Government of Canada
2002/54
May 14, 2002
RESEARCH NETWORK TO STUDY IMPACTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE ON COASTLINES
DARTMOUTH — The vulnerability of Canada's coastlines to climate
change will be the focus of a new branch of a nationwide research network. The
Honourable Herb Dhaliwal, Minister of Natural Resources Canada (NRCan), announced
today that the coordinating office of the Coastal Zone sector of the Canadian
Climate Impacts and Adaptation Research Network (C-CIARN) is being established
at the Bedford Institute of Oceanography in Nova Scotia.
The national network is part of a $10-million Government of Canada investment
to bring together researchers, communities and industry to improve our knowledge
of climate change vulnerabilities and to identify research gaps, priorities
and needs. C-CIARN includes six regional and seven sectoral groups.
"Canada's coastal zone is recognized as being vulnerable to the projected
effects of climate change," said Minister Dhaliwal. "Through research,
we can minimize the negative impacts of climate change and ensure that coastal
communities are better prepared to deal with any challenges that climate change
may present."
"Cooperative action is crucial to studying the effects of climate change
on our environment and for taking steps to adapt to these changes," said
David Anderson, Minister of the Environment. "By bringing together stakeholders
from government, universities, the private sector and non-governmental organizations,
we will be able to accelerate the generation of new knowledge about climate
change and proactively address the key issues."
C-CIARN Coastal Zone will provide one window for contacts, data and information
relating to climate change impacts and adaptation research along the Atlantic,
Pacific, Arctic and Great Lakes coastlines. Impacts such as changing water levels,
storm surges, shoreline stability and decreases in seasonal ice will be addressed
from both a regional and national perspective.
The Government of Canada is investing $125,000 per year over five years in
C-CIARN Coastal Zone. This investment is encouraging in-kind contributions from
universities, industry and other government agencies.
Federal funding for C-CIARN is provided for in the Government of Canada budget
and is therefore built into the existing financial framework. The funding for
this initiative builds on the Government of Canada's $1.5-billion commitment,
since 2000, to help address climate change and implement energy-efficient initiatives.
For more information, media may contact:
Heather Bala
Director of Communications
Office of the Minister
Natural Resources Canada
Ottawa
(613) 996-7252
Kelly Morgan
Director of Communications
Office of the Minister of the Environment
(819) 997-1441
The following media backgrounder is also available:
- Canadian Climate Impacts and Adaptation Research
Network (C-CIARN)
Government of Canada news releases and backgrounders on climate change are
available on the Internet at http://www.climatechange.gc.ca.
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