Suddenly, it seems, there is a crescendo of interest in climate change adaptation. Perhaps Toronto’s $500 million in insurance claims for the August 2005 rainstorm have helped to bring home the unpleasant fact that the costs of climate change won’t just fall on our children- they have started to fall on us.
The Conference Board and the National Round Table on Environment and Economy are both preparing reports on adaptation in Canada’s north. The Canadian Standards Association and Engineers Canada are both considering how to upgrade infrastructure standards to better withstand the wild weather we will have, from ice storms and high winds to longer droughts, fiercer rains and bigger floods. Environment Canada is trying to find resources to analyze its wealth of data on temperature and precipitation. Even judges and lawyers are starting to think about the issue, and we’re usually the last to change.