warming will impose similar threats, but also risks in terms of flooding, melting permafrost or sea storms.
Costs and Deaths
In addition to the impacts for citizens, the bill promises to be high, according to what emerges from the data published Thursday. By 2030, “average annual disaster losses are projected to be $15.4 billion”. Already, “floods are the most costly hazard in Canada, resulting in an average annual bill of $2.9 billion for the residential sector.”
According to the Climate Institute of Canada, by 2025, the effects of climate change will also slow Canada’s economic growth by $25 billion per year, which is 50% of projected growth in gross domestic product.
The repercussions of climate change also portend “astronomical costs” to Canada over the coming decades, in addition to an unprecedented increase in the number of premature deaths, according to a scientific report published last year by the federal government. The analysis also insisted on the urgency of adapting to the consequences of the crisis, which risks causing health care costs to explode.
$1.6 billion
Taking note of the need to “deal with the growing repercussions of climate change”, the Trudeau government promises to financially support the different regions of the country with a “strategy” supposed to meet the resilience needs of the coming decades.
A first envelope of $ 1.6 billion in support was also announced Thursday. It includes $530 million “to increase the Green Municipal Fund to support community adaptation initiatives, in collaboration with the Federation of Canadian Municipalities”.
Another envelope of 489 million will be allocated to the “Disaster Mitigation and Adaptation Fund”, in addition to 284 million dollars to reduce the risk of forest fires and 164 million dollars “to increase resilience of Canada in the face of flooding”.
“Last year’s devastating wildfires, floods and hurricanes demonstrated the urgent need for action to deal with the increased frequency and severity of climate-related disasters. The National Adaptation Strategy represents a new chapter in our emergency preparedness work,” Emergency Preparedness Minister Bill Blair said Thursday.
“We must not only reduce the emissions that cause climate change, but also adapt to the changes that plague us. Adaptation is a profitable and positive investment in the present and the future,” added Environment and Climate Change Minister Steven Guilbeault in a written statement.
More details to come.