Canada has announced new federal funding of over $585,000 for a research project led by l’Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM) that will examine how much flooding will cost in the future and how public policy can contribute to Canada’s resilience to climate change. Climate change is having a direct impact on natural disasters, including flooding, increasing the scale, frequency, and unpredictability of these events.
This new project, completed in partnership with the Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC), the Université Laval and the University of Waterloo, builds on other work, including the interdisciplinary Task Force on Flood Insurance and Relocation’s report Adapting to Rising Flood Risk: An Analysis of Insurance Solutions for Canada, which provides the evidence and information required to support decision-making and the way forward on a national flood insurance program, with special considerations for potential strategic relocation of those in higher-risk areas.
In addition to the release of the report, the Canadian government is developing the country’s first National Adaptation Strategy. This strategy will outline how the Canadian economy and society can be more resilient and prepared for the impacts of climate change.
Of the over $585,000 in federal funding, $318,359 will come from Public Safety Canada’s Policy Development Contribution Program; and $270,000 will come from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada. The IBC is also providing funding of $30,991 for the research project.