July 2011
News
Atlantic Climate Adaptations Solutions Projects
Planners and students from the Dalhousie University School of Planning are studying potential coastal impacts of climate change in the Town of Yarmouth, the Municipality of the District of Yarmouth, and the Municipality of the District of Lunenburg.
The work is part of a series of projects for the Atlantic Climate Adaptation Solutions (ACAS) program. ACAS is a collaborative initiative involving government and non-government partners, working to enhance Atlantic Canada's resilience to changing climate and weather events. ACAS has a number of projects throughout the Maritime Provinces. Dalhousie is undertaking three of these studies:
- An inventory of the physical infrastructure at risk of coastal flooding due to sea level rise and storm surge;
- An evaluation of social assets and local populations that may be vulnerable to the coastal impacts of climate change; and
- An evaluation of existing municipal capacity to respond to climate change through adjusting policy, planning, and development practices.
Mapping, workshops, interviews, and meetings will be carried out throughout the summer of 2011. The students will be working closely with local residents, municipal councillors and staff, and community groups.
The studies will assist the Town of Yarmouth, the Municipality of the District of Yarmouth, and the Municipality of the District of Lunenburg in planning for, and adapting to, climate change. This is particularly important, as Nova Scotia municipalities are now required to prepare a Municipal Climate Change Action Plan by December 31, 2013 in order to receive infrastructure support funding from higher levels of government.
Project Supervisors: Patricia Manuel and Eric Rapaport
Students: Alec Johnston, Michaela Cochran, Zoë Wollenberg, Jonathan Critchley, and Justin Muise
For more information about these projects, please contact:
Patricia Manuel (patricia.manual@dal.ca)
or
Eric Rapaport (eric.rapaport@dal.ca)
For more information about ACAS, visit http://atlanticadaptation.ca/
Issued 14 July 2011