Ottawa, June 27 (BNA): Canada launched its first National Climate Adaptation Strategy on Tuesday, aimed at reducing the risk of extreme weather events such as floods and wildfires and mitigating the effects of global warming from fossil fuels, including melting permafrost. .
According to Reuters, the strategy comes as Canada grapples with its worst wildfire season on record, with 7.8 million hectares already burned before even the hot summer months begin.
By 2030, average annual losses from disasters are expected to reach C$15.4 billion ($11.69 billion), according to the federal government, while the Canadian Climate Institute (CCI) estimates that climate impacts will slow Canada’s economic growth by C$25 billion. annually by 2025. equal to 50% of projected GDP growth.
Recent climate disasters include Hurricane Fiona that hit the Atlantic provinces, an “atmospheric river” of rain that caused record flooding in British Columbia, and a heat dome in 2021, also in British Columbia, that killed hundreds.
“The strategy aims to transform the way governments, communities and Canadians work in partnership to prepare for and reduce the risks of climate change through coordinated action and ambition,” Federal Environment Minister Stephen Gilbolt said in a statement.
Goals include improving health outcomes, protecting nature and biodiversity, and building more resilient infrastructure. In the coming months, the federal government will work with provinces and territories to implement key steps.
US$164 million is already being invested to improve flood mapping, and the government has allocated more than C$2 billion since fall 2022 for adaptation projects.
Climate policy think tanks welcomed the finalization of the strategy, which was published in draft form last November, but said it would require significant new funding and coordinated government action to deliver results.
“The National Adaptation Strategy is a powerful tool for addressing the biggest climate risks facing the country,” said Ryan Ness, Director of Adaptation at CCI. “The federal government needs to move quickly to fund and implement it to insulate Canadians from the growing threat and rising costs of climate disasters.”
($1 = 1.3176 Canadian dollars)
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