The establishment of a new…

The establishment of a new organization for climate change adaptation is a positive approach that is consistent with recommendations from the Expert Panel on Climate Change. Further, the all-government approach would be a benefit to align municipal government actions as well as conservation authorities’ strategies. Ensuring municipal representation as an advisory board to such new organization would be beneficial for the proposed all-government approach.

We believe the Proposal should recognize that infrastructure is a key component of any climate change adaptation approach. The Proposal will benefit by clearly focusing on funding and financial sources. Having dedicated funding to support research on climate change adaptation would be paramount to ensure a successful launching and establishment of the new organization (e.g. potential amendments to the O. Reg. 144/16 could enable funding for adaptation initiatives). The proposed province-wide risk assessment is an important step forward, however the need for sub-watershed based analysis is vital to obtain buy-in from local governments and residents as the climate change effects on water and wastewater infrastructure are likely to be at the lot level.

Another consideration we recommend to include in the Proposal is to recognize the importance of promoting and creating incentives to voluntarily adopt international efforts for transparency, reporting and standardization on climate change. Examples of these international efforts include: ISO 14001 for Environmental Management Systems; ISO 14064 for GHG Reporting, ISO 14065 for GHG Verification; and ISO 50001 for Energy Management among others. Also, the Proposal should support similar Canadian efforts such as: the CSA Group’s initiative for climate change adaptation for wastewater treatment plant design; and Engineers Canada’s current initiatives to develop guidelines and case studies through Public Infrastructure Engineering Vulnerability Committee (PIEVC) Protocol.

[Original Comment ID: 212059]