Municipal governments looking to take action towards climate change adaptation now have access to a toolkit to help them along their journey.
The Climate Toolkit is a five-year initiative (2023-28), funded through the Government of Canada Adaptation Action Plan, to support smart climate action for low-carbon and resilient infrastructure investments.
“we were invited on the basis of our past work and Infrastructure Canada’s exposure to our work”
City of Selkirk CAO, Duane Nicol
City of Selkirk CAO Duane Nicol is part of the Climate Toolkit Advisory Working Group and his reason for being there is the city’s groundbreaking work on climate change adaptation.
“What’s unique here is we were invited on the basis of our past work and Infrastructure Canada’s exposure to our work,” Nicol said.
“We are the only municipality that has a seat at the table. All the other groups are larger organizations that tend to represent environmental groups or groups that are already working in this space. We are that frontline voice, and I think it speaks to the oversized role that we’re playing, how we’re punching above our weight as it relates to climate change adaptation and how Selkirk has not just developed a plan, but we are actually implementing it.”
Selkirk’s Climate Change Adaptation Strategy 2019-2029 was created with the Prairie Climate Centre and Mayor Larry Johannson says the goal has always been to take a lead role and bring others along.
Selkirk committed to taking a lead role, helping others
“Selkirk council feels strongly that we have a role to play in leaving the world in the best shape we can for future generations. We have kids and grandkids and we want them to live in a place where they can breathe fresh air. The climate is changing, and we need to do our part to leave the city better prepared for the climate that’s coming than how we found it,” Johannson said.
“But we’ve also been committed to taking a lead role, to helping others take this journey as well. We know it’s not easy, and for smaller municipalities it’s really hard so we want to help others.”
The working group was established about a year ago and has met virtually until its first in-person meeting in early March of this year in Ottawa.
Nicol said his role has been to talk about the challenges Selkirk has gone through on its journey and to be the voice for municipalities and the issues they face.
“I can make recommendations on approaches that organizations can take to help municipalities onboard both administratively also with council,” he said.
“If we’re not making sure the infrastructure we’re building is designed to handle the weather today and in the coming decades, then we’re being negligent and wasteful of tax dollars.”
Selkirk CAO, Duane Nicol
“Municipal administrators struggle with having enough resources to do what’s asked of them today. Councils can struggle with resource decisions as well, not to mention operating in a political environment where the science is being questioned. The facts remain, the climate is changing and municipalities are investing billions of tax dollars into infrastructure. If we’re not making sure the infrastructure we’re building is designed to handle the weather today and in the coming decades, then we’re being negligent and wasteful of tax dollars.”
Advice and resources available to municipalities
The toolkits have been live since late last year and will be expanded on over time. There is also a hotline municipalities can call and get advice for free.
“One of the challenges that especially small municipalities have is when they’re getting started and have one-off questions or need a resource and they don’t know where to go,” Nicol said.
“Now there’s a place where you can literally phone and ask the question and for free get some support tools or get some direction or guidance on where to go.”
There’s an advisor program called the Roster of Climate and Infrastructure Experts that can link municipalities with qualified experts providing technical advice on adaptation and mitigation options at no cost.
“If you’ve got an infrastructure project or some initiative, they will link you with professional resources, to get guidance and advice,” Nicol said.
“If you have, say a road development project, they can help you identify things like stormwater, what you should be thinking about in terms of the amount of additional storm water climate change will bring.”
Nicol says Manitoba municipalities are lagging behind other provinces in adopting climate change adaptation plans, and he understands why.
Though there are resources out there, it’s difficult to navigate. Plus, municipalities don’t have the expertise on staff and there’s not enough time for staff to learn everything.
“It’s a challenge. Municipalities are constantly challenged to bring the resources together and find enough time to actually go ahead and do the work. It takes time and it takes work,” he said.
“I participated in a working group for the Manitoba Government, and one of the things they did was create a climate change profile for every municipality in Manitoba as an initial tool. Now municipal governments have, for their specific municipality, climate change projections for their community, things that we expect to happen, which is the starting point for doing a risk assessment and for developing an action plan.”
Selkirk, National leader in Climate Adaptation
This isn’t the first time the city has been asked to participate in a federal initiative aimed at reducing barriers to climate change adaptation. In 2020 Nicol was part of the Municipal Climate Services Collaborative, a joint initiative of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities and the Government of Canada’s Canadian Centre for Climate Services.
“Our strategy document is often used as a case study, or leading practice example by organizations that support municipal governments with their climate adaptation work. We have been asked to present at conferences and during webinars because beyond just having some ideas on paper, we’re actually making significant progress in implementing the plan. As both an employee, but more importantly as a citizen, I am proud to see that the City of Selkirk is a leader in this critical public policy issue.”
More on the Climate Toolkit and resources available here.
