Regional District of Nanaimo lands funds to create climate change adaptation strategy

The Regional District of Nanaimo has received funding of up to $310,750 from the federal government to be used to build a coastal climate change adaptation strategy in the region.

The fund comes from the Natural Resource Canada Climate-Resilient Coastal Communities Program.

The RDN will work with various levels of government, First Nations, shoreline property owners, community members and businesses to develop the strategy.

The project includes: Collection and sharing of data to assess the coastal region’s risk and vulnerability to climate change impacts such as storm surge, flooding, erosion and sea level rise; Co-development and coordination of climate actions between regional partners to promote and increase coastal communities’ resiliencyp; and sharing outcomes and empowering property owners and residents to help prevent and prepare for climate change impacts.

“The Regional District of Nanaimo is grateful for this generous funding which we will use to develop an inclusive and collaborative coastal climate adaptation strategy in our region," said Vanessa Craig, chair of the RDN board. "This strategy will build on the critical work we are already undertaking to prepare for, and respond to, impacts we are seeing on our coast.”

The coastal adaptation strategy will build on the RDN’s other coastal adaptation work, including coastal flood hazard mapping, slope risk assessments and the current Coastal Risk Assessment project that helps identify areas of higher likely impact.

The project will provide area local governments, First Nations, residents and others with a collaborative way to address shared challenges, and the information needed to decide how to prepare for coastal climate change. It will also support ongoing collaboration to act and show how other coastal regions could apply coordinated coastal climate action.

“The impacts associated with climate change, including atmospheric rivers here in British Columbia, are being felt right now," said Jonathan Wilkinson, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources. "That is why this federal government is acting now to help our communities and our economy prepare and protect themselves from the threat of climate change. The Regional District of Nanaimo’s project supported by the Climate-Resilient Coastal Communities Program will help the vital long-term, community-based work to keep people safe now and into the future.” 

The project is underway and will be completed by the end of 2027.

For more information, visit getinvolved.rdn.ca/coastal-risk.