Ajax spending big to study climate change impacts

Durhamregion.com
Feb. 7, 2018
By Keith Gilligan

The town will be spending the next year and about $175,000 to study the effects of climate change.

Called a climate change adaptation operational study, it will look at the impacts of climate change on infrastructure, both physical and social.

Environmental sustainability co-ordinator Jade Schofield said, "We'll study where in the community residents, businesses and infrastructure are vulnerable."

The study is timely, as over the past few years, Ajax has dealt with several environmental events, including the ice storm in 2013, flooding last year due to high lake levels and a drought in 2016.

Ajax had applied for the money last May from the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM).

The federal government, through its Ministry of Infrastructure and Communities, had made the money available to FCM to dole out to communities. Ajax is one of 72 municipalities across the country to receive funding.

In a statement, FCM president Jenny Gerbasi said, "I'm proud of the leadership being demonstrated by municipalities across the country. Local leaders are embarking on some of the most innovative solutions to address the impacts of climate change and reduce greenhouse gases.

"At the same time, they are taking steps to strengthen decision-making on infrastructure spending, which has a major impact on the day-to-day lives of their residents. Continuing to support this on-the-ground expertise is vital to building the Canada we want," she added.

Schofield noted the town has done a lot of work on reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

"The plan willidentify specific plans and costs," she said, adding the aim is to build "a resilient community across all sectors."

Simulations will be tried, she noted, which could show infrastructure that's undersized and would need to be replaced.

"We know we'll see flooding," Schofield said. "There are three main areas — overland and storm water flooding, the natural environment, and emergency preparedness and responses."

One aspect will be modelling for future climate impacts, she added.

The study will also examine the social impacts of climate change.

"We're hoping to be done in 12 months. It's a tight time frame," Schofield said.

The public will be involved in the work, along with partners such as utilities and conservation authorities. "Anyone who delivers a service will have a role."

When the emergency preparedness and response is completed, the Durham Emergency Management Office "will have a better plan to communicate to the public. There will be information on shelters, house waterproofing and the tree canopy."

Preparing for climate change "isn't cheap if you don't prepare. The plan will put us in a better situation. It's better to plan than to clean up the mess. That's far more expensive."