Report From The Expert Panel On Climate Change Adaptation

Intense rainfall, heat waves and smog are likely to become more frequent in Ontario because of climate change. Figuring out how to best deal with these realities — how best to adapt — is the subject of a new report, Adapting to Climate Change in Ontario, prepared for the Minister of the Environment.

ONTARIO'S EXPERT PANEL

On December 12, 2007, the Minister of the Environment appointed the Expert Panel on Climate Change Adaptation. This multi-disciplinary panel consists of two co-chairs:

• Dr. David Pearson (Professor of Earth Sciences at Laurentian University)
• Dr. Ian Burton (Emeritus Professor at the University of Toronto and Lead Author for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Fourth Assessment Report)

The nine additional members are:

• Dr. John Beaucage (former Grand Council Chief of the Anishinabek Nation)
• Dr. Barry Smit (University of Guelph)
• Dr. Judith Guernsey (Dalhousie University)
• Jo-Ellen Parry (International Institute for Sustainable Development)
• Dr. Quentin Chiotti (Pollution Probe)
• Eva Ligeti (Clean Air Partnership)
• David Lapp (Canadian Council of Professional Engineers)
• Dr. Gordon McBean (University of Western Ontario)
• Alain Bourque (Impacts and Adaptation, Ouranos, Québec).

Dr. Burton, Dr. McBean and Dr. Smit all received a share of the Nobel Peace Prize for their work on the IPCC Fourth Assessment Report.

The panel has been providing advice on measures to help the Ontario government understand how to prepare and plan for climate change impacts on areas such as:

• Public health, environment, infrastructure, and economy
• Potential impacts to the Ontario government, municipalities, communities, and the public
• Areas where more Ontario-specific science and knowledge is needed to understand climate change impacts.

RECOMMENDATIONS

The panel recommends the government take steps to prepare for the impacts of climate change through the development of a provincewide action plan guided by an overall strategy. It recommends the government ensure that it has the scientific and administrative capacity to develop such a plan and dedicated funding to implement it.  Additionally, the panel has made specific recommendations for adapting to climate change that can help inform the development of the recommended strategy and action plan.

The focus of the expert panel's advice is encouraging the province to continue to work with scientists and environmental experts to integrate the consideration of climate change impacts into government decision-making in all aspects of its responsibilities for public protection, including human health, the environment and the economy.

NEXT STEPS

The government will be using this report to inform the development of measures to improve Ontario's resilience to climate change.