A Regional Climate Change Adaptation Plan for Southwestern New Brunswick

This project will reduce the vulnerability of southwestern New Brunswick to the impacts of climate change. Comprising multiple watersheds in the Bay of Fundy region, southwestern New Brunswick is organized into Regional Service Commission 10. Working with the regional service commission Planning Management Committee, Eastern Charlotte Waterways will utilize the ICLEI Canada methodology to develop a climate change adaptation plan for the region. The anticipated impacts of climate change in this region include, but are not limited to, sea-level rise, inland flooding, and changes in biodiversity. In the absence of provincial coastal development guidelines, this project will provide a clear plan for the future of coastal development and climate resilience in an area where the population is predominantly located in the coastal region. The province of New Brunswick has purchased high-resolution LiDAR data and made it available to worthwhile initiatives. This project will support the modelling of this LiDAR into sea-level rise projections and wet-areas mapping for the southwestern New Brunswick regional service district. That quantitative data will be presented to volunteer working groups in the east and west regions of the district. These working groups will identify existing and potential climate impacts and vulnerabilities to infrastructure, socioeconomic vulnerabilities, and environmental areas of concern. This quantitative date will then be grouped into climate risks, and those risks assessed according to the ICLEI methodology. Actions will then be developed to address the most pressing risks, including a schedule for implementation and responsible parties. This climate change action plan, and the data collected to support it, will be incorporated into regional coastal development guidelines, which will increase the resilience of southwestern New Brunswick to climate change and variability.