Government of Canada
BACKGROUNDER
CLIMATE CHANGE ACTION FUND SCIENCE,
IMPACTS AND ADAPTATION
SUMMARY OF EARLY ACTION PROJECTS
The following initial activities will help us address our commitments under
the Kyoto Protocol in climate science (research and monitoring), impacts and
adaptation. Several involve nationally based workshops which will be central in
developing the long term science and adaptation plan to address these
commitments.
For further information on the Science Projects, please contact Rob Cross at
Environment Canada: (819) 997-3840
For further information on the Impacts and Adaptation Projects please
contact Pam Kertland at Natural Resources Canada (613) 943-0650
Announced December 11, 1998
Science Project
1. Experts Meeting on Research Priorities for Carbon Sinks
The Kyoto Protocol allows countries, as part of their greenhouse gas
emission reduction commitment, to get credit for the results of action to
increase carbon storage through forestry activities such as afforestation and
reforestation. Countries must also report emissions related to deforestation.
Although not yet approved under the Protocol, Canada is also seeking to have
storage of carbon in agricultural soils considered as allowable emission
credits. While the area of forest and agricultural lands that could be
implicated by the Kyoto Protocol can be estimated with reasonable accuracy, the
quantity of carbon transfer and storage per hectare of affected land is much
more difficult to establish. This is in part due to a range of scientific
issues including climate, soil properties and land management practices.
To help address the above issues, this project will help fund a meeting of
experts to formulate a science agenda and engage the scientific community toward
an improved understanding of the processes that govern sources and sinks of
greenhouse gases within Canada's agricultural soils, forest ecosystems and other
terrestrial and aquatic carbon reservoirs.
Sponsors: Environment Canada, Agriculture and Agri-Foods Canada and
Natural Resources Canada.
Budget:$60,000
CCAF contribution: $30,000
Impacts and Adaptation Project
2. Socio-Economic Impacts and Adaptive Responses to Climate Change: A
Canadian Forest Sector Perspective
At present there are significant gaps in our knowledge and understanding of
the socio- economic implications of climate change for the Canadian forest
sector. The objectives of this study are to:
- identify issues relative to the assessment of the socio-economic impacts
of climate change on the Canadian forest sector;
- review and assess various methods and techniques for determining both
short and long term impacts of climate change;
- identify possible adaptive responses and strategies by the forest sector
to climate change and variability, and
- identify knowledge gaps, research needs and data requirements that will be
necessary to fully evaluate the options for adapting to climate change in the
forest sector.
Sponsors:University of Alberta and Natural Resources Canada
(Canadian Forestry Service/Northern Forestry Centre)
Budget: $70,000
CCAF contribution: $35,000
Announced October 19, 1998
Science Projects
3. Tri-National Workshop on Extremes and Climate Change- Canadian
Support and Participation
Canada, the U.S. and Mexico will hold a tri-national workshop to examine
extreme weather events within North America in the context of climate
variability and change. The overall goal of this workshop is to identify
priority areas of research within the North American climate modeling research
community in order to advance our understanding of extreme weather events during
the next three, five and ten years. The target audiences for this workshop would
be stakeholders (users of the information, resource managers, those at the
science-policy interface, and weather forecasters), researchers (climate
modeling, impacts and adaptation) and research managers.
The workshop is tentatively scheduled for March 1999.
Sponsors: Federal government departments; US: EPA, NOAA (National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration), GCRP (Global Change Research Program);
Mexico- TBD; Insurance sector (TBD)
Budget: $130,000
CCAF contribution: $65,000
4. Support to Canadian Contributors to the IPCC Third Assessment
Report
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has begun the process
of producing its Third Assessment of climate change (TAR). The IPCC Assessments
have been central to the climate change debate and have provided rich and
valuable information to policy makers. The IPCC is also embarking on a Special
Report on Land Use Change and Forests (LUCF). Several Canadian scientists will
be selected to be lead authors and review editors. These responsibilities will
require the scientists to dedicate a considerable amount of their time and to
attend several meetings during the preparation of these Assessments. The Special
Report on Sinks will be completed in mid-2000 and the TAR is expected to be
completed by 2000/1. Resources will be used to help support the participation of
these scientists (particularly those from universities and the private sector).
Sponsors:Federal government departments; Canadian university and
private sector scientists
Budget: $200,000
CCAF contribution: $100,000
5. Preparing for Global Warming in Arctic Canada
This project will develop, for the new millennium, an action plan which lays
out a unified effort to:
- observe in a timely manner the consequences of global warming on Canada's
cryosphere; glaciers and ice caps, sea ice, lake ice, snow and frozen ground;
- identify, within a circumpolar context, short and long term research gaps
that are inhibiting our abilities to lower uncertainties of climate change
prediction, and thus assessing potential impacts in the Arctic;
- provide a scientific base for examining infrastructure and policy
adaptations required to address impending social, economic and resource issues.
The action plan will be developed by means of a workshop involving Canadian
experts in the natural resource sector and external invited participants from
the US and Europe. Participants will be selected on the basis of broad
experience and vision in Arctic climate research. Participants will discuss,
broadly, what is known and what is not known, and will suggest new ideas based
on a series of realities and scenarios being proposed by recent global
observations of Arctic climate change.
Sponsors: Agriculture and Agri-Foods Canada, Environment Canada,
Fisheries and Oceans, Health Canada, Natural Resources Canada, U of Victoria
Budget: $150,000
CCAF contribution: $85,000
6. Scientific Assessment of the Role of the Boreal Forests and
Forestry in the Global Carbon Cycle
Given the importance and size of the circumpolar boreal forest, there is an
urgent need to ensure that the scientific understanding of boreal forest carbon
dynamics is taken into account in international decisions and policies.
Decisions made at the international level about processes such as carbon storage
(sequestration) in forests and the influence of forest practices on these
processes require a clear understanding of the unique ecological conditions that
prevail in boreal zones. Such conditions include the role of natural
disturbances in forest dynamics and plantation management practices throughout
the region. Funds will be used to support Canadian involvement in three
international workshops (USA: Feb 99; Jasper, Alta: Apr 99 and Russia: Aug 99)
and to host an international conference in Edmonton (Sep 99).
Sponsors: Natural Resources Canada ; IIASA (International Institute
for Applied Systems Analysis); NCEAS (National Centre for Ecological Analysis
and Synthesis); NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration); Foothills
Model Forest; IBFRA (International Boreal Forests Research Association)
Budget: $130,000
CCAF contribution: $30,000 (98/99)
7. Improving Estimates of Nitrous Oxide Emissions from Agricultural
Ecosystems
A workshop, involving Canadian and international experts, will be held to
better quantify nitrous oxide emissions from agricultural sources. The workshop
will focus on testing available simulation models for estimating N2O emissions,
methods for measuring N2O fluxes, quantifying soil carbon and nitrogen
interactions, effects of choice of crops and cropping systems etc. on N2O
emissions. The estimates from the various models will be presented at the
workshop and compared with the results recently obtained using methods developed
by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).
Sponsors: AAFRD (Alberta Agriculture, Food and Rural Development);
Agriculture and Agri-foods Canada; Universities — Alberta, Saskatchewan,
Cornell (US)
Budget: $85,000
CCAF contribution: $55,000
8. Preparation of a Canadian Global Climate Observing System (GCOS)
Plan
There are commitments related to climate monitoring in Article 10 of the
Kyoto Protocol. The Canadian infrastructure for systematic climate monitoring
has declined in recent years. Observing sites have been closed, particularly in
northern regions and over the expanses of oceans off our shores. Canada's
climate observing networks are also sparse by comparison with those of other
nations at a similar stage of development. Unless plans are made now to address
these deficiencies, Canada will be in danger of not being able to meet its
Article 10 commitments. This project will fund a Canadian effort to prepare a
national Plan, that will eventually contribute to the international Global
Climate Observing System (GCOS).
The project will be done in conjunction with the Canadian Climate Program
Board. An initial workshop will bring together key players in late-Fall. The
Plan is expected to be completed by Summer 1999.
Sponsors: Federal government departments; Canadian Climate Program
Board
Budget: $175,000
CCAF contribution: $100,000
9. Improving Estimates of Carbon Fluxes from Fire in Canadian Forests
Forest fires have a major influence on the carbon budget of Canada's forest.
However, the published Canadian fire record prior to the 1970s is incomplete,
throwing into question the validity of current carbon budget estimates. With
carbon storage (sequestration) within Canada's forests being a major issue in
global negotiations in Kyoto and beyond, it is imperative that we have a better
understanding of trends in past forest fire activity in order to improve current
carbon budget estimates with confidence. It is also critical that we establish
solid linkages between climate and fire activity that can be used to project
future Canadian forest disturbance regimes as climate changes. This knowledge is
important both from a standpoint of understanding the terrestrial carbon budget
and also permitting informed adaptation of forest management policy. Several
activities will be supported, including update of the forest fire database; and
analysis of fire chronologies for detectable evidence of climate change.
Sponsors: Natural Resources Canada; Environment Canada;
Provincial/Territorial Fire Centres; U of Toronto
Budget: $220,000
CCAF contribution: $30,000
10. Field Experiment to Document the Hydrologic Cycle of the
Mackenzie Basin
The Global Energy and Water Cycle Experiment (GEWEX) is an international
activity to improve our understanding and prediction of the role played by the
water cycle in the climate system. The Canadian objectives are:
- to understand and model with our Regional Climate Model the high latitude
water and energy cycles that play crucial roles in the climate system; and
- to improve our ability to assess the changes to Canada's water resources
that arise from climate variability and change.
Canadian efforts will initially focus on the Mackenzie River Basin, through
the Mackenzie GEWEX Study (MAGS). River flows into the Arctic Ocean are believed
to have a critical role in driving the climate. A critical part of MAGS focuses
on a 14 month-long observational effort during 1998 and 1999. The outcome will
be enhanced observations of key processes and a consistent dataset. Funding
will be used to augment gaps in the 14 month measurement program.
Sponsors: Environment Canada NSERC (Natural Sciences and Engineering
Research Council); BC Hydro (tentative)
Budget: $1.4 Million
CCAF contribution: $50,000
11. Risk Management Science Coordination Workshop
To better understand the potential impacts of global climate change for
Canada, an expert Panel will develop an operational science-based risk
management framework; this framework will aim to optimize management of the
multi-disciplinary scientific activities on climate change in Canada. The Panel
will identify the potential environmental, health, and social impacts of global
climate change in Canada as fully as possible at this time. In addition, the
Panel will develop recommendations for appropriate integration of scientific
data and information in climate change mitigation strategies in anticipation of
alternative plausible climate change scenarios. The Panel will propose an
approach and mechanisms whereby inter-disciplinary risk management
considerations will be used to contribute to the development of future climate
change policies in a Canadian context. The Panel will convene at the University
of Ottawa. The Panel will be predominantly Canadian, supplemented with a limited
number of foreign experts in climate change.
Sponsors: Health Canada and other federal government departments; U
of Ottawa
Budget: $75,000
CCAF contribution: $55,000
Impacts and Adaptation Projects
12. Canadian Vulnerabilities to Climate Change
Research on the impacts of climate change is often presented in
peer-reviewed scientific literature. A bilingual colour atlas will present some
of this information on Canadian vulnerabilities to climate change in an easy to
understand map format. Topics include: salmon distribution, soil erosion,
permafrost thaw and shoreline sensitivity to sea level rise. A second edition
is planned to include new research published during the year.
Sponsors: Natural Resources Canada (GSC (SPELL OUT) with
collaboration from Environment Canada, Agriculture and Agri-foods Canada,
Natural Resources Canada (Canadian Forests Service ) and Department of
Fisheries and Oceans.
Budget: $35,000
CCAF contribution: $30,000
13. Addressing Adaptation to Climate Change in Canada: a Workshop. Oct
16/98 Ottawa
Building on the On-line Forum "Critical Questions about Adaptation",
this Ottawa workshop brought together expert stakeholders to help design the
suite of activities required to answer the "Critical Questions" and
thus develop adaptation options that will contribute to the development of a
strategy for adaptation to climate change. This is an important priority
setting activity for the impacts and adaptation component of the CCAF. Funding
covered facility costs and support some travel to the workshop by
non-governmental experts and stakeholders.
Sponsors: Natural Resources Canada , federal government
departments, universities, Canadian citizens
Budget: $50,000
CCAF contribution: $50,000
14. Publication of the Sectoral and Cross Cutting Volumes of the
Canada Country Study on Impacts and Adaptation to Climate Change.
The initial assessment phase of the Canada Country Study finished with a
national workshop in November 1997. Since that time, these two volumes, part of
the state-of-the-art assessment of current Canadian information on the impacts
of climate change were completed and translated.
The Sectoral volume focuses on the impacts of climate variability and change
on various socio-economic sectors such as health, forestry, insurance while the
Cross Cutting Issues volume focuses on impacts that cut across boundaries such
as water resources. Money from the Action Fund will enable this critical
information to be published in French and English on the web and as CD-ROMs.
Sponsors: Environment Canada
Budget: $84,000
CCAF contribution: $29,000
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