Input Will Help Town and Partnering Niagara Communities Put Together a Climate Adaption Plan for our Future
This Climate Survey is Applicable to Residents of Pelham, St. Catharines, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Grimsby, Niagara Falls, Lincoln, and Welland
Let’s hear from all of you! Niagara Adapts is a partnership that brings together seven Niagara municipalities — Grimsby, Lincoln, Niagara Falls, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Pelham, St. Catharines and Welland — with Brock’s Environmental Sustainability Research Centre (ESRC) to address climate change.
Message from Niagara Adapts, a partnership that brings together seven Niagara municipalities with Brock’s Environmental Sustainability Research Centre (ESRC) to address climate change.
Posted November 6th, 2019 on Niagara At Large
The Town of Pelham, collaborating with Niagara Adapts, is looking for input on their climate vulnerability assessment.
Filling out a survey could net you $300. Currently, all municipalities involved with Niagara Adapts (Pelham, St. Catharines, Welland, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Niagara Falls, Grimsby, and Lincoln) are in the process of conducting their vulnerability assessments.
These assessments are crucial for developing robust climate solutions in a climate adaptation plan. Defined by the International Council on Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI), vulnerability is a function of both the sensitivity and the adaptive capacity of a given sector, and understanding how such factors are influenced by impacts posed by climate change will help key decision makers identify the best-fit climate solutions accordingly.
Deanna Allen, climate change coordinator for the Town of Pelham, is encouraging everyone to fill out the short (about 10-minutes) survey; the goal is to collect 100 per municipality.
“I believe the survey is a wonderful opportunity for Pelham residents to really get involved with the Town’s procedures,” said Allen.
“We seek resident feedback on a variety of topics with opportunities like this survey, we can really hear the voices of concern. On top of that, I strongly encourage residents to contact me personally should they wish to give any further input to the plan.”
This past spring in summer, for the second time in three years, flooding waters and sandbags made their presence along the shores of Lake Ontario in the Port Dalhousie area of St. Catharines, Ontario. With the high rising waters came damage to property, cleanup costs and a loss of use of recreational areas for the public for several weeks on end. File photo by Doug Draper
The survey allows Niagara Adapts and partnering municipalities an ability to collect important data that could end up saving significant money in the near future. Getting in on the ground floor was an important step.
“In my personal opinion, I believe that the Town is taking a proactive approach when dealing with climate change,” said Allen.
Studies have shown that costs associated with climate change in Canada could spike from $5 billion to $21-$43 billion per year by 2050.
From a municipal perspective, the data derived from the assessment helps municipalities identify the susceptibility of a given service, asset and/or building from impacts of climate change; protecting and preserving environmental assets is a key priority in Pelham Town Council’s strategic plan.
Once complete, the results from the survey contribute to the improvement of the Town’s understanding of vulnerability by enhancing the capacity to adapt to change.
Comprised of three components -adaptive capacity, sensitivity, and exposure – the results of the Town’s vulnerability assessment will be analyzed to enhance the Town’s corporate climate change adaptation plan.
“My role as the Climate Change Coordinator is to develop and implement a Corporate Climate Change Adaptation Plan for the Town,” said Allen.
“I honestly believe that the quality of the plan is determined by both staff and resident input, alongside scientific expertise from our local university. The more information provided, the stronger the analysis will be and our solutions to such impacts will be the best fit.”
To fill out a survey, visit www.pelham.ca/climate and click the survey link at the top of the page.
You can also learn more about the climate adaption plan and Niagara Adapts through this link.
About Niagara Adapts – Niagara Adapts is a partnership designed to build innovative climate solutions right here in Niagara. By leveraging resources and expertise from seven municipalities in the Niagara Region and Brock University’s Environmental Sustainability Research Centre, the partnership will support collaborative climate change adaptation assessment, planning and implementation.
For more information on Niagara Adapts, click on – https://brocku.ca/esrc/niagara-adapts/
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