MAINSTREAMING CLIMATE CHANGE TOOLS FOR THE PROFESSIONAL PLANNING COMMUNITY
CLIMATE CHANGE ADAPTATION PLAN FOR GLENBURNIE-BIRCHY HEAD-SHOAL BROOK, NEWFOUNDLAND AND LABRADOR
VOLUME 1: BACKGROUND REPORT
Written by: Patricia Manuel, PhD, MCIP Sarah Herring, MCIP ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS: Mainstreaming Climate Change Tools for the Professional Planning Community is a project of the Canadian Institute of Planners, in partnership with Natural Resources Canada and the Atlantic Planners Institute. The Climate Change Adaptation Action Plan for Glenburnie-Birchy Head-Shoal Brook was prepared by Patricia Manuel and Sarah Herring with the support of School of Planning, Dalhousie University and City of Saint John.
Acknowledgements
Patricia Manuel and Sarah Herring would like to thank those whose participation made this project happen:
Thank you to Raymond Cusson and Susan Galloway for their dedication and enthusiasm, and their knowledge of the community. Without their commitment and assistance we would not have been able to reach the community in the way we have.
Thank you to Hailey Steiger for her assistance with mapping and analysis to define and understand the vulnerable places throughout the community. Also thank you to Hailey and other CIP staff for their organization and administrative assistance for the project.
Thank you to the Mayor and Council of Glenburnie-Birchy Head-Shoal Brook for their willingness to participate in this project and their knowledge of and commitment to the future of the community. Thank you to Myrna Hynes, Town Clerk, for her assistance in organizing and providing food for meetings.
Thank you to the South Bay Volunteer Fire Department for their knowledge of the community and assistance in defining the vulnerable areas of the community and the vast strengths and skills of the community members.
Thank you to Principal Margaret King, Vice-principal Steven Buffet and the staff and students of Bonne Bay Academy for their enthusiastic participation in this project by adopting climate change as the theme of this year’s school Heritage Fair.
Thank you to participants in the Adaptation Plan Review Committee who volunteered to review and provide feedback on the plan recommendations.
Thank you to Parks Canada for the data used to create the maps that are the foundation of much of the plan recommendations, and to the Department of Fisheries and Oceans for the boat tour of South Arm.
And THANK YOU to all residents of Glenburnie-Birchy Head-Shoal Brook and Woody Point who attended public meetings and discussion groups, many thanks for your enthusiastic participation and contributions to the success of this community project.
2 Background Report Table of Contents
1. Introduction 4
1.1 Project Description 4
1.2 Climate Change 5
1.3 Mitigation & Adaptation 6
2. Background 7
2.1 Community Profile 7
2.2 Natural Environment 21
2.3 Planning Approach 30
3. Climate Change in Glenburnie-Birchy Head Shoal Brook 48
3.1 Climate Change Research 48
3.2 Climate Change Predictions 49
3.3 Climate Change Impacts 51
4. Glossary 55
Endnotes 62
5. Appendices
5.1 Inventory Maps
5.2 Detailed Meeting Notes
5.3 Environment and Climate Summary
5.4 Presentations
6. Sources Cited
3 1. Introduction
1.1 Project Description
Scientific research and analysis suggest that all Canadian communities will need, in various ways, to adjust to the effects of climate change and incorporate new and innovative policies and tools into their day-to-day decision-making. Natural Resources Canada (NRCan), through its programs and activities, has conducted extensive research on climate change impacts and is developing tools to assist communities in adapting to climate change by collaborating with other professional organizations across Canada.
The Canadian Institute of Planners (CIP), in collaboration with NRCan’s Climate Change Impacts and Adaptations Program, is endeavouring to make this and other scientific research and information on climate change impacts and adaptations a major consideration in planning practice across Canada. As part of a goal to build awareness and expertise on climate change within the Canadian planning profession and develop tools and resources that will assist planners and communities in their day-to-day work, NRCan and CIP have partnered to develop climate change adaptation plans in four communities in Atlantic Canada1. Working collaboratively with the Atlantic Planners Institute (API), the following four communities were selected for adaptation planning in 2009 and 2010:
1) Glenburnie-Birchy Head-Shoal Brook, Newfoundland and Labrador 2) Claire, New Brunswick 3) Glace Bay, Nova Scotia 4) Stratford, Prince Edward Island
Following the completion of climate change adaptation plans for each of these communities, as well as plans completed in several Nunavut communities, the combined lessons of each project and the experiences of the planning teams will be used to create a Rural Workbook to assist other communities in rural and small town Canada in writing their own climate change adaptation plans.
Professional planners from the Atlantic Region were asked to volunteer for the adaption planning project, and were assigned to work in these communities in teams of two. Patricia Manuel, a professional planner and faculty member at Dalhousie University’s School of Planning and Sarah Herring, a professional planner working for the City of Saint John, New Brunswick, were selected to work in Glenburnie-Birchy Head-Shoal Brook (GBS).
4 1.2 Climate Change
Governments, communities, scientists and individuals around the world are discussing and beginning to take action on climate change in unprecedented numbers. The Government of Canada defines climate change as “a long-term shift in overall weather conditions over time”2, and recognizes that climate change is caused by both natural processes and human actions.
Natural causes of climate change external to the climate system may be related to changes in volcanic activity, solar output and the Earth’s orbit around. Causes within the climate system, such as variations in the ocean currents can influence the climate for decades.
Human activities, such as the burning of fossil fuels (oil, gasoline, natural gas, coal, etc.) and land uses such as forestry and agriculture can also cause changes in the climate. In the past 250 years since the Industrial Revolution, these human activities have increased the amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, thereby changing the natural composition and warming capability of the natural greenhouse effect and impacting the global climate at a much faster rate and greater magnitude than ever before in history.
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5 1.3 Mitigation & Adaptation
Most action taken to date against climate change has been focused on mitigation - measures that reduce emissions of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere or increase the capacity of greenhouse gas absorption (carbon “sinks”).
Despite these mitigation efforts, it is widely recognized that climate change has already begun and will continue for a long period of time, even if all greenhouse gas emissions were significantly reduced or eliminated. As a result, many groups are beginning to focus on not only mitigating our contribution to climate change but also adapting to current and future changes in the climate. Adaptation refers to measures taken in response to actual or expected changes in climate, and it involves assessing the possible impacts of climate change on our social, economic and physical environments and taking actions to adapt to and learn to better live with both positive and negative impacts4.
Mitigation Actions might Adaptation Actions might include: include:
- Driving your car less, anti- - Building further from the idling campaigns coast - Energy-efficiency - Planting different crops upgrades - Changing land uses to - Switching to renewable protect coastlines and energy sources other sensitive areas Rd i i Ch i h d h
6 2. Background
2.1 Community Profile
The Town of Glenburnie-Birchy Head-Shoal Brook (GBS) is located on the west coast of Newfoundland and stretches approximately 6.5 kilometres along the South Arm of Bonne Bay. The town is located within the Gros Morne National Park and UNESCO World Heritage site.
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7 Settlement History
The communities of Glenburnie, Birchy Head and Shoal Brook were settled in the late 1800’s, as were the other communities along Bonne Bay (Woody Point, Curzon Village, Norris Point and Rocky Harbour). Like all coastal Newfoundland communities, those along Bonne Bay were settled as fishing communities. The cod and herring fishery in Bonne Bay drew year-round settlers to the area, bringing with them merchants, tradesmen, teachers, doctors and clergymen.
Over the years, the communities of Bonne Bay diversified and some emerged as port and service centres while others supported sawmilling, gravel extraction or quarrying, and timber harvesting. Post confederation (1949) development meant more infrastructure such as roads, electricity and telecommunications for the coastal communities of Newfoundland, and in Bonne Bay it meant the “discovery” of the beauty and uniqueness of the landscape. The three communities of Glenburnie, Birchy Head and Shoal Brook amalgamated and were incorporated as a single town in 19786.
In 1973, the national importance of the Bonne Bay area was recognized with the creation of Gros Morne National Park to protect an outstanding example of Newfoundland’s western highlands. In 1987, the Gros Morne region was declared a World Heritage Site by the United Nations for its exceptional geology and natural beauty.
Demographics
The 2006 Canadian Census reports the population of Glenburnie-Birchy Head-Shoal Brook (GBS) to be 350 year-round residents living in 200 households7. The GBS Town Clerk, however, reports the population in 2009 to be 229 year-round residents, including 24 children under the age of 18. The town’s population increases dramatically in the summer when part-time residents, occupying 57 homes in GBS, return to the area. GBS, like all the communities of Bonne Bay and many other rural communities throughout Canada, is aging and the proportion of part-time to full-time residents is increasing.
Education
The children and youth of GBS attend school at the Bonne Bay Academy in the neighbouring town of Woody Point. The Academy offers classes from kindergarten through grade 12, and during the 2009 - 2010 school year had 63 students distributed as follows:
- 12 students in kindergarten through grade 3; - 20 students in grades 4 through 6; - 12 students in junior high (grades 7 through 9); and
8 - 19 students in senior high (grades 10 through 12, including academic and advanced placement levels).
The Academy employs nine teachers in 8.5 teaching and two administrative positions (principal and vice-principal). Students are taught in combined classes as noted above, with elementary, junior high and high school core courses taught either every year or in rotation in alternate years. Some electives are offered on-line8.
Economy
In 2006, the Census indicates that the per capita income for residents of GBS was approximately $17,650 (for each man, woman and child). Half of the families in the town had incomes of over $35,000. Home ownership rates within the town are high, with 93.8% of the homes in GBS being owned rather than rented. However, as noted above, nearly one-quarter of the property owners in GBS are not year-round residents.
The Census reports that the unemployment rate in the community is high; however, this is likely more reflective of the seasonal nature of work rather than a chronic lack of employment.
The job market in GBS appears to be diversifying, with more jobs in education, sales and service and office and related occupations in recent years. Businesses within GBS are diverse for the relatively small population and include:
- tourist accommodations (an inn, a cottage colony, and an RV park), - gift shops, - a restaurant and bakery, - a gas and service station, - a trucking and excavating service company, - recreation and small vehicle retail and repair shops, - a convenience and grocery store, and - a laundromat.
The town also has a post office located in the convenience and grocery store. Residents of GBS are employed in the local business, in businesses and services (such as education, research, government and health care sectors) in neighbouring communities and in the National Park. Some residents also commute to Deer Lake for work. As noted above, employment is a mix of year-round full-time and part-time and seasonal.
Tourism from Gros More National Park and the Tablelands World Heritage Site is a significant source of revenue for GBS, as it is for the entire Bonne Bay region, and the town has partnered with the Gros Morne Co-operating Association and the Gros Morne Institute for Sustainable Tourism to showcase GBS as a destination and a sustainable community.
9 The Gros Morne Co-operating Association is The Gros Morne Institute for Sustainable a non-profit group of volunteers who support Tourism advances the quality and success of Gros Morne National Park through Atlantic Canadian tourism operators through environmental education, conservation an array of training programs to be developed programs, recreational activities and and offered at the Institute. The objective is to community-based initiatives. enhance the quality and sustainability of outdoor/nature-based experiences afforded throughout Atlantic Canada, by providing developmental training programs respecting: sustainable tourism practices, experiential tourism services and eco-adventure tourism.
The Association manages the public programming at the swimming pool in Rocky Harbour, sponsors the annual Beach Sweep, manages an extensive system of cross- The Institute advances the quality of tourism country ski trails and operates sales outlets at services and facilities, supports diversification the Gros Morne Discovery Centre, the Visitor of sustainable tourism experiences and builds Centre and the Bonne Bay Marine Station in the capacity of Atlantic Canada’s tourism Norris Point. operators.
www.grosmornetravel.com/gros-morne-co-op/ www.gmist.ca
Town Governance
Glenburnie-Birchy Head-Shoal is a self-administered municipality with an elected Town Council of five councillors and a mayor. The Council is responsible for controlling land use and development in accordance with the town’s Municipal Plan and for maintaining town infrastructure such as municipal roads and the Glenburnie Boardwalk. The Council is also responsible for the management of the Bonne Bay South Waste Disposal Committee, the GBS Advisory Committee and Sustainable Communities (of the Safe and Sustainable Communities of Bonne Bay South), and the Birchy Head Recreation Committee.
The GBS Municipal Plan is a regulation under the Newfoundland Urban and Rural Planning Act9. The current Plan was adopted in 1996 for the period of 1996 to 2006, and although now outdated, is still in effect. The Plan’s policies and development regulations apply within the Municipal Planning Area as shown below:
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11 The Plan was developed based on five basic assumptions according to the circumstances of the mid-1990’s:
1) that the population of the town would stabilize at 350-400 residents (based on trends showing the population at 368 residents in 1986 and 365 residents in 1991);
2) that the National Park Discovery Centre (in neighbouring Woody Point) would create employment opportunities;
3) that the continued development of the National Park, and associated tourism, would have a positive effect on the local economy;
4) that the forestry sector would continue to be the main employment sector for community residents; and
5) that the residential development pattern would continue in the established and overwhelmingly dominant form of single-family dwellings10.
The goals of the Plan emphasize promoting an “orderly and economic pattern of growth and development” with as little “disruption of the natural environment” as possible, while providing “an ordered layout of the community for efficient development of land use and infrastructure” and that “enhances the overall physical, social, cultural and economic well-being of current and future citizens.”11
Plan objectives following from these goals describe:
- the future form and growth of the community remaining in its elongated form with no growth beyond the current built up area;
- continuing with a mixed-development land use area designation of residential (dominant), commercial, light industrial and agriculture typical of rural communities while providing compatibility (type, size, scale) between adjacent uses; and
- no new growth areas for heavier industry (such as trucking, gravel extraction as noted in the plan) although the mixed-land use area can still accommodate additional small scale or light industries.
12 Zoning Map – Southern portion of GBS
13 Zoning Map – Northern portion of GBS
14 The Plan objectives also describe the continuation of activities such as domestic wood cutting, agriculture, mineral workings, Municipal Plan Actions: aggregate extraction, and fishery related Infrastructure Maintenance & Development activities within a Rural Resource area - Building inventory (outside the built-up area) and in such a way - Paving as to secure the availability of forests, wildlife, - Water and sewer development fish, aggregate, historical, water and - Glenburnie boardwalk agriculture resources for future generations. - Trail and park at McKenzie Brook - Trail and snowmobile trail development Industrial development (including hazardous - Old Trout River Road uses) that can’t be accommodated in the - Pic-a-Tenerife trail mixed-use area is permitted in the Rural - Road-side scenic view pull-offs Resource area, provided it does not require - Community signage municipal services, does not adversely affect - Beautification/residential cleanup other land uses and is environmentally Thematic Heritage Development benign. - Old Mill site
The Town developed an ambitious scheduled Community Promotion Action Plan for the years between 2001 and - Brochure development
2005 to implement the Plan Objectives. Committees and Joint Committees with Planned actions included town improvements neighbouring communities and jurisdictions through infrastructure maintenance and development; thematic heritage development; On-going Municipal Plan Activities community promotion through a brochure; - Zoning delegating actions through committees and - Plan Review joint committees and on-going municipal plan making. Most of the actions were either implemented and completed or are in-progress or on-going.
Regional Governance
Under Newfoundland’s Regional Secretariat, the town of Glenburnie-Birchy Head-Shoal Brook is also part of the Corner Brook – Rocky Harbour Regional Council and the Provincial Council. The goal of the Secretariat, through the work of these Councils, is to advance the sustainability of rural Newfoundland and Labrador communities and regions by supporting the development of citizen-based policy advice to government, engaging citizens in the future of their province, and by supporting collaboration between and among rural stakeholders. Working through a Regional Council of representatives from the member communities, residents can participate in policy decisions affecting the development of their communities and regions. Each Region articulates a vision and develops activity reports.
The vision for Corner-Brook-Rocky Harbour Region focuses on sustaining, rejuvenating, and enhancing traditional and developing new, innovative industries, businesses and
15 technologies. The Region has a lot of advantages that include municipal governance, inter-community cooperation through non-government organizations, established and well-distributed education and research facilities, national and international recognition for its outstanding natural environment, national and world-class sport and recreation facilities, excellent road and air transportation links, good climate and forest, water, and soil resources.
In December of 2007, The Corner Brook – Rocky Harbour Regional Council laid out a Vision for the next 12 years in the region, with focused vision statements on the social, cultural, environmental and economic sectors and an understanding that an integrated approach to development in all areas is needed to ensure future sustainability and prosperity. In the Council’s 2008-2011 Action Plan, they identified the following goals as priorities for the next three years:
1) Access to quality transportation infrastructure and services; 2) Access to quality education infrastructure and service; and 3) Access to quality health infrastructure and services12.
Community Infrastructure
Administrative, Social and Cultural Infrastructure The administrative, social and cultural infrastructure and services owned and/or operated by the Town of Glenburnie-Birchy Head-Shoal Brook include:
- the town hall (municipal clerk’s office and - meeting facilities for council and committees),
- the fire hall (housing the local emergency service equipment), and
- the community recreation building (a meeting hall and kitchen used for a wide variety of community events and activities, as well as a community garden on the property).
Fire and emergency services are provided by the South Side Volunteer Fire Department, a recently amalgamated service serving the towns of Glenburnie-Birchy Head-Shoal Brook and Woody Point.
Institutions within the community include Pentecostal, United and Anglican churches and four cemeteries. Education and medical facilities are located in the neighbouring town of Woody Point.
16 Volunteerism is very strong in the community and consequently there is a wide array of community groups and activities. The Town Recreation Committee organizes and runs a winter carnival, scrapbooking club and fitness club. The three churches each have their own activities including women’s groups, children/youth groups and church suppers for the whole community. The Tree House Family Resource Centre (located in Woody Point) supports a pre-school group that meets twice weekly. Eight families produce food at the local organic garden. The Farmers’ Market (located in GBS and open to producers throughout the region) runs through the summer and early fall. The Farmers’ Market is an initiative of the Safe and Sustainable Communities of Bonne Bay organization.
Participation in social and cultural activities is not limited to residents of GBS as the communities of South Arm and of the Bonne Bay region generally involve and also rely on one another to support social, cultural and sport and leisure undertakings and activities and businesses throughout the region.
Roads and Utilities Map 1, “Community Infrastructure” (Appendix 5.1) illustrates the layout of the town and its infrastructure, including roads, utilities, buildings and park and recreation spaces.
The town owns 1.8 kilometres of local road, including Beach Road, Burdens Lane, Silverton Road, Glenburnie Road and MacKenzies Lane, municipal breakwaters at Silverton Road, Shoal Brook and the ‘Bottom’ at Glenburnie and a boardwalk along the Glenburnie shoreline.
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There are also many private and public service roads travelling from the properties on the west side of Route 431 up into the stream valleys and the Tablelands. These routes include old logging roads and former roads connecting Bonne Bay with Deer Lake to the south and Trout River to the northeast. The snowmobile club has also developed a trail for winter recreation. The routes are now used as community trails for recreation (hiking, snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, snowmobiling), and also for accessing woodlots for hunting and for domestic wood harvesting.
The Provincial Department of Transportation provides routine maintenance and winter snow and ice maintenance for Route 431, the main road of the community and a provincial highway, and bridges crossing Middle Brook, Sellars Brook, and Shoal Brook. Additional drainage is accommodated by major culverts (at Crouhers Gulch and Point Brook) and other smaller culverts owned and maintained by the Province. The town currently contracts to the Department of Transportation for maintenance of local roads throughout the community.
The Department of Transportation maintenance depot is located at the entrance to the town at Middle Brook. There is an electrical power substation (provincial utility) located at the northern boundary of the community on the Old Trout River Road just above
18 Shoal Brook. A power line runs south east from the substation within the town. The community is serviced by high-speed internet and cable television.
A municipal chlorination plant in Glenburnie treats drinking water delivered from Croucher’s Brook to households in Glenburnie, mainly in the low lying area on the delta known as ‘the bottom’. Other households in the town are on private wells (sometimes shared among two or three households). Residents report that water from the wells is plentiful and of good quality. The town does not have a sewage treatment system, so sewage is disposed of by out-fall pipes into Bonne Bay or on-site septic systems13.
Community Development and Sustainability
One of the biggest challenges for the region is the outmigration of youth from communities and the resulting older population. The Corner Brook–Rocky Harbour Rural Secretariat states that the regional population declined from 53,100 in 1986 to 45,900 in 2007. At the same time, the median age increased from 32 years in the early 1990s to 43 years today.
The suburban communities of Corner Brook have the lowest mean ages (between 20 and 40 years) while those of South Arm Bonne Bay, including GBS, have the oldest populations (median age between 47 and 65). This challenge is typical of most rural regions; however, there are many advantages in this area that have potential to hold and possibly attract young people to the region14.
The town of GBS and other communities within the region are forming important partnerships with each other such as the South Bay Volunteer Fire Department and the Gros Morne Institute of Sustainable Tourism, and with external partners to enhance their development and increase community sustainability.
Communities of the region participate in the Community-University Research for Recovery Alliance (CURRA), an interdisciplinary research-focused initiative of Memorial University of Newfoundland. The goal of CURRA is to translate research, principally marine and fisheries research, into economic recovery (through revitalized or new resource development) of the south western and western rural communities of Newfoundland. The regional office for the project is located in Norris Point at the Marine Research Station. In 2008 and 2009 the project focused on the Bonne Bay region15.
The community of GBS has identified that it is at a crucial crossroads in its transition from an economy based on fishing, mineral and timber resource extraction, and conventional tourism to that of a distinctive setting for geo-tourism – tourism that sustains or enhances the geographical character of a place, its environment, culture, aesthetics, heritage and the wellbeing of its residents.
19 The town, along with the other communities of Bonne Bay and Trout River, Wiltondale and Sally’s Cove, is also a member of the Red Ochre Regional Inc., a community economic development board. The development board, as part of the Newfoundland and Labrador Regional Economic Development Association (NLREDA) assists communities with economic development through partnerships, communications, advocacy, research, human resources and organizational development and coordination.16, 17
Declaration of Genuine Progress Index David Suzuki’s Sustainable Community: (Atlantic): Nature Challenge:
We understand The things we measure We need to rethink our sustainable community and count tell us what we relationship to nature as development as “living a value as a society. The expressed in our daily full life at the community GPI is common-sense activities and decisions. level, within the Earth’s accounting that counts limits, without beneficial activities as The Nature Challenge compromising the next positive, and damaging involves doing at least 3 generations to do the activities as negative. of the following actions: same, based on the principles of respect for 6 main GPI categories: Home – Live Clean! the environment and Living standards stewardship of the land” Population health Food – Eat local and Time use lean! 4 pillars of sustainability: Community vitality Ecological integrity Education Transportation – Go Economic security Environmental quality Green! Empowerment & Responsibility www.gpiatlantic.org www.davidsuzuki.org Social well-being
Among the communities of Bonne Bay, GBS has positioned itself as a focal point for environmental and economic sustainability. The town bases its philosophy of community development on the Declaration of Sustainable Community and on the Genuine Progress Index (Atlantic).
It is also the first community in Canada to adopt David Suzuki’s Nature Challenge and is the first town in Newfoundland and Labrador to adopt a By-Law prohibiting the use of pesticides and herbicides18. The town has received awards for community beautification in 2006 (Communities in Bloom award recognizing the Glenburnie Boardwalk19; for protection of environmental and human health in 2007 (Healthy Choices, Healthy Futures Award of the Canadian Cancer Society) for banning the cosmetic use of pesticides20; and for waste management in 2009 (Newfoundland and Labrador Annual Environmental Awards)21
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Community members have also initiated a variety of education, awareness and action campaigns relating to backyard composing, kitchen and community gardens, low- salt/no-meat cooking, re-usable bags, reduced vehicle idling, CFL (compact fluorescent) light bulbs, food security and organic/local food, waste reduction, annual beach clean- ups, green technology, and household energy audits.
The plan coming out of the Adapting to Climate Change in Glenburnie-Birchy Head- Shoal Brook project will provide the community with another tool in achieving community development and sustainability, by informing where and how investment in community and private infrastructure should be made and by identifying how the community may be able to capitalize on the benefits of climate change.
Community Capacity
The Bonne Bay region has many advantages that include municipal governance, inter- community cooperation through non-government organizations, established and well- distributed education and research facilities, national and international recognition for its outstanding natural environment, national and world-class sport and recreation facilities, excellent road and air transportation links, good climate and forest, water, and soil resources.
Additionally, within this regional context, Glenburnie-Birchy Head-Shoal Brook has a vast amount of human capital, with a close-knit community and strong, ingrained values of volunteerism and mutual cooperation and assistance. Citizens of GBS also share a strong commitment to “doing what needs to be done” and solving their own problems collectively using local knowledge and practical skills.
Established groups within the community, such as the Town Council, the Recreation Committee, the South Side Volunteer Fire Department and local churches and clubs bring a wealth of resources and commitment to the community. A diverse skill-set, combined with local heavy equipment and machinery, connections with other communities, Parks Canada and the Department of Transportation greatly increase the capacity of the community to respond to a variety of challenges including climate change adaptation.
2.2 Natural Environment
Climate and Ecoregion Bonne Bay and the Town of Glenburnie-Birchy Head-Shoal Brook are situated at the boundary between the humid-continental and sub-arctic climate subregions of the Köppen climate classification system Zone D – of moist mid-latitude climates with cold winters. Summer temperatures differentiate the humid continental (warm summers)
21 from sub-arctic (cool summers).22 Bonne Bay’s comparatively warmer summers place it closer to the humid continental subregion.
Generally speaking, the climate in this area is cold and snowy in winter and warm in summer. The mean annual temperature is around 4°C, with a mean summer temperature of 12°C (July temperatures are between 14°C and 16°C) and a mean winter temperature of -3.5°C (February temperatures are between -5°C and -8°C).23
The coastal mountains in the region create the conditions for the large amount of precipitation that falls in the area - winds off the Gulf of Saint Lawrence drop their moisture when they ascend to go over the mountains. Annual precipitation is approximately 1200 mm, and annual snowfall is between 200 and 400 centimetres. The area also has the longest frost-free period on the Island of Newfoundland (due to the Long Range Mountains which provide protection from cold northeast winds). Moving through the area from west to east and from south to north in this area, there is increasing precipitation, colder winters and longer periods of snow cover, and mountain slopes generally receive more precipitation than low-lying valleys.
The Town’s microclimate falls within plant hardiness zone 4a24. These conditions are quite restrictive for agriculture, but many factors including southerly exposure, shelter from wind provided by hills, fertilizing acidic soils, and selecting suitable crops all improve growing success.
Regional climate is the foundation of ecoregion classification. Regional climate results in distinctive and repeating patterns of vegetation and soil development used to classify ecoregions. Bonne Bay is at the intersection of three eco sub-regions: the Serpentine Range and the Corner Brook sub-regions of the Western Newfoundland Forest Ecoregion and the Coastal Plain sub-region of the Northern Peninsula Forest Ecoregion.25 Glenburnie-Birchy Head-Shoal Brook is located in the Corner Brook subregion but its watersheds are part of this region and the Serpentine Range subregion. The vegetation and habitats typical of these ecoregions and the GBS area are described later in this report.
Marine Environment The town of GBS occupies a stretch of the western shore of South Arm, a composite fjord of Bonne Bay. East Arm and the much smaller Deer Arm are the other two inlets of Bonne Bay.
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The image below shows the bathymetry and topography of Bonne Bay26. South Arm and Outer Bonne Bay are separated from East Arm by a shallow sill. Water in South Arm is up to 100 metres deep in the central areas but is typically only 40 to 60 metres deep near the shore. The transition from shallow to deep water occurs within metres of the shore along most of the inlet. Just off the Woody Point shore at the mouth, however, the fjord reaches up to 200 metres deep.
There is a broad tidal flat at the head of the Arm at Glenburnie built up of sediment contributed from three brooks entering the Arm at that location. There are other small gravelly deltas at mouths of three other brooks along the South Arm; two of these are within the GBS municipality. The shoreline of the Arm is made up of cobbles, gravel and coarse sand from the glacial till and gravelly raised beach sediments of the surrounding landscape.
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Tides in the Arm are semi-diurnal and tidal range is low, from 0.5 to 1.7 metres on average.27 The fjords of Bonne Bay reach surface water temperatures of 16-18ºC on average in the summer (although temperatures are now increasing to between 20 and 24ºC).28 Temperatures at the greater depths are very much colder and stable. The Bay and its inlets freeze over in winter. The ice previously covered the Bay completely, but ice patterns have been changing in recent years and ice is less extensive and of shorter duration.
Geology and Landform The landscape of GBS is very dramatic. Maps 2 to 6 in Appendix 5.1 illustrate the geology and the landform of the South Arm area. Mountains soar above the community in great cliffs of exposed rock. The Tablelands to the southwest rise to 700 metres above sea level and provide a commanding backdrop for the community. Lookout Hills and Big Lookout to the northwest reach 370 metres and 610 metres, respectively. Across the water from the town on the east side of the Arm the hills rise in a near vertical ascent above the water to 270 metres. The lowest elevations are in the stream valleys and the delta at the head of the Arm.
The geology of the region is complex and diverse29 (Map 3, Bedrock Geology, Appendix 5.1). The rocks originate in the late Pre-Cambrian and Lower Palaeozoic eras (1,000 - 500 million years ago) and are oceanic and marginal (forming at crustal plate margins) in origin. The formations of the area include igneous, volcanic (e.g. pillow basalt) and plutonic rocks (gabbro) and sedimentary rocks of shale, sandstone and the complex, jumbled, cemented material called mélange.
Mélange is the dominant bedrock found within the GBS town boundaries. The Tablelands are composed of peridodite.
The Tablelands is a section of the Earth’s mantle that was forced up from great depths during a plate collision that created the Appalachian Mountains (the Long Range Mountains are the northernmost extent of this massive, ancient mountain chain). The
24 Tablelands in particular, but also the other rocks and structure of the Bonne Bay area, represent the dynamics of plate tectonics and are the geologic marvel that attracted the area’s UNESCO World Heritage designation.
Slopes in the area are generally steep; even very steep (Map 5, Slope, Appendix 5.1). The mountain faces are nearly vertical in many places. Blocky rubble collects at the base of the exposed bedrock slopes. Glacial debris (till), left in place by the melting glaciers, covers the lower mountain slopes (Map 4, Surficial Geology, Appendix 5.1). The land falls away from the base of the mountains step-wise in terraces to the coast. These terraces are ancient beaches and flats made up of gravel, sand and mud. They formed thousands of years ago as the land rebounded following the melting of the glaciers from the last ice age - the land rose and sea level dropped and the stages of this progression are marked by the ancient beaches. The reverse is now happening - the land is settling back down: it’s subsiding and sea level is rising. Some terraces are now below water forming ledges along the sides of the deep fjord of Bonne Bay.
Land on the west side of the South Arm has a generally east facing exposure (Map 6, Slope Orientation, Appendix 5.1). Land faces northeast at the head of the Arm. Land faces west and southwest on the opposite side of the Arm. The only truly flat land in the area is found at the deltas where the brooks enter the Bay.
The settlements making up the town of Glenburnie-Birchy Head-Shoal Brook hug the base of the massive rocky hills on a narrow apron of land provided by the terraces and deltas that have formed between the mountains and the sea.
Hydrology The South Arm of Bonne Bay receives drainage from 10 main brooks and many smaller discharges draining approximately 180 square kilometres of upland and lowland to the west, south and east (Map 7, South Arm Watersheds, Appendix 5.1). Four main brooks (Middle, Sellars, Paint and Shoal – organized into
25 four watersheds) and numerous smaller streams and gullies, as well as direct overland flow, travel through and drain the land within the GBS town limits (Map 8, GBS Watersheds, Appendix 5.1).
In total, the watercourses discharging into South Arm within the town drain 95 square kilometres of land upstream of the town. These watercourses originate in the ponds, fens, bogs and thin till of the Tablelands and uplands to the west and southwest of the town boundaries. The water feeds streams that flow rapidly down the steep slopes, cutting deep and narrow valleys. They carry gravel and sand picked up from the loose material of the stream valley slopes. The sand and gravel builds up in deltas where the streams enter the Bay. Settlement has concentrated on and around these deltas.
The landscape in the stream watersheds is either exposed, weathered and fractured bedrock, allowing for some surface water infiltration, or varying depths of gravelly till with some clay incorporated into it, and gravelly, sandy marine gravel overlying marine clays. Infiltration is quite good in these materials although where clay is present the water encounters an impermeable barrier (Map 9, Hydrology, Appendix 5.1). The groundwater table in these gravelly deposits is high. There are many springs in the area and wells need only be dug rather than drilled to reach potable water. In fact, wells often discharge at the surface.
The combination of high water content, loose materials and the underlying marine clay in some locations can lead to slope instability if slopes are disturbed. These materials have a natural slope angle of 30 degrees (a 50% slope) which is very steep from a development point of view. The angle of stability decreases, however, when the materials become wet, which is their normal state in this area. The underlying clay provides a slipping plane along which the material might slide if destabilized by undercutting and slope face excavation. Given the steep slopes, erosion will occur readily if the ground is exposed through deforestation.
The glacial till and marine gravels are the parent materials for the well-drained, sandy soils (called podzols) of this area (Map 10, Soil, Appendix 5.1). The lower mountain slopes (where till is prevalent) and the marine terraces have good soil cover, but the upper slopes and plateaus are bare. Where there is good soil, there is forest vegetation. Much of the upland is barren, however, or covered in heath vegetation. Bogs and fens grow in the shallow hollows on the uplands. The soil also protects the water that moves through the ground and supplies wells. There is a lot of ground water in the sands and gravels that make up much of the lower landscape of the community.
Vegetation The interaction of climate, geology, drainage and soil supports a great array of plant communities in the Bonne Bay region and the South Arm watersheds from coastal environments to forested hills and barren highlands.30 (Map 11, Vegetation Communities and Habitats, Appendix 5.1)
26 For the Bonne Bay area as a whole, these communities include:
1) balsam fir forests with a moss or herb ground layer (secondary tree species of white birch, trembling aspen and/or red maple on regenerating cut-over or blow- down areas) on the lower mountain slopes with good soil over glacial till (moraines) and good drainage;
2) black spruce and scrub forests on poorly drained ground around sphagnum bogs;
3) scrub balsam fir coastal and talus slope forests, called Tuckamore (tuck or krummholz), shaped by harsh conditions of salt and/or wind;
4) heath-scrub barrens (possibly fire barrens as these sites are usually in morainic areas, but dry);
5) arctic-alpine heath-lichen barrens of shrubs and moss on till, rubble and bedrock in the highlands;
6) serpentine barrens with extremely sparse but, where established, remarkably hardy ground hugging plants that can tolerate both the excessive exposure and the high concentrations of metals and magnesium in this environment;
7) peatlands (upland wetlands dominated by organic soil) on the upland plateaus and of two forms: the predominant domed bogs with a hummocky, sphagnum mat and a network of pools; and the less common sedge fens forming at the edge of the bogs or where there is seepage of mineral-rich ground water;
8) riverine thickets and meadows dominated by grasses, alders and other shrubs forming in river flood plains;
9) intertidal salt marshes of mud and sand flats and salt- and flood- tolerant plants;
10) coastal sand dunes colonized by grasses on the foredunes and white spruce and scrub fir and the back dunes; and
11) limestone cliffs and talus slope communities colonized by species that tolerate the very unstable cliff environments and/or (in the case of limestone) require or tolerate the abundant calcium in the environment. These areas, like the heath- lichen and serpentine barrens, harbour some of the region’s uncommon and also rare plants.
These plant communities (with the two exceptions of coastal sand dunes and limestone cliffs) occur within the watersheds that drain to the streams flowing through the town of GBS. Furthermore, many are found within the town boundaries, most commonly balsam fir forests, but also the riverine thickets, small coastal salt marshes, and heath barrens.
27 Wildlife
The region has the greatest diversity of wildlife on the Island of Newfoundland.31
Mammals include: Birds include: Freshwater fish Moose Finches include: Black bear Warblers Nine-spine stickleback Mink Yellow-bellied flycatcher Three-spine stickleback Snowshoe hare Tree swallow Black-spotted Lynx Solitary vireo stickleback Red fox Thrushes Arctic char Beaver Song sparrow Atlantic salmon Muskrat Mourning warbler Brook trout Otter Green-winged teal Rainbow smelt Newfoundland marten Black duck American eel Little brown bat Northern pintail Mummichog Eastern chipmunk Red-breasted merganser Banded killfish Masked shrew Spotted sandpiper Meadow vole Common tern Red squirrel Belted kingfisher
Moose have become a special concern for the region. Moose were introduced to the Island in the late 1800s and have been very successful in establishing themselves in this habitat. Moose hunting is not permitted in Gros Morne Park and consequently the population in the Bonne Bay area is very large. The browsing pressure in the woodlands from so many animals combined with continued wood harvesting in the park (permitted for domestic use under special agreement) is affecting vegetation succession and changing the forest ecology of the region.32
The Newfoundland marten is a threatened species. All of the amphibians found in the area are introduced species, and they include: the green frog, American toad, wood frog, striped chorus frog and the Northern leopard frog.
There are no reptiles on the Island of Newfoundland.
All of these animals occupy or move through the habitats located within the town’s boundaries. In addition, the South Arm, with its saltwater marsh at the head of the Bay and its direct channel to the Gulf of St. Lawrence via Outer Bonne Bay is habitat to a great diversity of coastal marine life.
Studies undertaken through the Bonne Bay Marine Station in Norris Point33 report that most species found in the waters off north-eastern North America reside in, or visit, the waters of Bonne Bay and that the Bay itself, including South Arm, has an incredible diversity of seaweeds, invertebrates, fish and other marine life, such as whales (pilot, minke and humpback and fin), porpoises and harbour seals. Fishing pressures and environmental change have put some species under strain, however. Included among
28 these are several fish: redfish, wolffish, plaice, skate, oceanpout, lumpfish and Atlantic cod. Some species at risk, such as wolffish, are in danger of becoming extinct.
As previously mentioned, brooks flowing from the uplands carry gravel and sand sediment to the Bay to form deltas and flats. An extensive tidal flat reaching one kilometre into South Arm has developed where Mackenzies, Middle and Sellars Brook flow into the head of the Arm at Glenburnie. The mudflats, salt marsh and lagoons in this intertidal area provide a home and feeding ground for a variety of shorebirds, ducks, eagles, and osprey. Moose, fox and coyote also come to feed on the plants and animals of this intertidal zone.
Land Use
The three settlements of Glenburnie, Birchy Head and Shoal Brook first developed in the late 1800s as fishing communities on the flat, low-lying coastal lands (deltas) where the brooks enter Bonne Bay (Map 1, Community Infrastructure, Appendix 5.1). During the winter people retreated inland and upland to ‘winter houses’ to escape the harsh conditions on the shore. Eventually, permanent development moved up onto the terraces above the shoreline. Roads and buildings are located very close to or at sea level in some locations, or along the top or at the base of slopes in other places. There are few areas in GBS that are not at sea level or part of a hill slope.
The land, forests, wetlands, heaths, ponds and, of course, the Bay support the community in many ways. Farming is still part of the communities of Bonne Bay and South Arm – garden plots are common. Some people keep chickens and livestock. The soil as well as the gravels and sands underneath protect the abundant supply of drinking water. The gravels are used for road building or repair and land development. Locally, the forests supply fire wood while regionally they have been harvested for many years to supply wood to the lumber and pulp and paper industries. The South Arm streams once powered local saw mills. The wetlands and forests support the wildlife hunted in the community. Ponds are used for fishing. Bonne Bay, with all its resources, continues to support the commercial fishery.
29 Whether working in the woods or on the water, or out and about enjoying the beauty of nature, the entire landscape and the water are places for travel year round. Snowmobiling is a practical way to get around in the woods in winter and is used by many people for work or enjoyment. Hiking and snowshoeing can start at the front door.
There are many roads and trails leading from the community into the woodlands and barrens. In the other direction, boats of all kind travel along the coast and across South Arm and Bonne Bay. In winter, ice creates a different link between communities – a route that many have used to shorten the long trek around the Bay by road. The Bay ice patterns are changing, however, and this link is likely now a thing of the past.
Visitors flock to this part of Newfoundland to experience the beauty of the landscape and the sea made easy to reach by the communities along its shore and the services of Gros Morne National Park. Tourism and, in particular, geo-tourism, is now the major commercial activity in the region, established upon the beauty of the same natural environment whose resources have long supported the culture and traditions of the communities Bonne Bay.
2.3 Planning Approach
The GBS Planning team, Patricia Manuel and Sarah Herring, started the Adaptation Planning project in September of 2009. Their intent throughout the project was to assist the town of GBS and its Council and residents in creating a plan to minimize the potential negative impacts of climate change and maximize the potential benefits.
The planning team clearly recognized that the skills and capacity to affect these changes would have to originate within the community (with some help from external partners), and that the ideas and solutions for the necessary changes likely already resided in the community. As a result, the planning team decided to focus on connecting the community members and their individual and collective capacity for change with the scientific predictions for climate change in the GBS region. The planning team facilitated a community planning exercise, where the identification and prioritization of issues and the creation of solutions and adaptations was led by members of the community.
The research, exploration and discussions that created this Plan took place over the course of 8 months from November of 2009 to June of 2010. The planning team’s visits to the community of GBS are summarized below:
First Visit to GBS: November 18th, 2009 The planning team met with community contact, Raymond Cusson, during the Atlantic Planning Institute conference in St. John’s, Newfoundland. Discussion centred on the context of the community of Glenburnie-Birchy Head- Shoal Brook (GBS) from governmental, social, cultural and environmental perspectives. The group also
30 discussed the community’s current awareness of climate change and how best to engage the community in the Climate Change Adaptation work. A tentative agenda was set for the planning team’s first visit.
November 24th, 2009 The planning team met with Raymond Cusson and Susan Galloway in GBS to finalize the agenda for the week and to better familiarize themselves with the community context and the groups with which they would be meeting during the week. Raymond and Susan discussed the major employers and cultural activities in the community, and pointed out the importance of Gros Morne National Park tourism to the community. The value of and widespread participation in volunteerism within the community was noted, and it was pointed out that the demographics of the community were changing with more part-time residents and fewer young families and children.
November 25th, 2009 The planning team was fortunate to be given a boat tour of the South Arm of Bonne Bay by local Department of Fisheries and Oceans employees Boyd Reid and Dwayne Shears, and Ken Kennedy from Parks Canada. The boat tour allowed the team to view the community of GBS and the landscape of the area from the Bay, and provided valuable information about the historic and current patterns of development, infrastructure locations and condition, and changes to the landscape from both natural and human causes. The team were also fortunate to view, up close and personal, a number of the minke and humpback whales which are normally resident in the Bay during the fall months.
Following the tour of the Bay, the planning team met with Parks Canada employees Jeff Anderson, Scott Taylor, and Peter Deering at the Parks office in Rocky Harbour. The team discussed the intent and process for the Climate Change Adaptation Planning project in GBS, and the Parks employees expressed their interest in sharing information throughout the project and provided valuable GIS data and information on current ecological issues within the Park, as well as the names of researchers who might be
31 able to provide more detailed information on geology, natural resources, wildlife and sea level change in the region.
November 26th, 2009 The planning team met with GBS Mayor Marilyn Wight, Town Councillor Betty Simms, and Town Clerk Myrna Hynes, to discuss the intent and process of the project. The group provided a great deal of information on the community’s demographics, infrastructure, employment, recreational pursuits, and recent social and environmental changes in the community. They also suggested a number of individuals who could provide the team with local knowledge and insights.
The planning team then toured the Gros Morne Discovery Centre in Woody Point, including the Centre’s climate change display, and watched a short film on the history of Gros Morne National Park.
34
Following the tour of the Discovery Centre, the planning team met with member of the South Side Fire Department, Chief Jim Burden, Ian Sharpe, Bill Coates and Tony Howell to discuss the project and changes the fire fighters had noted in the community. The fire fighters provided a vast amount of information on changes in the weather, including snowfall, rainfall, thickness of ice on the Bay and on nearby ponds, wind strength, and tide levels. The fire fighters also provided an overview of their emergency response capacity and the work they are undertaking on a coordinated Emergency Management Plan for the communities of GBS and Woody Point.
November 27th, 2009 The planning team met with resident geologist and Parks Interpreter Kris Oravec to get a better understanding of the geology of the region and its potential vulnerability to climate change events. Kris provided valuable geological maps, data on the type of geology and glacial history of the area, and suggested other individuals and books that might be able to provide additional information.
The planning team also met with the Principal, Margaret King, and Vice-Principal, Steven Buffet of the Bonne Bay Academy in Woody Point to discuss the project and
32 investigate the possibility of the school’s involvement through the annual Heritage Fair. The team was provided with the numbers and grade levels of children who attended Bonne Bay Academy, and several ideas were discussed for the incorporation of a climate change adaptation theme into the curriculum and Heritage Fair.
Second Visit to Glenburnie-Birchy Head-Shoal Brook
February 15, 2010 Patricia travelled to St. John’s and Corner Brook prior to arriving in GBS to meet with planner, climate change researchers and landscape and environmental specialists with the Provincial government and Memorial University.
Patricia met with Cory Davis, the Director of Planning for the provincial Department of Municipal Affairs, to discuss the department’s role in supporting local area planning and climate change adaptation. Most of the discussion focussed on the role of the department in local service area planning and on future mechanisms through the Urban and Rural Planning Act to address hazard lands and development restrictions at the discretion on the Minister of Municipal Affairs.
She also met with Kim Bitterman (Department of Environment and Conservation), Tammy Keats (Department of Natural Resources) and Martin Batterson (Department of Natural Resources) to discuss other climate change adaptation projects occurring in Newfoundland, such as the Regional Adaptation Collaborative, and to confirm the climate change research and vulnerability assessments done by the planning team.
February 16, 2010 Patricia met with Dr. Norm Catto, Dr. Kelly Vodden, and Dr. Trevor Bell, all of whom are with the Department of Geography at Memorial University in St. John’s. They are all involved in climate change research in Newfoundland and Labrador and Drs. Catto and Vodden are also researchers with the Newfoundland Regional Adaptation Collaborative (RAC). Dr. Bell participated in the Nunavut climate change adaptation projects.
The planning team has drawn extensively on the work of Dr. Norm Catto and his graduate students to develop climate change impact scenarios for the GBS project. Dr. Catto is a geomorphologist and a lead climate change scientist in Canada. He has great knowledge of the regional and local impacts of climate change in Newfoundland. His students’ work has included flood forecasting in Humber Arm and research on the impacts of change on tourism in Western Newfoundland.
Patricia and Dr. Catto discussed the interpretation of this collective research in relation to the Bonne Bay and GBS area. Dr. Catto has been very helpful in assisting the planning teams’ understanding of the physical geography of the South Arm and how climate change impacts of sea level rise, increased precipitation and warmer temperatures predicted for the region will interact with the physical landscape. He has
33 helped the team understand the implications for land use and infrastructure in the region.
Dr. Vodden was part of the NRCAN adaptation working group on community capacity to adapt to climate change. One of the study communities was the Change Islands in Newfoundland. Patricia and Dr. Vodden discussed community capacity and climate change for GBS and how the community compares to others in Newfoundland. Dr. Vodden is also involved in the Newfoundland RAC. It appears that the GBS project is of great interest to the RAC project for both the process the planning team is using (full involvement of community residents) and the products that will result from the work – a plan and the supporting documentation.
Dr. Bell conducted landscape analyses for communities in the NRCAN-CIP Nunavut climate change adaptation projects and shared insights from his experience with Patricia. He has also led field courses in the Bonne Bay area and provided unpublished student research on coastal sensitivity mapping of South Arm Bonne Bay. This report is a very detailed site-based interpretation and assessment of the entire coastline of the west side of the Arm from Glenburnie to Curzon Village and a coastal sensitivity analysis. This very useful document was unknown to the planning team and would have remained unknown had Patricia not met with Dr. Bell in person.
February 17, 2010 Patricia also visited the Humber Arm region which is the focus of much of the climate change work in western Newfoundland. The Humber Arm shares many geographic similarities with Bonne Bay.
Patricia met with Dr. Nick Novakowski of the Geography and Environmental Studies programs at Sir Wilfred Grenfell College (MUN) and toured the Corner Brook and Humber Arm region. Most of the western Newfoundland climate change and geohazards research has focussed on this area. Seeing the landscape first hand is important for understanding the data interpretations for this region and allowed Patricia to assess its usefulness for comparative work in GBS. Dr. Catto had suggested that, because of similarities in physical geography, work conducted on the west side of Humber Arm is a reasonable facsimile for the west side of South Arm Bonne Bay in the absence of comparable studies in the Bonne Bay region. Lessons from the research projects for Humber Arm could be used to develop potential landscape climate change response scenarios for the Bonne Bay area (with caution, of course).
February 18, 2010 Patricia met with Prof. Keith Nicol, Department of Geography at Sir Wilfred Grenfell College (MUN) to discuss winter snowfall and snowpack in western Newfoundland. Prof. Nicol is an avalanche specialist and has studied snow pack conditions throughout western Newfoundland and the Northern Peninsula. He is currently conducting avalanche inventory work in the Humber Valley and is familiar with avalanche conditions in Gros Morne National Park, including the Tablelands and the west side of Bonne Bay
34 Patricia also met with Dr. Ilka Bauer, Department of Environmental Science at Sir Wilfred Grenfell College (MUN) to discuss wetlands, hydrology and climate change impacts in the Gros Morne Park area and in the Bonne Bay region in particular. Dr. Bauer explained that there was very little information, aside from inventories from the 1980s, on the local area wetlands and no studies to date on the impact of climate change. However, they did discuss potential impacts on wetlands under current climate change scenarios and how such changes might influence local hydrology.
That evening, after arriving in GBS, Patricia and Raymond Cusson met with the local ladies fitness class followed by the scrapbooking club to inform these groups of the climate change project and to personally invite the women to participate in community meeting opportunities through the coming week.
February 19, 2010 Patricia and Raymond met with eight of the community’s elders for lunch at the Chocolate Moose Café.
The group exchanged recollections of past weather and environmental conditions and how weather and weather patterns influenced their ways of life. There was consensus that winters of previous decades were colder and snowier and more reliably so. All recognized that this very mild winter was an oddity – the last one like this was 1958 to their recollections – but that winters are generally becoming milder with less snow. The team heard about travel in the woods, on the Bay (in winter using the ice), changes in technology, travel patterns and changes in community structure.
Several elders in the community have kept weather diaries daily and two of the participants showed their diaries during lunch. These diaries collectively cover 60 years of daily weather and local events and there are others in the community. They are a locally valuable data resource that can be used to confirm anecdotal descriptions of conditions, as well as dates for major seasonal milestones, and correlate with the scientific data for the region (and the nearest regional climate station).
35 Patricia then met with Margaret King and Steven Buffet, the principal and vice-principal at Bonne Bay Academy, to plan for the planning team’s visit to the school on Tuesday. The focus for presentations to each of the classes, and the student’s eventual work on the climate change-focused Heritage Fair was discussed.
The 13 children in grades kindergarten to 3 will focus on climate and animal stories. They are currently learning about penguins and will be displaying their penguin projects at the Heritage Fair even though this age group does not normally participate in the Fair.
The 20 students in grades 4 to 6 will focus on extreme and weird weather. They are still settling on project ideas but personalizing it to their own stories of weird weather (or that of their parents and grandparents) or personalizing climate change in the context of how it affects their own activities (winter sports, recreation and play and summer activities locally for example) is likely where this group will focus for their Heritage Fair topics.
The 12 students in grades 7 to 9 will focus their Heritage Fair projects on cultural and traditional aspects of weather and climate - the ways in which weather and climate have shaped the culture, traditions, recreation, and economy of their region.
The 19 students in grades 10 to 12 will focus on environmental impacts of climate change and connections between climate and the natural environment. This group does not usually participating in the Heritage Fair (having done that for 6 previous years) but this year will prepare course projects in science that they will display at the Fair.
February 20, 2010 Sarah joined Patricia in GBS and the planning team met with approximately 18 members of the South Side Fire Department to review and revise infrastructure maps of the community. The team briefly review the intent of the project and the fire fighters provided a vast amount of information on the location, addition and demolition of houses and accessory buildings throughout the community, and also on the location and potential vulnerability of road, bridge and culvert infrastructure. The fire fighters also discussed the weather and climate changes noticed in the community, and provided information on flooding events throughout the community.
36
Following the meeting with the fire fighters, the team hiked several trails above Shoal Brook and then met with several other community members at a potluck supper.
February 22, 2010 The planning team met with GBS Town Council members Bella Young, Jim Bingle, Betty Sims, Mayor Marilyn Wight and Town Clerk Myrna Hynes.
The team updated the Council members on the progress of the project to date, including the meetings and what was learned during the first visit to the community and the findings research into climate change predictions for the region. The team also discussed the town’s capacity for potential climate change adaptations, and potential issues for the local and provincial governments. Discussions also focused on the potential format of the final Climate Change Adaptation Plan and how it could be utilized by Council and the community to inform and guide municipal planning and investment.
Following the Council meeting, the planning team met with Anthony Blanchard, Maintenance and Engineering Supervisor for the Department of Transportation. Anthony discussed the changes he had noted in the region’s weather and climate since
37 he started with the Department in 1989, and also noted the impact of these changes on road and infrastructure maintenance.
The planning team then met with residents of the Tablelands Senior Citizens Complex Ella Moores, Pansy Goosney, Bertha Upwards, Gerald Young, Sam Simmonds, Lily Payne, Linda Taylor, Georgina Gillam and community residents George and Mary Anderson. The seniors shared a wealth of information on the changes they had noted in the community and the weather for the past 75 years, and also discussed a number of historic adaptations that were commonly used throughout the community and the region to deal with extreme weather events and changes in the social, cultural and environmental aspects of their lives.
The planning team then hosted a public presentation at the Birchy Head Recreation Centre to present their research findings so far and discuss the next steps for the project. Twenty-four community members attended the presentation – Charlie Payne, Susan Galloway, Iona White, Hazel Bingle, Jim Bingle, Ken Thomas, Wade McKenzie, Zonya McKenzie, Jim Burden, Ida Burden, Tom Sheppard, Doris Sheppard, Hayward Osmond, Eveline Tucker, Arch Tucker, Glynn Anderson, Melissa Blanchard, John Gillam, George Anderson, Mary Anderson, Nelson Blanchard, Barb Daniell, Hugh McCormack, and Raymond Cusson. The team gave a brief presentation, discussed the maps and biophysical information that would be used in analysing and formulating recommendations on climate change impacts, and then broke into smaller discussions on the community’s experiences with climate change and weather and adaptations.
February 23, 2010 The planning team met with all of the students at the Bonne Bay Academy, presenting on climate change and adaptation to each grade level and discussing the student’s observations and experiences with climate change in the community. The team also discussed the upcoming Heritage Fair and potential topics for the students to explore in their projects.
February 24, 2010 Following Sarah’s departure from GBS, Patricia and Raymond conducted an early morning interview with CBC Corner Brook on the GBS climate change adaptation project. The project is receiving considerable media attention in western Newfoundland and will continue to do so with the addition of the upcoming Heritage Fair with its climate change focus on Earth Day, April 22.
Patricia and Raymond then met with Colleen Kennedy of Gros Morne Cooperating Association in Rocky Harbour. The Association serves primarily to coordinate the tourism development strategy of the seven enclave communities of the Park, independent of the Park itself, and is the local representation of the Atlantic Region- wide Gros Morne Institute for Sustainable Tourism. Climate change impacts are expected to influence tourism opportunities (positively and negatively) and planning strategies for this region.
38 The Association, through director Colleen, is represented on the provincial Rural Secretariat and also the Harris Centre of Memorial University which is responsible for co-ordinating and facilitating the university’s educational, research and outreach activities in the areas of regional policy and development. Colleen is also co-chair of the Corner Brook-Rocky Harbour Rural Secretariat.
Patricia and Raymond also met with Dr. Bob Hooper, Director of the Bonne Bay Marine Station in Norris Point. Dr. Hooper described some of the changes in the marine environment over the recent past. He is not attributing these changes to climate change necessarily because they have not been investigated in that context, but increases in sea surface temperature, for example, do agree with predictions for the marine environment generally for the region. Scientists are measuring increases of up to 6º Celsius in summer sea surface temps in recent years in Bonne Bay (changed from previous summer temperatures of 17-18oC to modern temperatures of 23-24oC). The group discussed the possible implications of such an increase on the ecology of Bonne Bay. Dr. Hooper pointed out that there is increased activity of bio-eroding organisms (bio-erosion is a factor in rock slope undercutting, particularly by excavating clams (Zirphaea), along soft rock coastlines, some of which exist in the area). It is reasonable to expect that this bioerosion, as well as the range of activity of the responsible organisms northward, will increase as surface water temperatures increase. Warmer water also means a change in the relative proportion of arctic and temperate benthic species, particularly those in the tidal zone. ”Weeds” such as the invasive Membranipora, are now flourishing in the warmer water. This organism is a temperate species of marine bryozoans now proliferating in the Bay and smothering native kelp beds.
The group also discussed the different river mouth environments of the South Arm and the estuarine influences of the different streams entering the arm. Dr. Hooper also provided information about work in the 1970s on the watersheds of the Park, including those draining to South Arm (this research was done by Joe Kerekes from Environment Canada, Atlantic Region). Dr. Hooper also described the coastline of the west side of South Arm as entirely anthropogenic because it is littered with submerged cribbing and rock fill from the stages and stores that lined the shore from Curzon Village to Glenburnie in earlier years when the fishery dominated the area.
The group then discussed the former fishery and commercial species of the Bay. Dr. Hooper’s identification of species and general abundance paralleled that of others the team have spoken too. There are so many possible factors near and far that might be attributing to changes and declines that no one can say for sure what is going on but it is still useful information because of how the changes have impacted the economy of these coastal communities.
Patricia and Raymond then met with Anita Best, Community-University Research for Recovery Alliance (CURRA) project manager at Bonne Bay Marine Station. Anita is managing the CURRA locally in western Newfoundland. The CURRA through MUN (a five year project currently in year 3) is primarily a means of bringing together the great
39 array of research being conducted in the western and southwestern part of the Province, particularly marine fisheries research and the marine-society-culture and economy interrelationships. The focus is on helping communities and organizations along the west coast of Newfoundland develop strategies for the recovery of fish stocks and fishing communities. Their website (http://www.curra.ca) provides links to documents that are valuable resources for our project, particularly as they describe the marine environment and resources, community profiles, economic development strategies and a special report on food security.
The team’s purpose in meeting with Anita was to ensure that she (and the CURRA group) was aware of the work being done in GBS and to identify how CURRA work could inform the project. Aside from the CURRA focus on the fishery, Anita (who is a folklorist by training) is working with residents of the Northern Peninsula to develop a heritage marketing strategy as part of economic development. She also told the team about a project recently completed by the Red Ochre Regional Development Board (Bonne Bay falls within this Economic Development District) identifying communities that have moved or disappeared from the coastline, sometimes as a result of coastal erosion.
Third Visit to GBS April 20, 2010 The planning team met with Raymond Cusson to discuss the agenda for the week and then met with the Plan Review Committee - Kim Vokey, Glynn Anderson, Melissa Anderson, Jim Burden, Ian Sharpe, Myrna Hynes, and Raymond Cusson to review a draft of the Climate Change Adaptation Plan. The group reviewed the predicted climate change impacts for the region and several recommended actions and strategies for adaptation. The group also discussed the opportunities that may be explored by the community following this Plan, and the education needed to ensure that important adaptive practices are implemented. Although the group wasn’t able to review the entire draft within the time available, Myrna Hynes offered to hold another meeting with the group to complete the review and then forward the results of discussion to the planning team.
40 April 22, 2010 The planning team spent the day at Bonne Bay Academy judging the school’s Earth Day Heritage Fair along with community judges Everett Osmond, Raymond Cusson, Jack Parsons, Sue Parsons, Rose Dewhurst and Maggie Halfyard. The students, from grades kindergarten through to grade 12 prepared and presented Heritage and Science Fair projects centred on the theme of climate change. The projects were impressive in their scope, detail and creativity, and topics ranged from historic weather sayings and weather events in the region to the impact of climate change around the globe.
The primary students presented a group project on penguins and how they were affected by climate change, and each child was able to share key information about their own species of penguin (selected from the 17 species of penguins around the world). The group had also created models of their penguins and had adopted a penguin through the World Wildlife Fund, which they named “Speedy”. The planning team was pleased to present the classroom with two books – “The Earth Book” by Todd Parr and “Penguins” by National Geographic.
The elementary students focused on the heritage and cultural aspects of climate and climate change. The projects selected as the top 3 investigated:
- “Newfoundland Weather Sayings” by Charlie Payne, - “Global Warming Affecting the Arctic” by Rebecca and Holly Caines, and - “Predicting the Weather” by Jenna Pike (not in photo below).
41
The planning team was pleased to award certificates of achievement from CIP to each of these projects and to present Jenna Pike with a book entitled “31 Ways to Change the World” by We Are what We Do.
The junior high and senior students focused more on the natural and environmental impacts of climate change. The projects selected as the top 3 for grades 7 through 9 investigated:
- “Climate Change Effects on Animals” by Rebecca Anderson, - “Extreme Weather in Newfoundland” by Amber Lynne Payne, and - “Climate Change and Arctic Sea Ice” by Justine Young.
The planning team was pleased to award certificates of achievement from CIP to each of these projects and to present Justine Young with a book entitled ”Experience Extreme Weather” by Dorling Kindersley.
The projects selected as the top 3 for grades 10-12 investigated:
- “Global Warming Effect on Polar Bears” by Whitney Crocker,
42 - “Global Warming” by Samantha Alexander, and - “Climate Change and Melting Sea Ice” by Jordan Howell.
The planning team was pleased to award certificates of achievement from CIP to each of these projects and to present Jordan Howell with a book entitled “Daily Planet Book of Cool Ideas” by Jay Ingram. A book entitled “Canada’s Weather” by Chris St. Clair was also given to the school library.
The planning team was amazed by the amount of knowledge and insight into climate change demonstrated by the students of all ages, and at the participation and support of their parents and the community as a whole. The Earth Day Heritage Fair gave the planning team an opportunity to include the entire community, including some of the youngest children, in the education and discussions around climate change in their community.
April 23, 2010 The planning team met with Mayor Marilyn Wight, Town Councilor Jim Bingle, and Town Clerk Myrna Hynes to review their research findings and the recommended climate change adaptations and strategies to be included in the final climate change adaptation plan for the community. The group discussed the form in which the plan would be presented, and Council’s role in implementing the recommendations. Council also expressed concerns regarding potential liability with regard to identified flood areas.
April 24, 2010 Patricia investigated the coastal conditions along the GBS shoreline – noting areas of steep slopes, eroding slopes and beaches and some areas of problematic development. During a stop in Shoal Brook, Patricia met former mayor and local developer, Norm Martin, who owns the Red Mantle Lodge and the Shoal Brook RV Park. Mr. Martin explained his views on GBS development and community service. He also discussed climate change impacts and changes he has noticed since developing the cove at Shoal Brook for his waterfront development.
43 April 25, 2010 Patricia visited the GBS boardwalk to examine its condition after the winter and compare it to the condition during the planning team’s visit in November 2009. She took pictures and noted areas of further deterioration. Patricia also visited the land infill site at Shoal Brook and took pictures at this site as well as the break water and stream levees at Shoal Brook.
May 7, 2010 Following the planning team’s departure from GBS, the Climate Change Adaptation Plan Review Committee met once again to discuss the draft adaptations and strategies. The meeting was organized and led by Town Clerk, Myrna Hynes, and Betty Simms, Jim Burden, Ian Sharpe, Glynn Anderson and Melissa Blanchard-Anderson were in attendance.
The group noted that the culverts in the town had been mapped by the Department of Transportation sometime in the past two to three years.
In terms of fixing the municipal breakwaters, the group felt that it was pointless to repair the existing wooden structures and that an investment should be made in something that would last for the future, such as a dike (higher upfront cost would mean less cost in the future). The group also discussed that it might be necessary to warn residents of a need to “jack-up” their houses to avoid damage from coastal flooding.
Once again, the group was surprised to see the vast amount of watershed land that drained through the brooks in their community.
When discussing the strategy for sustainable wood harvesting, the group expressed concerns that Park Canada wants clear-cutting, and that small trees are no longer left behind to grow. However, it was pointed out that if harvesters cut across in sections there would still be areas of growth to maintain slopes and prevent erosion and slope failures. The group also questioned how the moose population was affecting new tree
44 growth, since they are browsing the young trees (and moose don’t avoid slopes when they are eating!)
While supportive of the idea of a Skyline Trail system, the group pointed out the following possible problems: - Location of access points – would the Recreation Centre or Pike’s be willing to allow a trail to cross their land? Could the woods road by the United Church in Shoal Brook be another point of access? Since there should be several points of entry/exit, which “old” roads in the area are already considered public access or easements? - Is the Snowmobile federation willing to share to make the area a 4-season trail? - What about water supply/wells? How will wells be affected? Are citizens going to be upset about ATV's or hikers passing by their private wells? - Some property lines go back to the "Crows Cliff" - will citizens be willing to allow hikers to pass through their granted/private land?
The group also questioned whether there is a way to find out from Crown Lands or have a map developed to determine all of the public access/easements/wood roads in the area? Some of the roads may go through what is considered private land but have been used for years as public access roads for wood cutting, access to beaches, etc. and cannot/should not be taken away from the community.
Questions arose about the feasibility of promoting the raising of livestock in the community, as this might create a variety of legal issues and the need for numerous regulations. As well, the group questioned the difficulty in having produce certified as organic for marketing purposes.
It was pointed out that one of the strategies of the Emergency Plan was to place “dry hydrants” along the beach areas.
Overall, the Review Committee was in agreement with the strategies presented in the draft Plan, with more discussion required on some points, and noted that their main concern was that the natural environment must be maintained.
Fourth Visit to GBS May 31, 2010 The planning team met with Mayor Marilyn Wight and Town Council members Bella Young and Betty Simms and Town Clerk, Myrna Hynes to present the final draft of the Climate Change Adaptation Plan and get Council’s feedback and input into the recommended Adaptation Strategies and Action Plan. The team also reviewed the maps with the group. Much of the discussion focussed on the need to make community members aware of the potential impacts of climate change, and for Council to understand their roles, responsibilities, and possible liabilities relating to climate change impacts and the adaptation strategies recommended by the planning team.
45 June 1, 2010 The planning team and community contact, Raymond Cusson, met with Kim Bitterman, the Department of Environment and Conservation’s Climate Change Coordinator for Newfoundland to discuss the GBS project as well as other similar projects being initiated by the Province across Newfoundland and Labrador. The group discussed how the GBS Adaptation Plan and the community’s experience could be shared with others, and the possibility for future adaptation work and collaboration with the Province.
The planning team then hosted a public presentation at the Birchy Head Recreation Centre to present the draft Adaptation Plan, maps, and recommended strategies for Adaptation and ask for the community’s input into the Adaptation Action Plan. Twenty community members attended the presentation – Ruby Goosney, Donna Burden, Jean Laing, Felix Laing, Iona White, Ken Thomas, Tony Howell, Ken Kennedy, Charlie Payne, Susan Galloway, Kim Vokey, Melissa Blanchard, Barb Daniell, Hugh McCormack, Ida Burden, Jim Burden, Gayle Tapper, Kris Oravec, Myrna Hynes, Raymond Cusson, and Marilyn Wight. Kim Bitterman from the Province also attended the meeting.
June 3, 2010 The planning team travelled to the Bonne Bay Marine Station in Norris Point to present the draft Adaptation Plan to Marine Station summer students, members of regional organizations such as Parks Canada, the Gros Morne Co-operating Association, the Rural Secretariat, and Grenfell College and residents of Norris Point and Rocky Harbour.
Thirty people attended the presentation – Mafdhuri Ravinuthala, Juliet Muyonga, Chantelle Penney, Matthew O’Connell, Alexandra Rose, David Ross, Samantha Green, Nikita Laite, Viktoria Roskin, Jessica Tucker, Susan Barney, Scott Caines, Michael Burzynski, Marion McCahon, Susan Pottle, Colleen Kennedy, Jason Cohen, Jim MacKenzie, Wade McKenzie, Brenda Elford, Boyd Laing, Reg Mudge, Howard Neil (Mayor of Norris Point), Shirley Montagne, Troy May, Dave Hynes, Darren Nicolle, Pat Dame, Bonnie Knott, and Sandy Cullihall.
The team then travelled back to GBS to present to employees of the Gros Morne Discovery Centre. Sections of the GBS Adaptation Plan, maps and projects from the Bonne Bay Academy Earth Day Heritage Fair will be displayed at the Discovery Centre, so the intent of the presentation and meeting was to ensure that Parks staff were comfortable interpreting potential local climate change impacts and the recommendations of the Adaptation Plan. Ten employees attended the meeting – Kris Oravec, Sean Payne, Allister Barnes, Bruce Gillam, Charles Crocker, Sandra Wheeler, Todd Gallant, Angelina Payne, Sarah Aubert, and Kevin Barnes. The group asked a variety of questions and provided local knowledge on several issues discussed in the draft plan.
46 June 4, 2010 Patricia remained in GBS an extra day to meet with Raymond Cusson and discuss the outcomes of the planning team’s final trip to the community and to plan for how the recommendations of Adaptation Plan would be advanced and implemented in the coming years.
*detailed notes from meetings with GBS community members are included in Appendix 5.2. A summary of the changes in environment and climate observed by community members is included in Appendix 5.3, and presentations given to community members at public meetings and during a visit to the Bonne Bay Academy is included in Appendix 5.4.*
47
3. Climate Change & GBS
3.1 Climate Change Research
The planning team’s research on the predicted changes in climate for the Atlantic Region in general and for the west coast of Newfoundland and the Bonne Bay Region in particular was undertaken from a number of sources, including:
- Published scientific reports and university research reports including:
“Atlantic Canada” by L. Vasseur and N. Catto in “From Impacts to Adaptation: Canada in a Changing Climate 2007”35;
“Past and Future Sea Level Change in Newfoundland and Labrador: Guidelines for Policy and Planning” by M. Batterson and D. Liverman36;
“Impacts of Climate Change and Variability on Tourism in Western Newfoundland” by Paulina Rada37; and
“Summary for Policy Makers”, IPCC, in Climate Change 200738.
- Internet sites including:
CCME (Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment) Climate Change Indicators Initiative. http://www.ccme.ca;
Newfoundland and Labrador Department of Environment and Conservation: Climate Change. http://www.env.gov.nl.ca/env/climate_change;
Natural Resources Canada: Climate Change Impacts and Adaptation. http://adaptation.nrcan.gc.ca.
- Discussions and interviews with local climate change scientists, earth scientists and biologists including:
Dr. Martin Batterson, NL Department of Natural Resources;
Dr. Norman Catto, Department of Geography, Memorial University of Newfoundland;
Dr. Trevor Bell, Department of Geography, M Memorial University of Newfoundland;
48 Dr. Bob Hooper, Bonne Bay Marine Station, Memorial University of Newfoundland; and
Prof. Keith Nicol, Environmental Studies/Geography, Sir Wilfred Grenville College, Memorial University of Newfoundland.
- Discussions with members of the GBS community of all ages on the weather and climate changes they have noticed. The team used this information to validate much of the scientific predictions – what was being predicted by the scientists was already beginning to happen and be noticed in GBS. The changes noted by community residents are detailed in meeting notes in Appendix 5.3.
All of the predictions cited in this report are based upon the best research available to the planning team at the time the report was written. As new research is undertaken and new information and predictions come to light, the community may wish to revisit the predicted impacts and consider additional adaptations based on current and future conditions.
3.2 Climate Change Predictions
It is predicted that the climate of GBS and the surrounding region will become: 1) Warmer, 2) Wetter, and 3) Stormier, and that the region will experience: 4) Higher sea levels, 5) More and higher storm surges, and 6) Changes in sea ice duration, extent and distribution as a result of climate change.
1) Warmer The mean annual temperature is predicted to rise 3 to 4º Celsius over the next 100 years.
Atlantic Canada has already warmed approximately 0.3º Celsius from 1948-2005, with the following seasonal variations:
- Summer temperatures warmed by 0.8º Celsius, - Spring temperatures warmed by 0.4º Celsius, - Fall temperatures warmed slightly by 0.1º Celsius, and - Winter temperatures have become colder by 1.0º Celsius.
Although the record for the past 57 years shows that there have been periods of both warmer and colder temperatures, the trend for the past 10 years is for temperatures to be higher than average. There is also a trend toward a more ‘continental’ climate for the area.
2) Wetter The amount of precipitation in the Atlantic Region has increased by 10% between 1948 and 2005, but there is a large variation between regions.
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The predictions of more precipitation along with warmer temperatures may mean:
- Longer, potentially more productive growing seasons, - Changes in the water cycle affecting surface and ground water sources, forests, coastal areas like estuaries and wetlands, and ocean environments (because of ocean warming, more inflow of fresh water from brooks and melting ice), - Drier summers, even with more rain overall, because of the higher temperature, - A shift in plant species, resulting in a shift in animal species, and a risk of more or different pests and plant and animal diseases.
3) Stormier There will be more storms and they will be more intense. The storms referred to as “1 in a 100 year storms” will happen more frequently, they may become “1 in 20 years storms”. Storms will likely also be less predictable.
4) Higher sea levels Sea level around the globe is rising due to melting ice caps, melting ice sheets, melting glaciers and thermal expansion of the ocean. The current predictions for this global sea level rise are between 0.18 and 0.59 metres (0.59 and 1.9 feet). Global sea level rise is already occurring and being measured, and it is happening at the upper end of this predicted range and at an increasing rate.
On top of this, sea levels are rising along the coast of Atlantic Canada regardless of climate change because the earth’s crust is still adjusting to the melting of the most recent glaciers from the region (approximately 13,000 years ago in Bonne Bay). This adjustment is causing the land to sink at an average rate of approximately 20 cm (7.9 inches) per century.
The level of the sea in Bonne Bay is predicted to rise 80 cm (31.4 inches) over the next 100 years.
5) More and higher storm surges Due to the increase in sea levels and storms, storms surges will also increase, particularly in Outer Bonne Bay, and result in more coastal erosion and flooding. Recent events in the area, such as the November 2009 rogue wave in Trout River, illustrate the kind of flooding and damage that may occur more frequently.
Although GBS and the other communities along the South Arm of Bonne Bay are generally sheltered from storm surges, coastline erosion (especially in areas with softer rock material and loose till) will see increased erosion from higher sea levels and waves due to wind. Flooding along the coast will increase due to the higher sea level and increased erosion.
50 6) Change in sea ice duration, extent and distribution Warmer winter and water temperatures will decrease the thickness of sea ice and the length of time it covers Bonne Bay. As well, strong south easterly winds and increased storms are likely to break up the thinner ice and may cause more coastal erosion as the ice is shoved against the shore.
These changes in ice and ocean conditions may impact fish and animal species, especially seals that use sea ice for feeding and breeding during the winter and spring.
3.3 Climate Change Impacts
There are many conditions, both natural and human-caused, in GBS that will contribute to the impacts of climate change on the community. Climate change impacts can be both negative and positive, and the community’s response and proactive action will determine to what extent some of these impacts are felt.
In particular, the planning team has identified the following issues and opportunities:
Issue Due to...
Coastal flooding Sea level rise and more frequent and severe storms
Streams blocked by ice shoved against the shore from strong northeasterly storms and thinner ice on the Bay
Issue Due to...
Coastal erosion Sea level rise and more frequent and severe storms
Ice shoved against the shore from strong northeasterly storms and thinner ice on the Bay
51
Issue Due to...
Landslides, slope Increased freeze-thaw activity because of milder winters, more failure, and frequent changes in temperature and storms avalanches More intense storms with more rain in a shorter amount of time
Tree cutting on slopes – for domestic wood harvesting, to make room for development or to improve views to the water
Excavation of gravel and sand from slopes
Wave erosion at the base of slopes from higher sea levels and storm waves
Less stable snow pack due to more winter rain and rain-on-snow events
Issue Due to...
Groundwater Contamination from run-off or sewage leaks from new development issues above existing wells
Reduced/changed groundwater recharge from changes in snow and rainfall throughout the year
Issue Due to...
Infrastructure Sea level rise, coastal erosion, landslides damage Roads, bridges and houses built at or close to sea levels or in hazard areas
Increased ice shove at mouths of brooks and culverts
Damage to protective structure (break waters, sea walls) from higher sea levels, higher and more frequent storm waves and ice shove
52
Issue Due to...
Road safety Roads and bridges built at or close to sea level or in hazard areas
Changes in winter temperature and rain-on-snow events creating more ice and snow
Warmer spring temperatures and more freeze-thaw activity placing more wear on road surfaces
Flooding or damage to culverts and bridges from increased rainfall and flooding of brooks
Issue Due to...
Changing Less recreation on and travel across Bonne Bay in the winter community because of reduced sea ice traditions Changes in ice fishing because of reduced ice on the ponds
Changes in types of winter recreation because of changes in snow amount and condition and temperature
Changes in hunting because of changes in animal species and distribution
Changes in wood harvesting locations and timing because of changes in snow conditions and potential changes in forest species and composition
53 Issue Due to...
Changes to Flooding of coastal wetlands, beaches, dunes, and estuaries environmentally sensitive areas Erosion and failure of steep, gravelly and northeast facing slopes
Flooding and erosion of stream-side vegetation
Changes in the plants and animals species and distribution because of changes in temperature and precipitation
Changes in plant and animal populations because of changes in temperature and precipitation, and potentially because of change in pest species and competition
Opportunity Due to...
Longer tourism Warmer spring, summer and fall temperatures seasons Potentially more snow in winters
Opportunity Due to...
Longer growing Warmer spring, summer and fall temperatures seasons Increased precipitation
54 4. Glossary
Anthropogenic – any effect caused by humans.39
Arctic-alpine heath-lichen barrens - a landscape of the arctic or alpine (higher altitude) region that is low in nutrients and has thin or no soil. Often, such landscapes have only recently emerged from under a glacier. The combination of cold conditions and limited soil and nutrients results in the growth of very specialized, ground-hugging plants, or organisms like lichens that can survive in these harsh environments.
Benthic species - animals and plants that live in ocean water on, in or near the ocean floor, from tidal pools and near-shore flats to the ocean abyss. Some benthic species are attached to the ocean bottom. Benthic plants usually grow in shallow water where there is enough light for photosynthesis. Benthic animals are typically mobile; some bury into the sediments, some move along the bottom or between the surface water and the sea floor. Examples of animals that occupy the ocean floor are oysters, scallops, crabs, and lobsters.
Bioerosion - erosion of marine rocks and corals, but also rocks on land, caused by the activities or products of animals or plants. Marine bioerosion can be caused by the boring or scraping activities for mollusks, worms, sponges, and crustaceans. An example is the boring action of specialized clams in coastal limestone rocks that, because of the extensive excavations, mechanically breaks down the rock. An example of land-based bioerosion is roots penetrating rock cracks and fissures (and thus accelerating physical break-up of the rock), or the acid decomposition of rock caused by the secretions of lichens.
Bryozoans - a phylum of aquatic, mainly marine, invertebrates comprising the moss animals and sea mats. Bryozoans live in colonies, 50 cm or more across, which are attached to rocks, seaweeds, or shells. The individuals (zooids) making up the colonies are about 1 mm long and superficially resemble cnidarian polyps, with a mouth surrounded by ciliated tentacles of the lophophore that trap minute particles of organic matter in the water. Some have a horny or calcareous outer skeleton into which the body can be withdrawn.40
Carbon sinks - environments that absorb and accumulate carbon, either by dissolving carbon dioxide from the atmosphere (e.g. oceans) or by accumulating and burying plant debris and therefore delaying decomposition and the release of carbon. Plants have incorporated carbon into their tissues via photosynthesis (e.g. peatlands such as bogs and fens).
Climate - Climate in a narrow sense is usually defined as the average weather or, more rigorously, as the statistical description in terms of the mean and variability of relevant variables over a period of time ranging from months to thousands or millions of years. Variables taken into account most often include surface temperature, precipitation and
55 wind. Climate in a wider sense is the state, including a statistical description, of the climate system.41
Climate Change - Climate change refers to a change in the state of the climate that can be identified (e.g. by using statistical tests) by changes in the mean and/or the variability of its properties, and that persists for an extended period, typically decades or longer. Climate change may be due to natural internal processes or external forcing factors, or to persistent anthropogenic changes in the composition of the atmosphere or in land use. Note that the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) defines climate change as “a change of climate which is attributed directly or indirectly to human activity that alters the composition of the global atmosphere and which is in addition to natural climate variability observed over comparable time periods.” The UNFCCC thus makes a distinction between climate change attributable to human activities altering the atmospheric composition, and climate variability attributable to natural causes.42
Continental climate - a climate of warm (even hot), relatively dry summers and cold winters (with temperatures low enough for snow to accumulate) characteristic of the interior parts of the continent, far from the moderating influence of the ocean.
Domed bog - a bog in which the surface is raised above the surrounding landscape in a distinctive domed form. A bog is a wetland in which plant material accumulates and decomposes very slowly forming peat and which is not connected to the local ground water flow. Bogs are, therefore, poor in nutrients. Sphagnum moss is the most common bog plant. As the peat collects the bog builds up higher and higher. In cool, very humid climates, the bog surface can build up above the rim of the basin in which the bog forms. When this happens the bog's only source of nutrients is rain or snow fall; at this stage runoff can only collect at the edges of the bog. Domed (or raised) bogs are common in Newfoundland and Labrador.
Earth’s mantle - portion of the earth's interior laying beneath the crust and above the core. No direct observation of the mantle, or its upper boundary, has been made; its boundaries have been determined solely by abrupt changes in the velocities and character of seismic waves passing through the earth's interior. Samples of the upper mantle may be provided by some volcanic eruptions in ocean areas, e.g., the Hawaiian Islands. The entire mantle constitutes about 84% of the earth by volume. Its composition is thought to be similar to peridotite, an igneous rock of mostly magnesium- rich silicate.43
Ecoregion – an area, defined by the National Ecological Framework for Canada, characterized by distinctive regional ecological factors, including climate, physiography, vegetation, soil, water and fauna.
Ecozone At the top of the hierarchy, it defines the ecological mozaic of Canada on a sub-continental scale. They represent an area of the earth’s surface representative of large and very 15 generalized ecological units characterized by interactive and adjusting abiotic and biotic
56 factors. Canada is divided into 15 terrestrial ecozones.
Ecoprovince A subdivision of an ecozone characterized by major assemblages of structural or surface forms, faunal realms, and vegetation, hydrology, soil, and macro climate. For example, the Newfoundland ecoprovince (no. 6.4) is one of six ecoprovinces within the Boreal Shield 53 Ecozone.
Ecoregion A subdivision of an ecoprovince characterized by distinctive regional ecological factors, including climate, physiography, vegetation, soil, water, and fauna. For example, the Maritime Barrens ecoregion (no. 114) is one of nine ecoregions within the Newfoundland 194 ecoprovince.
Ecodistrict A subdivision of an ecoregion characterized by distinctive assemblages of relief, landforms, geology, soil, vegetation, water bodies and fauna. For example, the Jeddore Lake 1021 ecodistrict (no. 473) is one of five within the Maritime Barrens ecoregion. 44
Estuarine – relating to an estuary - a partially enclosed coastal body of water, having an open connection with the ocean, where freshwater from inland is mixed with saltwater from the sea.45
Fire barrens - a barren landscape that has resulted from repeated burning. The fires destroy the soil organic layer. Rain washes away the often thin mineral soil leaving a landscape without soil or nutrients. The landscape may begin to recover to a very limited extent by evolving into a heath barren.
Geohazards - hazards to land use and activities as a result of geological conditions. Examples include rock fall prone steep slopes, landslides, avalanches (as a result of snow on steep slopes), radon gas release, acid drainage from exposed, sulfur-bearing rocks, karst topography (caves and caverns in limestone and gypsum landscapes), earthquakes, and volcanic eruptions. Such conditions are hazards only when viewed in the context of siting land uses or human activities.
Geomorphologist – a person who studies geomorphology - the scientific study of the land-forms on the Earth's surface and of the processes that have fashioned them.46
Glacier - moving mass of ice that survives year to year, formed by the compacting of snow into névé and then into granular ice and set in motion outward and downward by the force of gravity and the stress of its accumulated mass. Glaciers are usually found in high altitudes and latitudes.47
Greenhouse effect - The process in which the absorption of infrared radiation by the atmosphere warms the Earth. In common parlance, the term ‘greenhouse effect’ may be used to refer either to the natural greenhouse effect, due to naturally occurring greenhouse gases, or to the enhanced (anthropogenic) greenhouse effect, which results from gases emitted as a result of human activities.48
57 Greenhouse gas (GHG) - Gaseous constituents of the atmosphere, both natural and anthropogenic, that absorb and emit radiation at specific wavelengths within the spectrum of infrared radiation emitted by the Earth ’s surface, by the atmosphere itself and by clouds. Water vapour (H2O), carbon dioxide (CO2), nitrous oxide (N2O), methane (CH4) and ozone (O3) are the primary greenhouse gases in the Earth’s atmosphere. In addition, there are a number of entirely human-made greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, such as the halocarbons and other chlorine- and bromine-containing substances.49
Groundwater table - the top zone of soil and rock in which all voids are saturated with water. The level of the water table varies with topography and climate.50
Heath-scrub Barrens - landscapes with little or no soil, typically associated with ridges, and dominated by lichens, mosses and low standing shrubs or creeping, ground- hugging, acid-tolerant plants (called ericaceous plant). Such plants include blueberry, leatherleaf, crowberry, Trailing Arbutus (Mayflower), among others. These plants are adapted to the scarcity of nutrients and often water in these exposed environments. A very few, very specialized plants, like alpine bearberry, can tolerate strongly alkaline environments like that of the Tablelands in Gros Morne National Park. Small wetlands (bogs, and sometimes fens) will form in the small hollows in these landscapes where runoff and plant material accumulates.
Ice cap - dome-shaped ice masses overlying relatively flat, but not necessarily low- lying, areas of land. The dome is typically convex in shape and ice flows radially from the centre outwards. Ice caps are less than 50 000 km2 in area.51
Ice sheet - dome-shaped ice masses overlying relatively flat, but not necessarily low- lying, areas of land. The dome is typically convex in shape and ice flows radially from the centre outwards. Ice sheets are greater than 50 000 km2 in area. There are only two ice sheets existing – the Greenland ice sheet (1 726 400 km2 in area) and the Antarctic ice sheet (12 535 000 km2), both of which are at high latitudes (between 60 and 82° N and 65 and 90° S respectively).52
Igneous rock - also referred to as magmatic rocks, are formed from materials that come from the depths of the Earth. There are two categories of igneous rocks: intrusive (or plutonic) rocks and volcanic rocks. Plutonic rocks are consolidated at depth. Because they crystallize slowly, they have a coarse-grained texture and their crystals can be distinguished with the naked eye. Granite is a good example of a plutonic rock. Volcanic rocks are born of volcanic eruptions and consolidated at the surface. The molten materials cool more rapidly at the surface than they would in the depths of the Earth, which gives volcanic rocks their fine-grained crystals and glassy appearance. Rhyolite, basalt and obsidian are examples of igneous rocks that have formed at the surface of the Earth. Volcanic and plutonic rocks are similar in composition since they form from the same materials. They differ mainly in terms of crystal size, which is a function of the environments in which they formed.53
Infiltration - process by which water penetrates into soil from the ground surface.54
58 Koeppen Climate Classification - division of climatic regions according to the classification of the climates of the world developed by W. Köppen. Köppen first divided the world into five major divisions to which he assigned the letters A, B, C, D, and E. The letters represent the range of divisions from tropical climate (A) to polar climate (E). There are no A climates in Canada. Köppen then divided the large divisions into a number of climatic types in accordance with temperature differences and variations in the amounts and distribution of precipitation, on the basis of which he added certain letters to the initial letter denoting the major division.55
A Tropical humid Af Tropical wet No dry season Am Tropical Short dry season; heavy monsoonal rains in monsoonal other months Aw Tropical savanna Winter dry season B Dry BWh Subtropical Low-latitude desert desert BSh Subtropical Low-latitude dry steppe BWk Mid-latitude Mid-latitude desert desert BSk Mid-latitude Mid-latitude dry steppe C Mild Mid- Csa Mediterranean Mild with dry, hot summer Latitude Csb Mediterranean Mild with dry, warm summer Cfa Humid subtropical Mild with no dry season, hot summer Cwa Humid subtropical Mild with dry winter, hot summer Cfb Marine west coast Mild with no dry season, warm summer Cfc Marine west coast Mild with no dry season, cool summer D Severe Mid- Dfa Humid Humid with severe winter, no dry season, hot Latitude continental summer Dfb Humid Humid with severe winter, no dry season, continental warm summer Dwa Humid Humid with severe, dry winter, hot summer continental Dwb Humid Humid with severe, dry winter, warm continental summer Dfc Subarctic Severe winter, no dry season, cool summer Dfd Subarctic Severe, very cold winter, no dry season, cool summer Dwc Subarctic Severe, dry winter, cool summer Dwd Subarctic Severe, very cold and dry winter, cool summer E Polar ET Tundra Polar tundra, no true summer EF Ice Cap Perennial ice
59 H Highland 56 Moraines - formations composed of unsorted and unbedded rock and soil debris called till, which was deposited by a glacier.57
Peridotite - an igneous rock of mostly magnesium-rich silicate.58
Plant hardiness zone – different zones in Canada where various types of trees, shrubs and flowers will most likely survive. It is based on the average climatic conditions of each area. The first plant hardiness zone map for North America, released by the United States Department of Agriculture in 1960, was based only on minimum winter temperatures. In 1967, Agriculture Canada scientists created a plant hardiness map using Canadian plant survival data and a wider range of climatic variables, including minimum winter temperatures, length of the frost-free period, summer rainfall, maximum temperatures, snow cover, January rainfall and maximum wind speed.59
Plate tectonics – theory which states that the Earth's crust is divided into large blocks or plates that slide around on the planet's outermost layer. The theory has been almost universally accepted largely because it explains many geological events and patterns in a simple and unified way.60
Podzols - members of a group of soils that are gray in color, have an ashy appearance, and extend immediately south of the tundra regions of the Northern Hemisphere. Although characteristically capped with an abundant surface accumulation of organic matter, these soils are often severely leached and highly acid. They are thus generally low in agricultural value, forests being their most common and practical coverage.61
Riverine thickets - plant communities, dominated by moisture tolerant shrubs and trees, most commonly alder and willow that occupy river flood plains.
Sedge fen - also called a sedge meadow, is a wetland dominated by sedges and in which plant material accumulates and decomposes very slowly forming sedge peat. Fens are connected to local ground water flow or may be associated with slow moving streams from which they receive nutrients. Fens are usually associated with alkaline (calcium rich), not acid environments, so whether or not a fen forms depends on the local geology. Fens normally form in landscapes where the bedrock, till or soil contains calcium (contributed from rocks like limestone and gypsum).
Sedimentary rock - the product of the consolidation of loose sediment that has accumulated in beds. Such sediment may be produced by the disintegration of previously existing rock or the precipitation of dissolved minerals, or it may consist of plant and animal remains. Regardless of origin, these deposits settle gradually under the weight of overlying beds and are transformed into solid sedimentary rock by cementation. Sedimentary rocks are classified according to grain size and composition. The largest grain sizes are seen in conglomerates, tillites and sedimentary breccias. Sandstones are formed by the consolidation of sand grains. If the grains are very small,
60 the rock is referred to as a siltstone. Still finer sediments, such as clays, produce shales. Both fresh and salt water often contain chemical compounds, such as calcium carbonate, in solution. Under the right chemical conditions, these compounds can precipitate, forming deposits that harden into rock. The most common sedimentary rocks in this category are limestone, which consists of calcium carbonate, and dolomite, which contains significant amounts of magnesium carbonate.62
Serpentine barrens - Impoverished vegetation, often dominated by scrub or heath, associated with serpentine rocks. On weathering these rocks release an excess of magnesium into the soil, and this often inhibits the development of the natural climax in the areas concerned.63
Sphagnum – peat moss.
Talus slope communities - plant communities of extremely hardy, low-growing plants and plant-like organisms such as lichens, that colonize the broken rock sediment that collects at the base of steep rock wall slopes.
Thermal expansion of the ocean - Thermal expansion of the ocean - water expands as its temperature increases. Global warming will lead to warmer oceans, particularly the surface water, which will, in turn, lead to thermal expansion and thus a greater ocean volume, The greater volume of water will occupy more space and therefore the expansion will be noticed at the coast as a rising sea level.
Till - in geology, sediment consisting of an unsorted mixture of clay, sand, gravel, and boulders that is deposited directly by the ice of glaciers.64
Tuckamore (Tuck or Krummholz) - a coastal wind-blown forest community dominated by severely stunted and misshapen trees, typically salt and wind-tolerant white spruce in our region. The trees have been deformed through exposure to wind and salt. ’Krummholz' is a very descriptive German word that, translated, means 'crooked wood'.
Weather - State of the atmosphere at a given time and place with regard to temperature, air pressure, humidity, wind, cloudiness and precipitation. The term is mainly used to describe conditions over short periods of time.65
61 Endnotes:
1 Canadian National Institute of Planners. Mainstreaming Climate Change Tools for the Professional Planning Community: A CIP Project funded by Natural Resources Canada, Climate Change Impacts and Adaptation Program. March 2009 - March 2011.
2 Government of Canada. Climate Change 101: Canada’s Action on Climate Change. www.climatechange.gc.ca. 2009-08-12
3 N-ergise. What is Climate Change? 2005. www.n-ergise.net
4 Newfoundland and Labrador Department of Environment and Conservation. Newfoundland and Labrador Climate Change Action Plan 2005.
5 Map sources: GBS map- Newfoundland and Labrador Department of Environment and Conservation, 2009; Parks Canada, 2009. Map created by Hailey Steiger and Patricia Manuel, Dalhousie University Halifax, NS. 2010. Newfoundland map - http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/78/Newfoundland_map.png
6 Town of Glenburnie-Birchy Head-Shoal Brook. Welcome to the Town of Glenburnie-Birchy Head-Shoal Brook community information brochure.
7 Government of Newfoundland and Labrador. Community Accounts for Glenburnie-Birchy Head and Woody Point (including Shoal Brook).http://www.communityaccounts.ca
8 Discussions with Bonne Bay Academy Principal Margaret King and Vice-Principal Steven Buffet.
9 Government of Newfoundland and Labrador. Urban and Rural Planning Act, 2000, S.N.L. 2000, c. U-8.
10 Newfoundland and Labrador Department of Municipal Affairs, Urban and Rural Planning Division. Community of Glenburnie-Birchy Head-Shoal Brook Municipal Plan 1996-2006. March 1996.
11 Newfoundland and Labrador Department of Municipal Affairs, Urban and Rural Planning Division. Community of Glenburnie-Birchy Head-Shoal Brook Municipal Plan 1996-2006. March 1996.
12 Newfoundland and Labrador Rural Secretariat. April 9, 2009. http://www.exec.gov.nl.ca/rural
13 Discussions with various members of the GBS community.
14 Newfoundland and Labrador Rural Secretariat. April 9, 2009. http://www.exec.gov.nl.ca/rural
15 Memorial University and Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada. Community– University Research for Recovery Alliance. http://www.curra.ca
16 Red Ochre Regional Board Inc. http://www.redochre.org
17 Newfoundland and Labrador Regional Economic Development Association (NLREDA). http://www.nlreda.ca
18 Town of Glenburnie-Birchy Head-Shoal Brook. Welcome to the Town of Glenburnie-Birchy Head-Shoal Brook community information brochure.
62
19 Communities in Bloom, 2006 Provincial Participants. http://www.communitiesinbloom.ca/
20 Canadian Cancer Society. Healthy Choices, Healthy Future Awards. http://www.cancer.ca/Newfoundland-Labrador/Prevention/Eat%20well/NF- Healthy%20Choices%20Healthy%20Future/Healthy%20Choices%20%20Healthy%20Future%20Award.a spx?sc_lang=en
21 Newfoundland and Labrador Department of Environment and Conservation. Celebrating Newfoundland and Labradors Environmental Leaders. June 2, 2009 news release. http://www.releases.gov.nl.ca/releases/2009/env/0602n07.htm
22 “Climatic Regions (Köppen)”. The Atlas of Canada. 2003-06-09. http://atlas.nrcan.gc.ca/site/english/maps/archives/3rdedition/environment/climate/030.
23 Protected Areas Association of Newfoundland and Labrador. Western Newfoundland Forest – Corner Brook subregion 1B. http://www.env.gov.nl.ca/parks/library/pdf/Ecoregions/Island_1b_corner_brook.pdf
24 Agriculture and Agri-Foods Canada. Plant Hardiness Zones in Canada. http://sis.agr.gc.ca/cansis/nsdb/climate/hardiness/intro.html
25 Newfoundland and Labrador Department of Environment and Conservation, Parks and Natural Areas Division. Ecoregions of Newfoundland and Labrador. January 12, 2007. http://www.env.gov.nl.ca/parks/library/pdf/Ecoregions_Nf_Lab.pdf
26 Richards, Clark and Brad DeYoung. “Analysis of Physical Oceanographic Data from Bonne Bay, September 2002-September 2004”. Physics and Physical Oceanography Data Report. 2004- 1. November 29, 2004. Department of Physics and Physical Oceanography, Memorial University, St. John’s NL.2004.
27 Sheppard, Kevin. “Coastal hazard mapping of South Arm (West Side) Bonne Bay, Newfoundland” 1996. Sample Project Reports: West Coast Field School ’96. Department of Geography, Memorial University of Newfoundland.
28 Discussions with Dr. Bob Hooper, Director Bonne Bay Marine Station, Norris Point, NL. February 24, 2010.
29 Berger, A.R. et al. "Geology, topography and vegetation, Gros Morne National Park Newfoundland”. Geological Survey of Canada, Miscellaneous Report 54, scale 1:150,000. 1992.
30 Berger, A.R. et al. "Geology, topography and vegetation, Gros Morne National Park Newfoundland”. Geological Survey of Canada, Miscellaneous Report 54, scale 1:150,000. 1992. . 31 Protected Areas Association of Newfoundland and Labrador. Western Newfoundland Forest – Corner Brook subregion 1B. http://www.env.gov.nl.ca/parks/library/pdf/Ecoregions/Island_1b_corner_brook.pdf
32 "Gros Morne National Park of Canada. Resource Issues – Moose and Vegetation Impact", Gros Morne Ecosystem Conservation Plan. http://www.pc.gc.ca/eng/pn-np/nl/grosmorne/plan/plan2/d.aspx#a8.
33 Bonne Bay Marine Station. Bonne Bay Marine Station Research: Marine Ecology. http://www.bonnebay.mun.ca/marine_ecology.htm.
63
34 Parks Canada, Gros Morne National Park Discovery Centre. Discovery Centre photo. http://www.pc.gc.ca.
35 Government of Canada, edited by Lemmen, D.S. et al. From Impacts to Adaptation: Canada in a Changing Climate. Ottawa, ON.
36 Batterson, M. And D. Liverman. “Past and Future Sea Level Change in Newfoundland and Labrador: Guidelines for Policy and Planning”. Current Research (2010) Newfoundland and Labrador Department of Natural Resources Geological Survey, Report 10-01. Pages 129-141. 2010.
37 Rada, Paulina. Impacts of Climate Change and Variability on Tourism in Western Newfoundland. Master of Science Thesis. Department of Geography, Memorial University, St. John’s, Newfoundland. 2009.
38 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. “Summary for Policy Makers”. Climate Change 2007: The Physical Science Basis. Contribution of Working Group 1 to the Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. A report of Working Group 1 of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. 2007. http://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar4/wg1/ar4-wg1-spm.pdf
39 UXL Encyclopedia of Science. 2002. www.encyclopedia.com
40 A Dictionary of Biology. 2004. www.encyclopedia.com
41 Natural Resources Canada. From Impact to Adaptation: Canada in a Changing Climate 2007. http://www.adaptation.rncan.gc.ca/assess/2007/ch11/index_e.php
42 Natural Resources Canada. From Impact to Adaptation: Canada in a Changing Climate 2007. http://www.adaptation.rncan.gc.ca/assess/2007/ch11/index_e.php
43 The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2008. www.encyclopedia.com
44 Marshall, I.B. and P.H. Schut, Environment Canada Ecosystem Science Directorate and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada Research Branch. A National Ecological Framework for Canada. 1999. http://sis.agr.gc.ca/cansis/nsdb/ecostrat/intro.html#ecological%20land%20classification
45 The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2008. www.encyclopedia.com
46 Allaby, Ailsa and Michael Allaby. A Dictionary of Earth Sciences. 1999. www.encyclopedia.com
47 The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2008. www.encyclopedia.com
48 Natural Resources Canada. From Impact to Adaptation: Canada in a Changing Climate 2007. http://www.adaptation.rncan.gc.ca/assess/2007/ch11/index_e.php
49 Natural Resources Canada. From Impact to Adaptation: Canada in a Changing Climate 2007. http://www.adaptation.rncan.gc.ca/assess/2007/ch11/index_e.php
50 The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2008. www.encyclopedia.com
51 Hancock, Paul and Brian J. Skinner. The Oxford Companion to the Earth. 2000. www.encyclopedia.com
52 Hancock, Paul and Brian J. Skinner. The Oxford Companion to the Earth. 2000. www.encyclopedia.com
64
53 Natural Resources Canada. The Atlas of Canada: Major Rock Categories. http://atlas.nrcan.gc.ca/auth/english/maps/environment/geology/majorrockcategories/1
54 Water-Technology.Net: The Website for the Water and Wastewater Industry. http://www.water- technology.net/
55 The Atlas of Canada. Climatic Regions [Köppen]. 3rd Edition, 1957, Atlas of Canada. http://atlas.nrcan.gc.ca/site/english/maps/archives/3rdedition/environment/climate/030
56 About.com: Geography. Köppen Climate Classification Chart. http://geography.about.com/library/weekly/aa011700b.htm
57 The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2008. www.encyclopedia.com
58 The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2008. www.encyclopedia.com
59 Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. Plant Hardiness Zones in Canada. http://sis.agr.gc.ca/cansis/nsdb/climate/hardiness/intro.html
60 Geological Survey of Canada. Volcanoes of Canada: Tectonic Environments. http://gsc.nrcan.gc.ca/volcanoes/tecenv_e.php
61 The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2008. www.encyclopedia.com
62 Natural Resources Canada. The Atlas of Canada: Major Rock Categories. http://atlas.nrcan.gc.ca/auth/english/maps/environment/geology/majorrockcategories/1
63 Allaby, Ailsa and Michael Allaby. A Dictionary of Earth Sciences. 1999. www.encyclopedia.com
64 World Encyclopedia. 2005. www.encyclopedia.com
65 Natural Resources Canada. From Impact to Adaptation: Canada in a Changing Climate 2007. http://www.adaptation.rncan.gc.ca/assess/2007/ch11/index_e.php
65 5. Appendices
5.1 Inventory Maps Adapting to Climate Change in Glenburnie-Birchy Head-Shoal Brook
Mapping Methods
The recommendations of this Climate Change Adaptation Plan rely on as thorough an understanding of the natural and built environment as is possible with the data and information available, combined with the most up to date information on climate change predictions and impact scenarios interpreted at the local level.
Planners use maps to organize information about the environment and land use. Not only do we use maps to illustrate natural landscape and land use patterns but we also use mapping techniques to assist in the analysis of how natural structures and processes and land use interact. We use this understanding to make decisions about land use and development based on environmental opportunities and constraints. This approach to land use planning is called environmental planning and is the foundation of many of the recommendations developed for this Plan.
Environmental planning is one of a variety of approaches to land use and development decision-making. It is particularly well-suited to developing plans reliant on the capacity and resources of the natural landscape and therefore on understanding the structure and function of natural systems. Environmental planning, combined with hazard, risk and vulnerability assessment, is very well suited to land use planning in the context of changing environmental conditions such as those predicted as a result of climate change.
The maps presented in the Appendices in the Background Report and the Adaptations and Strategies of this Climate Change Adaptation Plan illustrate:
the natural environment of Glenburnie-Birchy Head-Shoal Brook and the layout of the community in the environment (Inventory maps, Appendix 5, Background Report)
an interpretation of the hazards, vulnerabilities, risks, challenges and opportunities within the community in relation to climate change impacts (Analysis Maps, Appendix 4, Adaptations and Strategies Report)
areas of the community that need special consideration when preparing for or managing climate change impacts (Synthesis Maps, Appendix 4, Adaptations and Strategies Report)
The maps show the process of moving from the environment and land use inventory to an analysis of the opportunities (enhanced or new possibilities for environmental protection and land use development) and constraints (hazards, risks or vulnerabilities posed by climate change impacts) and finally to a synthesis of recommendations on what to protect, where to develop with least hazard or risk, and where to avoid.
The process involved interpreting landscape conditions (elevation, slope, geology, soil, hydrology, vegetation) and land use (type, location of structures and infrastructure) in the context of climate change impacts (sea level rise, increased precipitation, stronger and more frequent storms, warmer temperatures, among others). We considered how the natural environment might respond to these changes and what this could imply for the stability of the land, quantity and quality of water, the resilience and response of natural habitats (particularly at the coast) and the vulnerability of public and private structures and infrastructure to these changes in environmental conditions. We established areas of greater or lesser hazard and vulnerability by overlaying mapped land use patterns and infrastructure locations with mapped sensitive and valued natural environment features or potentially hazardous locations (due to environmental conditions and materials).
We used ESRI ArcGIS 9, ArcMap V. 9.3 to organize our data and compile our maps and to assist in the data analysis and interpretation. GIS stands for Geographic Information System. This computer technology allows us to collect, store, organize, exhibit and manipulate (using a great array of analysis tools) a large amount of geographic data. The tool allows for considerable exploration of the data and testing decisions.
We obtained our map data from a variety of sources, including:
Parks Canada, Gros Morne National Park - GIS shape files for biophysical landscape layers for land within the park and GIS shape files for topographic base mapping for land outside the park
NL Department of Environment and Conservation, Surveys and Mapping Services - municipal base maps (land use and topography at 1:5,000) in paper and digital (Autocad) format and 1:12,000 air photos for South Arm, Bonne Bay
NL Departments of Municipal Affairs, Engineering and Land Use Planning - converted data (Autocad to GIS shapefiles) for municipal landuse and topographic data
Southside Fire Department – table top mapping using air photos (1:5,000 enlarged from 1:12,000) and custom prepared base maps to update infrastructure information and to identify locations of known susceptibility to geo-hazards and flooding
Field work – site visits to identify or verify certain geologic and coastal boundaries, conditions, and environments and to update infrastructure information
We obtained information on climate change scenarios and local landscape and land use impacts through consultation with local and regional experts and from published scientific reports all of which are referenced elsewhere in this report.
There are challenges with using map information and we encountered many of them with this project, including: multiple data sources; lack of ground-truthing (confirming mapped with field observations); obsolete data (most recent infrastructure mapping was 1996, for example); incompatibility between data forms and GIS handling systems (requiring data reformatting); and the variation in mapping precision (scale). Scale, in particular, varied considerably among data sets from 1:50,000 (some biophysical and topographic data) to 1:5,000 (municipal level land use and topographic data) to 1:1 (data obtained from direct field observations). Elevation mapping (represented as elevation contours on the maps) was available as 2m intervals for land inside the GBS municipal boundary and for 10m intervals for land outside the municipal boundary.
All of these challenges, and scale variability in particular, affect the precision of the interpretations presented in the Analysis and Synthesis maps. For this reason these maps – and the lines and boundaries that they contain - should be used as guides and support tools only when implementing the recommendations of this plan. Ground- truthing will be necessary to accurately implement the map-based recommendations.
Adapting to Climate Change: South Arm Bonne Bay, NL Glenburnie - Birchy Head - Shoal Brook Map 1 Community Infrastructure
Shoal Brook
Birchy Head
Glenburnie ± 1:20,000 00.25 0.5 1 1.5 2 Kilometers
Data Source: Parks Canada 2009 Gros Morne Park Boundary Buildings Streams Government of NL, Dept of GBS Municipal Boundary Buildings Added from Fieldwork 2009/2010 Upland Wetlands Environment & Conservation 2009 Map Prepared By: Roads Industrial Operations Coastal Wetlands Hailey Steiger, Patricia Manuel Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS Trails Fields & Open Spaces Waterbodies July 2010 Power Line ú Bridge Gravel and Sand Beach C Culverts Adapting to Climate Change: South Arm Bonne Bay, NL Glenburnie - Birchy Head - Shoal Brook Map 2 Elevation Metres above sea level 0 0.1 - 40 40.1 - 80 80.1 - 120 120.1 - 160 160.1 - 200 200.1 - 240 240.1 - 280 280.1 - 320 320.1 - 360 360.1 - 400 400.1 - 440 440.1 - 480 480.1 - 520 520.1 - 560 560.1 - 600 600.1 - 640 640.1 - 680 680.1 - 720
± 1:20,000 00.25 0.5 1 1.5 2 Kilometers
Gros Morne Park Boundary Data Source: Parks Canada 2009 Buildings Streams Government of NL, Dept of GBS Municipal Boundary Environment & Conservation 2009 Buildings Added from Fieldwork 2009/2010 Coastal Wetlands Map Prepared By: Roads Hailey Steiger, Patricia Manuel Industrial Operations Upland Wetlands Dalhousie University, Halifax Trails Fields & Open Spaces Waterbodies July 2010 Power Line ú Bridge Gravel and Sand Beach C Culverts Adapting to Climate Change: South Arm Bonne Bay, NL Glenburnie - Birchy Head - Shoal Brook
C Map 3 Bedrock Geology C Metamorphic Amphibolite ú Igneous C Peridotite Gabbro
Sedimentary
C Melange Sandstone Limestone
C
C
C
C
C C C
C CC CC
ú ú ± ú 1:20,000 00.25 0.5 1 1.5 2 Kilometers Contour Interval = 10 m
Buildings Streams Data Source: Parks Canada 2009 Gros Morne Park Boundary Government of NL, Dept of GBS Municipal Boundary Buildings Added from Fieldwork 2009/2010 Coastal Wetlands Environment & Conservation 2009 Map Prepared By: Roads Industrial Operations Upland Wetlands Hailey Steiger, Patricia Manuel Dalhousie University, Halifax Fields & Open Spaces Waterbodies July 2010 Trails ú Power Line Bridge Gravel and Sand Beach C Culverts Contour Adapting to Climate Change: South Arm Bonne Bay, NL Glenburnie - Birchy Head - Shoal Brook
Map 4 Surficial Geology
Marine Gravel River Gravel Glacial Gravel Till Blanket Till Veneer Till with flattened Slopes Blocky Rubble (talus) Exposed Bedrock
± 1:20,000 00.25 0.5 1 1.5 2 Kilometers Contour Interval = 10 m
Gros Morne Park Boundary Buildings Streams Data Source: Parks Canada 2009 Government of NL, Dept of GBS Municipal Boundary Buildings Added from Fieldwork 2009/2010 Coastal Wetlands Environment & Conservation 2009 Map Prepared By: Roads Industrial Operations Upland Wetlands Hailey Steiger, Patricia Manuel Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS Trails Fields & Open Spaces Waterbodies July 2010 Power Line ú Bridge Gravel and Sand Beach C Culverts Contour Adapting to Climate Change: South Arm Bonne Bay, NL Glenburnie - Birchy Head - Shoal Brook Map 5 Slope
Percent 0 - 3 3.1 - 8 8.1 - 15 15.1 - 30 > 30.1
± 1:20,000 00.25 0.5 1 1.5 2 Kilometers Contour Interval = 10 m
Gros Morne Park Boundary Buildings Streams Data Source: Parks Canada 2009 Government of NL, Dept of GBS Municipal Boundary Buildings Added from Fieldwork 2009/2010 Coastal Wetlands Environment & Conservationn 2009 Map Prepared By: Roads Industrial Operations Upland Wetlands Hailey Steiger, Patricia Manuel Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS Trails Fields & Open Spaces Waterbodies July 2010 Power Line ú Bridge Gravel and Sand Beach C Culverts Contour Adapting to Climate Change: South Arm Bonne Bay, NL Glenburnie - Birchy Head - Shoal Brook
C Map 6 Slope Orientation C North Northeast ú C East Southeast South
C Southwest West Northwest
C
C
C
C
C C C
C CC CC
ú ú ± ú 1:20,000 00.25 0.5 1 1.5 2 Kilometers Contour Interval = 10 m
Gros Morne Park Boundary Buildings Streams Data Source: Parks Canada 2009 Government of NL, Dept of GBS Municipal Boundary Buildings Added from Fieldwork 2009/2010 Coastal Wetlands Environment & Conservation 2009 Map Prepared By: Roads Industrial Operations Upland Wetlands Hailey Steiger, Patricia Manuel Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS Trails Fields & Open Spaces Waterbodies July 2010 Power Line ú Bridge Gravel and Sand Beach C Culverts Contour Adapting to Climate Change: South Arm Bonne Bay, NL Glenburnie - Birchy Head - Shoal Brook Map 7 South Arm Watersheds
±
00.5 1 2 3 4 5 Kilometers
± 1:60,000 00.5 1 2 3 4 5 Kilometers Contour Interval = 10 m
Watercourses Data Source: Parks Canada 2009 Watersheds Government of NL, Dept of Environment & Conservation 2009 GBS Municipal Boundary Wetlands Map Prepared By: Hailey Steiger, Patricia Manuel Gros Morne Park Boundary Contour Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS July 2010 Waterbodies Adapting to Climate Change: South Arm Bonne Bay, NL Glenburnie - Birchy Head - Shoal Brook Map 8 GBS Watersheds
Watersheds Tidal Flats/Salt Marsh Bogs Fens Landscape Drainage RAPIDLY DRAINED WELL DRAINED MODERATELY WELL DRAINED 00.5 1 2 3 4 5 C Kilometers IMPERFECTLY DRAINED C POORLY DRAINED VERY POORLY DRAINED
úC
C
C
C
C C C CC C CC CC
ú úú
± 1:40,000 00.5 1 2 3 4 Kilometers Contour Interval = 10 m
Gros Morne Park Boundary Buildings Streams Data Source: Parks Canada 2009 Government of NL, Dept of GBS Municipal Boundary Buildings Added from Fieldwork 2009/2010 Upland Wetlands Environment & Conservation 2009 Map Prepared By: Roads Industrial Operations Waterbodies Hailey Steiger, Patricia Manuel Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS Trails Fields & Open Spaces Gravel and Sand Beach July 2010 Power Line ú Bridge Contour C Culvert Adapting to Climate Change: South Arm Bonne Bay, NL Glenburnie - Birchy Head - Shoal Brook
C Map 9 Hydrology
C Watershed Boundaries
Landscape Drainage
RAPIDLY DRAINED ú C WELL DRAINED
MODERATELY WELL DRAINED
IMPERFECTLY DRAINED
POORLY DRAINED C VERY POORLY DRAINED
Wetlands Tidal Flats/Salt Marshes
Bogs
Fens
C
C
C
C
C C C
C CC CC
ú ú ± ú 1:20,000 00.25 0.5 1 1.5 2 Kilometers Contour Interval = 10 m
Gros Morne Park Boundary Buildings Streams Data Source: Parks Canada 2009 Government of NL, Dept of Environment & Conservation 2009 GBS Municipal Boundary Buildings Added from Fieldwork 2009/2010 Upland Wetlands Map Prepared By: Hailey Steiger, Patricia Manuel Roads Industrial Operations Waterbodies Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS July 2010 Trails Fields & Open Spaces Gravel and Sand Beach Power Line ú Bridge Contour C Culvert Adapting to Climate Change: South Arm Bonne Bay, NL Glenburnie - Birchy Head - Shoal Brook
C Map 10 Soil C Forest Soils: Well-drained ORTHIC DYSTRIC BRUNISOL ORTHIC EUTRIC BRUNISOL ú ORTHIC FERRO-HUMIC PODZOL C ORTHIC HUMO-FERRIC PODZOL Imperfectly Drained FERA GLEYSOL Poorly Developed Soil Well-drained C ORTHIC REGOSOL Imperfectly/Poorly drained REGO GLEYSOL Organic Soil (Wetlands/Floodplains) Poorly/Very-poorly drained TERRIC HUMIC MESISOL TERRIC HUMISOL C TERRIC MESISOL TYPIC MESISOL
C
C
C
C C C
C CC CC
ú ú ± ú 1:20,000 00.25 0.5 1 1.5 2 Kilometers Contour Interval = 10m
Data Source: Parks Canada 2009 Gros Morne Park Boundary Buildings Streams Government of NL, Dept of GBS Municipal Boundary Buildings Added from Fieldwork 2009/2010 Coastal Wetlands Environment & Conservation 2009 Map Prepared By: Roads Industrial Operations Upland Wetlands Hailey Steiger, Patricia Manuel Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS Trails Fields & Open Spaces Waterbodies July 2010 Power Line ú Bridge Gravel and Sand Beach C Culvert Contour Adapting to Climate Change: South Arm Bonne Bay, NL Glenburnie - Birchy Head - Shoal Brook
C Map 11 Vegetation Communities C & Habitats
Cleared - Built Up and Regenerating ú WOODLANDS C Balsam Fir - Herb Forest Balsam Fir - Moss Forest Balsam Fir - White Birch Forest Balsam Fir - White Birch Forest on Talus Slopes Upland Tuckamoor HEATHLANDS Empetrum Heath C Larch - Juniper Heath Serpentine Heath Bauens WETLANDS Patterned Fen Sedge Bog Black Spruce - Shpagnum Forest COASTAL HABITATS Salt Marsh Tidal Flats
C
C
C
C
C C C
C CC CC
ú ú ± ú 1:20,000 00.25 0.5 1 1.5 2 Kilometers Contour Interval = 10 m
Gros Morne Park Boundary Buildings Streams Data Source: Parks Canada 2009 Government of NL, Dept of GBS Municipal Boundary Buildings Added from Fieldwork 2009/2010 Waterbodies Environment & Conservation 2009 Map Prepared By: Roads Industrial Operations Gravel and Sand Beach Hailey Steiger, Patricia Manuel Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS Trails Fields & Open Spaces Contour July 2010 Power Line ú Bridge C Culverts 5.2 Detailed Meeting Notes
November 2010 Second Visit to Glenburnie-Birchy Head-Shoal Brook
Tuesday, November 24th Dinner with Raymond Cusson and Susan Galloway - Major employers: Fish plant, Fishing, Logging, Tourism, Alberta oil industry, Ontario construction industry - Emergency shelter locations have no real capacity: Rec centre, Churches - Summer Festivals - Tourism season starts late – June - Vulnerable infrastructure – only one road out for 3 communities (Trout River, Woody Point, GBS), no ferry - Highway works depot is located in Glenburnie - Many families are without men for part of the year – 42 families last year - Last year Trout River had only one firefighter over the winter - Communities have historic separation/rivalry – Glenburnie vs. Birchy Head vs. Shoal Brook, North side of the Bay vs. South side of the Bay - Local radio station (Voice of Bonne Bay, VOBB, FM 102.5) broadcasts from Bonne Bay Cottage Hospital in Norris Point year round, planning a broadcast booth in The Chocolate Moose next year in Birchy Head - High-speed internet came to GBS last month, used to be only dial-up internet - Satellite and cable TV available - BS on well, septic, and direct outflows to the ocean (Woody Point has municipal water) - Local story-tellers = Zachary and Anita (Norris Point “Trails, Tales & Tunes Festival) - Woody Point “Writer‟s Festival” - Gros Morne National Park does quite a bit of local historical/cultural programming (part of their mandate) – there were 2 folklorists on staff last summer - Parks and Gros Morne Co-op are a huge asset for the 7 “enclave” communities - 7 communities in the Park have approximately 4,000 population (60% of population in Provincial Baie Verte riding) = political clout, access to funding with cooperation, economies of scale, strategic regional cooperation (but relationship- building takes time) - Agreement between towns just re-signed/re-agreed to by new Councils - Need to include Trout River, Cow Head and St. Paul‟s better - Good cooperation right now between Woody Point, GBS, Rocky Harbour and Norris Point - Parks Canada hires local people directly (“how they do business”) for trail maintenance, local programs, interpretation - Gros Morne headquarters in Rocky Harbour also responsible for Port Au Choix and L‟Anse Aux Meadows - Tablelands area administered from Discovery Centre in Woody Point - Parks didn‟t expropriate towns when the Park was created because they were vibrant fishing communities in the 1960‟s – these towns were also never part of Joey Smallwood‟s re-settlement program - Tourists see the communities as part of the Park experience (local people, personalities, customs...) - National Geographic (Jonathan Turtleow) discussed new breed of tourists visiting National Parks/UNESCO sites – people seeking an authentic experience immersed in the community from 6:00am „til 6:00pm and then seeking good food, good wine and comfy bed after 6:00pm and “off-the-grid” campers who want to kayak into the wilderness but have good, catered meals and a comfy tent - “Trends arrive and then local people adapt to provide the experience” - Fine line for communities to not become a museum, not become “the show” - Electricity arrived here in the 1960‟s - This year – 3 residents died, 3 houses were converted from year-round to part- time, and only one child was born - Community volunteerism isn‟t documented or recognized – helping a neighbour is just what the community does (shovelling, delivery the paper, getting groceries, driving to appointments, preparing meals) – can take up to 11 people to care for 1 elderly person - This volunteerism is common-place in the community, but isn‟t recognized by part-time residents - Community is trying to keep seniors in the community – held “Seniors Recognition Day” last year with presentations from nurse, RCMP, musician, lunch served by students (“they liked it so much they wanted another one the following week”) - Ella Moores, 94, grew up in Shoal Brook, now lives in Seniors Complex in Woody Point - Seniors will easily sell their houses to vacationers because of the money offered, they have no pensions, and they know they must leave the community anyway - Ideas: creative migration, Buddhists? - Need young families, young people - A lot of external money is coming into the community - School is vulnerable – may have to amalgamate with Trout River school, dangerous to travel “The Gulch” in winter - “once you lose the school you lose the community” - Hemblah Young = fish plant owner (with two of his sons) - Bob Hooper = director of Bonne Bay Marine Station in Rocky Harbour - Gary Noble = MUN?, presentation re: 2 degrees Centigrade - Food Security Network of Newfoundland and Labrador (FSN-NL) - Elliot Lake, ON – dying town that recruited seniors - Parks Canada pays for marketing of GBS (asset) - “NL would collapse without volunteers” – Minister of Volunteers and Non-Profit Organizations - GBS is at a critical, delicate point - Still work to be done at the community level - What is the magic population number? - What is the magic population composition? - Jim Bennett – “each generation you lose 10% of your population” – and those who leave are generally the most skilled (the ones that can leave) - How to get kids back home? Lifestyle, affordability, opportunities, recreation, family... - Housing costs are increasing due to part-time residents - Wide range of housing prices (“Tessa‟s house asking $180-200,000”) - Prices have changed dramatically in the last 5-10 years... used to get a house here for $5,000! - Haven‟t had “out-of-country” buyers here yet (no residency rules like PEI, no tax for “outsiders”, seasonal residents) - St. John‟s housing prices have increased 19% in the past year - Climate change is part of the Parks strategy (using Env Canada data) - Coastal monitoring site in Bonne Bay - Moose management study - Hydrology - Skidooing - Logging (individual cutting rights, personal use, firewood, no sustainable practices rules) - Watershed mapping - Woody Point has potable water issues (may need water from GBS or the Park in the future – some want to amalgamate for water and tax reasons), no issues in GBS - Many wells located across Route 431 from the houses - Great water quality and quantity - Amalgamation is a very touchy issue but towns cooperate on many things right now – Fire Department, waste management - Weekly garbage pick-up, also takes recyclables to Deer Lake (and give $ to charities)
Wednesday, November 25th Boat Tour of Bonne Bay with DFO (Boyd and Dwayne) and Ken Kennedy from Parks Canada - Woody Point – architectural heritage - Fish plant employs about 40 people directly and 100‟s indirectly - Tourism is seasonal, fishing is seasonal - Lots of low-lying, waterfront infrastructure - Woody Point wharves noticeably age as you move from north to south down the Bay - Houses have been moved up the hill previously – used to be at the level of fishing shacks - Strong winds come from the south - Shed knocked down - Tree blow-down mostly from northern winds - 2 arms and a tickle (strong current moving across the Bay) - Whales are in the Bay to feed on herring and mackerel - Unusual whale encounter even for DFO and Parks employees... whales surfacing so close to the boat - Pike‟s garage and town hall in Shoal Brook on top of cliff (petroleum storage) - Ocean Net = shoreline clean-up, very successful - Community dumping into the ocean decreased - High unemployment statistics are a reflection of seasonal work (fishing, tourism...) - Irregular property lines are common (“higgledy-piggledy”), stem from familial development of land - People are clearing and digging into the hills behind them - Bay hasn‟t completely iced-up for the at least the past 6 years – was an important mode of winter travel to Rocky Harbour/Norris Point (people would schedule winter dentist appointments in Rocky Harbour so they could travel on the ice, trucks would drive across the ice to log on the other side of the Bay) - Road ploughing is very good, DOT has a depot in Glenburnie for Route 431 and has a contract to plough municipal roads - Boat yard (in Woody Point) is regional, not just local fishers - Coastal infilling occurring at “Norm‟s Spit” – cut and fill operation from hillside across the road - People repairing their seawalls use “the old method”, local traditional knowledge - What is the frequency, cost, and man-power needed to repair sea walls? - Boardwalk damage evident - High tide commonly overtops the Boardwalk - Brooks often flood, jam with debris and have to be cleared with heavy equipment - 3 brooks through community, culvert size? Storm capacity/design? - 3 bridges through community are provincial responsibility, but community will be charged? - South Arm of Bonne Bay is deeper than East Arm - Houses weather faster on the south side (strong southern winds) - Small changes in the forest cause large changes in wind down the hill (ie: cutting around cemetery will create more wind for Raymond and Susan) - Community doesn‟t get much sunshine in the winter (shadow from the hills) - Wells are shared between houses, often located on the other side of the road – water quality and quantity is good (wells are dug, not drilled) - Some septic fields, sewage outfalls directly into the Bay - Joint Fire department between GBS and Woody Point (recent) - Fire Department just got new equipment – cost-sharing and fund-raising - Volunteer firefighters - No local power generation, only transmission – substation located on the Old Trout River Road - Where does power come from? (Deer Lake, Labrador?) - New investment in community – Red Mantle Lodge is new 4* accommodation - The Gulch (road to Trout River) is a wind tunnel, dangerous to travel (can be closed in the winter - Recent landslide in Trout River, also recent “rogue wave” (6 feet high) - Rivers and straight, steep, incised into the rock – very little floodplain - Glenburnie built on a glacial outwash plain - “pug” – local word for clay, origin? - Dean‟s Head - Used to be houses on the opposite side of the Bay - Solid waste issues – Ocean Net , tourism put stress on municipal dump - 9 month / 3 month face of community – difficult to “right-size” infrastructure - Porpoises, seals, minke whales, sperm whales, finn whales, and humpback whales in the Bay - Moose are an introduced species
Meeting with Parks Canada Employees in Rocky Harbour Jeff Anderson - Interested in information sharing - Would like a single person to act as our liaison/contact with Parks Canada - Tony Berger – Tablelands photographer, geomorphologist - Question: When do you adapt? When do you change/move infrastructure? (need to prioritize actions, use precautionary principle, looking at short, medium and long-term actions and strategies) - For the time being, send info requests to Jeff via e-mail - Biggest ecological issue for Gros Morne right now is declining forest health – balsam fir forest with a dense, young understory, significant insect kill in the 1980‟s, moose browse of young trees has meant that there has been no forest regeneration in the damaged areas - When will the next insect kill happen? - Will there be an increasing frequency of insect kills? - Will this have significant impacts on logging, hydrology, hunting? - Park has watershed mapping with streams, forest composition, cutting and forest regeneration info - Park has hydrological modelling of stream flows
Scott Taylor (GIS) - GMNP can provide us with baseline environmental data – habitat areas, physical layers, water, land use, resource extraction, infrastructure in the Park - ArcGIS = 10 metre contours, DEM available, water, coastlines, vegetation, forest inventory, some LandSat imagery (field validated), 2005 spot imaging - New ortho-rectified mosaic will be completed by this time next year! - Geology, surficial geology info is crude - Biophysical layer uses Ecological Land Classification - Wildlife layers = arctic hare habitat modelling, moose, caribou, bear... - Harvest areas and logging rights (2004) - Forest disturbances
Peter Deering - Manager of Resource Conservation - Responsible for natural resources in the Park, logistics and support for researchers (Labrador Highlands Group, MUN, Grenfell College trying to increase research capacity) - Patricia Renouf – sea level change in historic times in Port Au Choix - Snow pack info – snow beds and arctic plants project, changes in soil temperature, annual change in snow beds - Forest health – insect infestations, moose kill
Thursday, November 26th Meeting with Town Council Myrna (Town Clerk) Betty (Councillor) Marilyn (Mayor)
Community profile: - 24 kids under the age of 18 - 205 full-time, adult residents - 57 homes have part-time residents
Major employment: - Tourism - Fish plant in Woody Point - Parks Canada - Small businesses - Logging (Braden Enterprises) - Excavating, heavy equipment - Fishing (Henry Break)
Recreation: - Skidooing (big!) – events, group runs, South Bay snowmobile club - Rec committee, rec hall - Community suppers, church suppers - Senior‟s card games - Winter carnival (February or March) - Scrapbooking club - Fitness class (run by Myrna, 27 women registered) - Safe & Sustainable Communities Committee - Treehouse Family resource Centre (Woody Point) – playgroup twice a week - Organic community garden - Yoga group - Rughooking club – Tableland Rug Hookers - Church women‟s groups - Church kids and youth groups (big!) - Writer‟s Festival (Woody Point)
Changes in Community: - People from away - Part-time residents - Traffic in summer from tourists and people coming to visit summer residents - Tourism - Waste management issues – dump can‟t be expanded - Farmer‟s market - Less volunteerism (people aging, summer residents) - Some new houses being built - More senior‟s, aging population - Not many young people or young families - Hard to “age in place” – shovelling, driving, wood furnaces, fewer people to help seniors stay at home - Bay doesn‟t ice up anymore (not as much ice, doesn‟t last as long) - Used to drive across the ice to other communities, for logging, to deliver mail - Ice is thinner, less predictable, less safe - More driving required, travel safety concerns - Fewer moose on the roads now - Used to be more snow - Rains harder now – used to drizzle, but now it rains - Less fog - Used to be dry lightning storms, not anymore - Derek Young (62 years old) records the weather, temperature and local events every day for the past 35 years - Sterling Goosney (Myrna‟s dad) – truck driver that travelled up the coast twice a week, says its warmer up the coast now - Local food sources – moose, rabbits, fish, seals (but not as common) - Logging – domestic harvest for firewood permitted in the Park for one generation after Park was established - Never replanted forests in Newfoundland - Dave Jenkins and Norma Parsons – post office employees
Municipal infrastructure: - Town office, fire hall - Rec hall - Boardwalk in Glenburnie - 1.8 kilometres of municipal roads - Municipal breakwater, wharves - Seawalls at Silverton Road, Shoal Brook bridge and Glenburnie Boardwalk - Bridges are provincial – Middle Brook, Sellars Brook, Croucher‟s Brook/Point Brook (“Puncheon‟s Bridge), Shoal Brook - Culverts are provincial - Department of Transportation contacts = Anthony Blanchard, Clyde Belbin, Billy Stickland, Stead Goosney - Herb Taylor
People to meet with: - Elders – “just got it done”, local knowledge, no sense of entitlement (didn‟t expect someone else to do it for them), self-sufficiency, general knowledge (knew a bit of everything), cooperation - Older fishermen – Herb Taylor - DOT employees, retirees - Loggers - Youth, students - Council - Local sealers (Elliot Upwards) - Clarence Lang (Norris Point ferry operator) - Charlie Payne (wrote history of the Bay)
Issues: - Passing on local knowledge, skills – institute of local traditional knowledge? - Katimavik?
Thursday, November 26th Meeting with South Side Fire Department Jim Burden (Fire Chief) – retired, 28 years on Fire Department, former Town Councillor Ian Sharp – mechanic, jack-of-all-trades, took EMO course 5 years ago, “kicking for EMO Plan”, former Town Councillor, Bill Coots – Parks Canada employee (Discovery Centre), 28 years with Parks Canada, 21 years with Fire Department, former Councillor, member of many committees Tony Alwell – recently moved back to community after 25 years away, Emergency Planning Committee Chair, Deputy Mayor of Woody Point, works at Pike‟s Garage in the office
“people just pick up and do it” “remember when skidoo‟s went out from Deer Lake to rescue people stranded on the highway” - Usually 4-8 feet of snow - Snowed every day in January 2009 - “last year my cabin was an igloo!” - Used to get 10-12 feet of snow - Rain is more intense, torrential, used to be drizzle and showers - School flooded last winter (“never happened when I was a kid”) - Last winter fire trucks pumped out basements (around 7 pumps available throughout the community) - Our temperatures are warmer, winters aren‟t as cold as they used to be - “big difference in temperatures” - Fishing holes in ponds used to be 6 inches deep, now the ice is only around 3 feet thick - Used to be able to put fishing shacks on the ice by early December but not anymore - 2008 the Bay iced up to Shoal Brook - In the past 13 years, there‟s only been one winter where you could drive a truck across the Bay - Use to be 7-8 feet of ice - 32 years ago, there was 13 feet of snow Grindstone Pond - Snowmobiling is safe on 4-8 inches of ice (depends on who you talk to) - Have to be careful on the ice early in fall and late in spring - “ice is common sense” - Snowmobiles are lighter than they used to be (7-800 pounds?) - Problem is when snowmobile stops - Ground doesn‟t freeze because the snow insulates it - Ground used to freeze, but it doesn‟t now - Ground frost is gone – “can dig up worms for ice-fishing now!” - Local people dig graves in the community – used to be ice 6 inches to a foot down, but now there‟s no ground ice - Space between ground and snow – when heat from ground melts “snow-ground interface” - More winter food for moose increases population – weak animals not culled over winter - No moose yards anymore, moose aren‟t forced to cluster for food anymore - More wind - October to January 2008 it blew every day - “winds strong enough to flip and move a 16 foot dory with 6 inches of water in the bottom - Flipped a boat into the Bay - Flipped a tractor trailer into the Bay - Flipped a piece of plywood that was lying flat on the ground - “in Wreckhouse, winds are strong enough to pick up tractor trailers” - Trout River and the Gulch “has its own atmosphere” – can be sunny here and stormy there - “Swiffens” – day in July or August – “if it rains on Swiffens it‟ll rain for 40 days” (ask Clyde Belbin) - The Gulch isn‟t as bad as it used to be, road was closed for 9 days once - 2008-2009 = lots of wind, took my parent‟s roof off, took part of the Discovery Centre‟s roof off - Eastern and Southeastern wind will lift water right of the Bay - “this fall, wind moved by bbq across my deck” - Wind has moved snowmobiles - In November, 11 years ago the wind picked up a reefer trailer and dropped it into the Bay - “we sleep downstairs in a storm” - “Southwest and southeast winds are wicked” - Wind is getting more intense - Rogue wave at Halloween in Trout river (6 feet tall) - Tides seem to be higher - Beach Road is under water a lot - Glenburnie basements flood at high tide - Heavy equipment in town is available to the Fire Department anytime - More equipment is in town in fall and spring – when weather events happen - 24 volunteer firefighters - Crew drops to about ½ in the summer - Community will help anyone, anytime - Houses are very close together – you know when your neighbour needs help, if anything changes - “we just solve problems without a fuss” - “if I can‟t leave the shop to go to a Fire Department meeting then the meeting comes to me” - Working on Emergency Management Plan - 6 categories by order of importance - Chain of command, who to call in an emergency - Local ambulance in woody Point has paramedics, firefighters aren‟t “first responders” in a medical emergency - Emergencies – storms, slides, fires, floods, forest fires, road washouts... - Government won‟t provide funding without a Plan (must be in place, approved by the Office of the Fire Commissioner by fall 2012) - “government is trying to get the people who aren‟t self-sufficient out of the country and into the cities” - Government isn‟t funding small individual towns, has to be regional (1 Department with 3 stations) - Next Emergency Planning meeting is mid-January - Need to get agreement between Councils on who will be “in charge” during an emergency (liability implications) - Wells are mostly gravity flow (pumps not needed, water still available in power outage) - Most people have woodstoves, but some still have oil heat (needs electricity) - No house numbers right now, but we are working on it - Not all streets have signs - Cultural shift = “everyone just helped” to bureaucracy, plan, organization... - For the Emergency Plan, it‟s all about taking time, doing it in increments/pieces - Rattle Brook across the Bay – “50-100 mm rain and its pouring like Niagara Falls!” - Lots of debris comes down in the brooks after a storm - Clearing trees makes the water come down faster - Roads flood... - Vulnerable areas for the community are roads, bridges, sea walls, slide-prone areas - Curzon Village has had slides in the past 20 years
Friday, November 27th Meeting with Kris Oravec, resident, geologist and Parks Interpreter
- Parks Canada Interpreter since 2003, geological contractor during the winter - Provided consultation to the Town of GBS a few years ago re: water and sewer report - Quebec government has a climate change office – modelling of Labrador coast, good data! - Quebec – Laval Climate Change Institute - NRCan researcher – Martine Savard (based in Quebec City) - Local geology = local knowledge - Wells here aren‟t drilled, so no record of till depth, etc - Localized geology, highly variable due to glaciations - Glenburnie = glacial outwash plain - Apron on bedrock - “the bible” = “Geology, Topography & Vegetation, Gros Morne National Park, GSC Miscellaneous Report 54” - Glaciers here cut very deep - Beach terraces formed by glacial weight then rebound - Beach terraces under water as well - Glacial clays - Slides occur on slopes after extreme rains - Glacial tills and clay deposited in tilted beds - Diverse bedrock types – limestone, shale, lava, gabbro... - Failure prone? Shales = intense foliation, deformation - Collision of continents mixed old rocks with ocean rocks - Very complex mix of bedrock types – granite, gabro, igneous, sandstone, limestone, sea sediment, marble – all are source rocks for clay and till - Steep topography - Flattens out in McKenzie area - Glacial deposition from brooks - Areas of concern = outwash plains, terraces... exactly where people have built!! - 20 glaciations in Newfoundland – land denuded by last 2 glaciations, most recent = alpine glaciations - Coastal plains = marine gravels and fluvial deposits
- Good resources: o Tony Berger (Wolfville, NS) – currently looking at catastrophic geologic events o Michael Brezinsky‟s book “Gros Morne” (out of print) o Rob Hingston – Parks employee
Meeting with Margaret King and Steven Buffett – Bonne Bay Academy - Want to include children‟s input in this project - Bonne Bay Academy has grades K-12 with 63 students and 8.5 teachers - K-3 = 12 students - 4-6 = 20 students - 7-9 = 12 students - Levels 1,2,3,4 = 19 students - Environmental science course offered once every three years to grades 10-12 - History and rural geography on-line - High school chemistry on-line - Canadian studies offered every 2 years - Junior high – science, math, social studies, English, French - Primary – general curriculum, outdoor education (4-6) - Heritage Fair for grades 4-9 usually held in May (4 top projects go to Corner Brook fair) - Idea for heritage fair project: o Connecting stories from elders to changes in community related to climate change (fishing, weather, environment, hunting, forestry, culture) o Visual component o Raymond may be able to provide some money through the Co-op o Patricia and Sarah will provide local climate change info for students o Patricia and Sarah can judge projects during May trip o Set up display of projects at the rec hall, Discovery Centre? o Include projects in climate change adaptation report - Talk to Marguerite Shepherd in Woody Point – she and her husband kept a weather/temp record for Environment Canada (her husband died about 2 weeks ago)
February 2010 Second Visit to Glenburnie – Birchy Head – Shoal Brook
Thursday, February 18
Meeting with Fitness Class and Scrapbooking Club Intro to project, participation opportunities over coming week
Friday, February 19, 2010 (5.5 hours) Meeting with elders for lunch at the Chocolate Moose Cafe 10 elders, Raymond, Patricia and Susan
Meeting with Principal and Vice-Principal of Bonne Bay Academy Notes for School Presentations / Activities K-3 = 13 kids, focus on climate stories 4-6 = 20 kids, focus on extreme weather 7-9 = 12 kids, focus on cultural aspects/impacts of climate 10-12 = 19 kids, focus on environmental impacts of climate change
- Ideas for Heritage Fair projects for 7-9: o Cultural components derived from climate (clothing, food, work, recreation) o Community traditions o Human health o Tourism o Agricultural traditions o Technology of travel (snowshoes, snowmobiles...)
- Ideas for Heritage Fair projects for 10-12: o Water cycle o Biodiversity (tuna, terns...) o Arctic climates o Migratory birds o Sea ice o Forest health
Saturday, February 20, 2010 (7.5 hours) Meeting with South Bay Volunteer Fire Department - Approximately 18 firefighters in attendance - Discussed project objectives, process, outcomes - Overview of climate change predictions for region - Brief discussion of observed climate changes (all were in agreement) - Reviewed and updated infrastructure maps with group
Hiked snowmobile trail above Shoal Brook
Community Potluck Meeting with community members, discussed project and community consultation
Sunday, February 21, 2010 Drive to other Gros Morne communities – St. Paul and Cow Head Sunday, February 21
Monday, February 22, 2010 Meeting with GBS Town Council Bella Young Jim Bingle Betty Sims Myrna Hynes Marilyn Wight
- Re-cap of project (objectives, process, outcomes) - Update on first visit – who we talked to, what we learned - Update on climate change research – predictions for this regions - Update on landscape analysis - Quick discussion of adaptations (infrastructure investment, moving houses) - Issues for municipal government – infrastructure costs, liability re: building permits - Discussed meetings during second visit – fire department, elders, public meeting and school - Discussed potential format of final report - Discussed use of report recommendations to inform, guide municipal plan - Discussed next steps for draft and final report – requesting volunteers at public meeting to act as review committee for draft report in April
Meeting with Anthony Blanchard, DOT Maintenance and Engineering Supervisor - Started working for DOT in 1989 - Noticed weather changes since then - Used to get intense, 2-3 day snowstorms - In the past 4-5 years snowstorms now only last about 12 hours, not as intense, don‟t drop as much snow - Rainstorms are also more intense and shorter and accompanied by stronger wind - Snowstorms used to be far more predictable, now more sporadic - Makes winter maintenance planning far more difficult - Weather forecasts to DOT from AMEC consulting are very accurate (amount, start and end times of snow/rain) - Road reports on TV and internet come from DOT field supervisors (field observations) - Glenburnie DOT depot dispatches 5 pieces of equipment daily (plow, salt trucks, loaders...) - Rocky Harbour DOT depot dispatches 5 pieces of equipment daily - 9 people at Glenburnie depot for winter maintenance work - Glenburnie is seasonal operation for snow/ice – staff only in winter - In the event of spring/summer flooding a crew would be dispatched from Deer Lake - September about 4 years ago – 112 mm of rain fell in 24 hours - March 3-4 years ago – 100+ mm of rain fell, almost lost the road near the GBS Town Hall - These intense events can stressful for the DOT budget, federal $ is available for major storms, winter maintenance has a bigger budget than other seasons - Vulnerable spots = infrastructure (culverts and bridges), upsize them if a problem occurs and also generally upsize when replacing - DOT discourages the channelling of water or the diverting of watercourses without an environmental study - 1989 – always had a major rainstorm in late January or early February - In the last 7-8 years there are several mild spots throughout the winter - From mid-October to mid-May we‟re ready for snow - This year there was very little groundfrost, none last winter either - In the last 6-7 winters the ground hasn‟t really frozen (used to freeze with the cold in the fall) - NAO = North Atlantic Oscillation, Newfoundland phenomenon – shifts will become more pronounced and possibly more frequent, warm Gulf stream further north (- NAO)or cold Atlantic water further south (+ NAO) - In the last 10 years all the seasons have been warmer - “climate norm” we‟re using is 1970-2000 - “new climate norm” will be 1980-2010, it will be calculated at the end of 2010 - 1 degree Celcius is a huge difference! - Windstorms are also much more intense – east wind in the winter and south wind in the summer - Last winter = bad flooding because the brooks backed up, quick thaw and rainfall - There is the odd road erosion due to intense rainfall - Coastal/tidal flooding occurred a few years ago in Trout River, there was a storm surge over the road by Sally‟s Cove - Northern Peninsula highway is quite low which makes it vulnerable to storm surges - Ideas = move the walkways and lookouts into the woods area, higher above the Glenburnie beach, focus on facilitating active transportation routes along the road.
Meeting with seniors at Tablelands Senior Citizens Complex - Ella Moores (95) - Pansy ___ (80) - Bertha ___ (90) - Gerald ___ (86) – “lived in Birchy Head all my life” - Sam ___ (78) - Lily ___ (74) - Linda Taylor (?) - Georgina Gillam (88)
From Sarah‟s notes: - Bertha = snow, snow, snow - Gerald = climate has changed, in my early teens we‟d drive on the ice at Christmas but there‟s scarcely any ice now. Used to get 10-20 below Fahrenheit for 3 weeks to a month and we‟d get lots of snow. That‟s starting to change, the Bay might slob in a bit now at The Bottom - Sam = we used to take cars on the Bay - Gerald = there were 60 kids and 1 teacher at the school in Glenburnie, and we used to take turns bringing kindling to school. There was one doctor on a horse with his kit; Dr. Templeman was near Woody Point. Now there‟s a hospital in Norris Point. Dr. Prevel and Dr. Dove were also here. - Gerald = fishing was good in the fall, mostly cod. There‟s hardly any fish now at all. The tide falls further down now and doesn‟t come up as far. - Sam = snow banks on the road were 10-12 feet high in the 1940‟s. I could walk on the top of them and slide my hand along the telephone wire. - Gerald = we all went over the snow. - Ella = everybody had snowshoes. - Gerald = even the horses had snowshoes for the mail-run from Deer Lake. The mail used to come by dogsled teams as well. Woody Point was thriving so we didn‟t have to go into Deer Lake. - Gerald = I worked in the woods. We used horses and the river to move logs, drove the wood out to Goose Arm. There was a Bowater Mill in Corner Brook. In summer we cut wood, in winter we moved the wood and in spring we floated the wood in the rivers. - Bertha = I reared my mother‟s kids. - Gerald = I can remember 75 years back. - Lily = we towed sleds up the hill with horses. I grew up in Trout River. - Gerald = I grew up in the Great Depression. There was tuberculosis and malnutrition. We ate rabbit, moose, vegetables from our garden, and fish from the Bay. Everyone had a garden. - Ella = we grew potatoes and vegetables. I planted my garden in May or June. We also had Damson plum trees. - Bertha = I canned beets, jams and made sauerkraut. - Sam = poached moose tastes better. I don‟t ever remember a winter like this, although 1953(ish) was mild. - Gerald = at hunting camp #107 we cut 1800 cords of wood before Christmas, but we couldn‟t find any snow to get the wood out after Christmas (this was in the 1950‟s). - Gerald = I took the high road from Deer Lake once. I left Deer Lake at 6:00am and I got home at 9:00am the next day. I was on snowshoes. We had to walk to work in the camps. - Gerald = March 10th there were warm/hot days and cold nights. St. Swiffen‟s is July 15th and if it rains on St. Swiffen‟s it‟ll rain for 40 days. - Gerald = In one of the most severe storms a ship was in The Bottom to load lumber and that 100 ton schooner was put up on the beach by a storm. It was the “Bernie Zync” (??) - Ella = I lived in Glenburnie near the water. It flooded once. - Gerald = wind and tide would push the water up 100-150 feet in from the tide. There were “sures” under the house (round logs). The water flopped up under the house sometimes. - Pansy = my son used to paddle around the house in his gumboots. - Gerald = the climate was entirely different 60 years ago. The heat was blistering sometimes. It‟s not hot enough anymore to make hay. - Sam = There was flooding from tides in the summer and from the brooks in the winter. There was 2 feet of water in my house once from the brooks. - Gerald = the brooks plugged by snow and ice, the water needed to spread out. Glenburnie used to flood out every spring, but the brooks are dredged out now. - Bertha = I lived in Shoal Brook. It only flooded once. The shoals are out in the Bay. - _____ = we used to have plenty of winter storms. We haven‟t had many fine days like this. We used to have snow right up past the doors and there were blowing gales when we were fishing lobster up the coast. - Gerald = they dredged the brooks to keep the water from spreading and flooding. It wasn‟t too long ago they were dredged. - ____ = the banks of snow were huge. We had to climb over the banks to get into the school. - Gerald = summers were nice. From November 15th to Christmas it was very cold. The Bay would fill in with ice and the groceries in Woody Point would be stocked by boat for the whole winter. We‟d order 8-10 bags of flour, 4-5 boxes of butter or 10 pound wooden tubs of “Solo butter”, a tea chest, and prunes and raisins in bulk. People had sheep, goats, cows and chickens. - Lily = there was no road from Trout River, we came by boat. They put the road through in 1953. - Gerald = I made concrete culverts for the roads in 1953. I cooked for the “High Roads” company. - Gerald = spring break-up happened after March 15th, the weather would change dramatically. - Pansy = I was married on February 10, 1949 and it was so stormy I didn‟t think my husband would be able to get from his house in Glenburnie to my parent‟s house in Curzon Village for the wedding. - Gerald = Dr. Dove had the first snowmobile here in the late 1940‟s. His daughter was also a doctor here. Somebody moved a house every spring. The fishermen built houses on the water, and then as the fishing died out someone else would buy the house and move it. Men would pull the houses by hand; every man in the community would help. It was a get-together. The fish moved out of the Bay when it iced over, but there was some fishing on Stuckless Pond. Whales come in to chase squid in October or November. - Pansy = the squid come in September. - Gerald = we used to have tuna and bigger fish in the Bay. There were about 50 seals last year on the ice in Glenburnie. - Sam = I saw some seals the other day. - Gerald = seals depend on water temperature, and its getting warmer. There‟s less ice and warmer water. - ____ = salt water used to come up the brook. - Sam = there aren‟t many bugs here. Some black flies. - Gerald = the spraying keeps the bugs down, there used to be more bugs. - Bertha = we couldn‟t eat the rabbits the first time they sprayed. - Gerald = moose come and lick the cars for salt.
- List of potential contacts – Luther Simmonds (senior), Pye ___ (senior), Stedman Goosney (senior), John Rober (retired fisherman, senior), Edward Howell (fisherman), Roy Bannister (fisherman), Roy Young (senior), Billy Wilton (retired fisherman), Harold Blanchard, Walter Blanchard, Fred Blanchard, Clyde Burden, Clyde Bilbin, Mancel Halfyard, Douglas Halfyard.
Meeting Notes from audio transcription: Elders tea – Tablelands Senior Residence (From Birchy Head) Go back to when I was a teenager – early teens – you would drive down there to woody point (on a horse) at Christmas – not every year – and of course over the years that‟s deteriorated now – not very often there‟s enough [ice] to get to Woody Point – getting temperatures on the Farenheit scale of 10 to 20 below most winters and that would hang in for 3 weeks to a month – Aunt Ella remembers that quite well – and lots of snow would come with the frosty weather. Started to change around maybe – 25 to 30 years – slow down a bit – now it‟s got to the point where we scarcely any ice at all – Bay might „slob‟ in a bit
One time we used to put our cars on the ice – but I wouldn‟t want to try it today
3:01 There is a deterioration in the winter climate – and it is an extreme one – [Recollection about the school in Glenburnie – 60 children, one teacher, different classes all together; talking about the changes in the medical system – „one doctor, one horse and one medicine – Dr. Templeton in Woody Point; built hospital in Norris Point].
[Discussion about location of hospitals, who the doctors were, lot changes in the medical system]
[Changes in the economic system – in the fishery – comment that things have deteriorated in most respects]
Tide falls farther down and don‟t rise up so far – sometimes you come down the neck and the whole bottom‟s gone out the Bay and that wasn‟t so years ago.
06:52 Description of snow banks 12 feet high along the road. Description of walking with along with the telephone wire as a guide – also walking from Deer Lake to Glenburnie.
08:20 Didn‟t clear it [snow] – you went over it – snow shoes. [Describing snow shoes for horses]
[Describing mail delivery from Deer Lake; used dog teams; closed in snowmobile]
Woody Point was a thriving business in my years
[Working in the woods] – Horses was the big factor in moving, in transportation – would transport food to the camps with horses – would haul wood with horses would drive it to the rivers – dams on the rivers – drive the wood mostly out to Goose Arm. . . Bowater‟s was the big company . . . operating at mill at . . . .Brook summer time you cut the wood, wintertime you‟d haul it and spring you‟d drive it . . . they would build dams . . . on the outlet of the pond back the water up 5, 6, 7 8 feet when the wood was thrown in the brook, they would open up dam and the wood would flow out . . .
12:30 Discussion about sliding, towing sleds up the hill with horses
13:00 Talking about health impacts of the depression – malnutrition, deaths
13:30 Discussion about food supply in depression time – lived on wild game, fish out of the bay and vegetables out of the garden. Most everybody was on one level – everybody was alike.
Everyone had their own garden – potatoes, vegetables, pumpkins
[Garden would go in around] – May or June . . . had fruit trees – the damsens – [what did you put up] – beets, jams, cabbage [sauerkraut]
16:30 I‟ve never seen it like this winter
Sometimes in the 50s I was working [cryil goosney was the operator of the camp] they landed 1800 cords before Christmas – went back after Christmas and couldn‟t find enough snow to grease the road . . . and then never got none thereafter [in the 1950s]
Down the road – Donny ?– got the wood cut – no snow – first time I‟ve ever seen it.
18:00 Talking about the road between Deer Lake and Glenburnie – the „high road‟ – walking from DL to Glenburnie – winter – on snow shoes.
Talking about traveling to the winter camps – usually transported by snow machines; sometimes with a horse; sometimes had to walk when there was no other choice.
[What was summer like here? . . . ] In march month 10 -15 you‟d get extreme heat weather, night time it would be the other way . . . after the 10th. How you‟d know that – you‟d be working in the woods and if you didn‟t get out early you lost the day . . . the ground would get too soft [for the horse to work]
21:14 St. Swiffin? If you have rain on St. Swiffin you have rain for 45 days (in August). In that situation – 100 miles from here it might rain for a month and here it would be fine – doesn‟t subscribe to that.
22:13 Storms?
Up at the bottom. . . right up at the far end of the Bay [saw mill up there] – describing how a schooner was driven up on the beach – Norwest, right up through the Bay – doesn‟t happen here too often – were landlocked here – mountains on all sides – Total wreck – tore the bottom out of it – Burnie Zinck
24:04 (joined by Linda Taylor, lived in Glenburnie) There was a flood one time . . . . used to get a wind up through the straits . . . a water tide up through the straits and wind pushing the opposite and backed the water up here sometimes . .. I lived on the point down from where I am now and I remember the water flopping up under the sills of the house in the fall of the year [50 - 60 years ago] . . . in from normal high tide about 100 to 150 feet . . . the house wouldn‟t be that high [on low ground] – didn‟t use concrete basements in those days - house was on shores under the house – sticks [preserved by salt water] dug down in the ground and the sill would lodge on the sticks – preserved a lot by salt water – and I remember that the water would come up often – [I remember once 18 inches of water in the house, furniture floating around] –
Remember a number of floods – using a dory to bring the children across the road – maybe going back 60-65 years.
27:45 Climate was entirely different in this place – severe winters and extreme heat in the summers – trying to make a bit of hay it would blister you –
Nowadays if you had to make hay now – if you started in early or the middle part of July you might get it [hay drying weather] – too wet
28:04 Used to get waters two ways one time – in summer time you‟d get the tide come in around the house and in the winter time you‟d get the rain – brooks come out – had a foot of water in my house – Glenburnie – so much ice and rain it just rose and rose – on the flats in Glenburnie – I had about that much water (about 2 feet) in my house . . . that come from the brook
29:30 What would really happen - During the winter there would be a tremendous amount of snow drift into the gulch of the brook, by and by you‟d get a quick rain and it would push the snow out the mouth of the brook and plug off and the the water had to go somewhere – the water would strike shoal brook and spread – one of the places that would happen was up in the bottom [where Aunt Ella and Sam lived] – brooks were dredged out a bit [since then].
30:46 Mrs . . . .arrives – chatting with her about her recollections – some comments about snow being deep. 35:52 . . . Shoal Brook – dredging – keeping the water from spreading . . . if you have a quick hard rain got it constantly for 5 or 6 hours . . . snow would push ahead of the water coming down the mountain and create a plug coming onto the flat Brook wasn‟t dredged too long ago Redreged two years ago
When we were children years ago – big snow drifts – years ago –
38:00 Falls would be extreme from the first of November of 15th – it would be extremely cold – ice would form - fishing trawl up by the bay – if you didn‟t get it by the 1st of Dec or the 10th of December you wouldn‟t get it at all – too much ice around
Winter weather set in later part of November, middle of November – it was extreme right on through – might get some break but mostly it was cold right through.
39:00 Talking about stocking up for the winter – bringing in supplies by boat – talking about types of supplies – amounts, costs
40:40 Questions from Raymond about livestock – sheep – lots of sheep around – a real nuisance in the community – cows . . .
41:40 Travel between Woody Point and Trout River – used the boats – There wasn‟t a lot of road – putting the road through in „53
42:50 Making culvert pipe for the Lomond Road in „53
Talking about making roads in the area – working for the work camps
44:00
10 to 15 March you‟d get a lot of hot sun, April, water going everywhere, harsh winters . . .seemed like the weather changed dramatically after the 15th of March.
45:00 Talking about traveling between Glenburnie and Woody Point – 1949
Talking about using snow machines – around the late 40s
Talking about the doctors in the area.
47:00 Moving houses was big business here Moving the houses in the spring – that is when there was the most ice Most houses were built just above high water mark Fishermen built their house on the shoreline – fishing died out – somebody‟d buy the house, move it up to „ the bottom‟. ..
Talking about moving houses – there was a lot of it. . .
Every man that was available would take part – it was a get-together – a social event really – see people you hadn‟t seen for a while
49:00 Not a lot of ice fishing – ice cuts off oxygen – fish would move out of here Trout fishing – not a lot here – a bit on Stuckless Pond (just inside of Lomond)
50:23 Whales – won‟t see too many whales around here until the squid comes in – they chase the squid in – around October or November. Tuna – more of the bigger fish.
Last year – you could count about 50 seals up our way – won‟t be any up here this year – no ice
[One person saw seals the other day] Water temperature has a lot to do with seals coming in the Bay – water is warmer in this area than it has been for a long time - ice conditions is one indication . .. we don‟t get any severe water temperature like we used . .. we used to get drift ice from the north . . .up through the straits and that would come here and cool that water temperature and that would depend on how early it came up and that depend on the Labrador Current and the amount of ice along the shore in Labrador
- Salt water used to come half way up the brook – (down by Curzon Village) –
54:18 Wrapping up . . .
57:00 Bugs here? Pretty good here – not too bad here . . .maybe because of the spraying done by the companies – years ago there used to be flies – they spoiled our rabbits when the sprayed the first time – couldn‟t eat them – spray was gone through them for ever so long – we knew it – they didn‟t need to tell us – we could tell by cooking it . ..
Talking about moose coming out to lick the salt . . . and then burying a dead moose . . .
Thank you for coming. .. .
Public presentation at Birchy Head Recreation Centre ~ 24 people in attendance (Charlie Payne, Susan Galloway, Iona White, Hazel Bingle, Ken Thomas, Wade McKenzie, Zonya McKenzie, Jim Burden, Ida Burden, Tom Sheppard, Doris Sheppard, Hayward Osmond, Eveline Tucker, Arch Tucker, Glynn Anderson, Melissa Blanchard, Jim Bingle, John Gillam, George Anderson, Mary Anderson, Nelson Blanchard, Barb Daniell, Hugh McCormack, Raymond Cusson)
- Tom and Doris Sheppard (The Sheppards Bed & Breakfast, 709-451-7590) = contact for Trout River, can arrange a meeting with seniors there.
- Powerpoint presentation - Map discussion and review - Discussion of impacts and adaptation o Moved houses in winter and summer – slid on ice or floated on water. Younger people in the community don‟t know how to do this! o Hauling wood on ice as late as April o Mild years, have to change where you cut wood o Usually haul wood by snowmobile o Less snow = less water in wells? More forest fires? Concern! o Never used to cut wood on slopes, now people do and it increases risk of landslides o When logging rights in the Park go, people may log more on the hillsides o How do the Park logging rights work? Must be born before 1973? Must live in (or be born in?) Park communities? 1965, 19 years of age = 1st generation, 2nd generation can cut in the Park? o Only 6 or 7 commercial fishers in the community now, fish just aren‟t here anymore o Lots of ice on the ice-fishing ponds, when there is ice! o Road slump between Shoal Brook and Winter House approximately 10 years ago, but not after a storm o Across from Roy Young‟s house is a bad place for road slumps o Coast side of the road is settling all around the Bay o High tide and SW wind = higher tide (seems to get penned up in the Straights) o Low rabbit population this year? o Only one fur-trapper on the Bay (maybe two) o Lots of moose! Over 6,000 in Gros Morne... typical population density is 1 per square kilometre, in the Park the population density is about 4 per square kilometre o Moose impact cut blocks, killing young trees by browsing o Hunting is a draw system, with 1 moose per hunter if drawn o Park is planning a moose cull, not sure how it will be implemented o Some flooding in Shoal Brook in 2002/2003, snow melt and water running across road from the hillsides o Greg Pike‟s house flooded last year (he‟s on the ocean side of the road), also flooded about 30-40 years ago o Bay used to freeze solid, used to drive on the ice to log, pick up fishing nets... o Ferry across the Bay stopped in the mid-1970‟s o Bay didn‟t freeze in 1958(ish), that was the last time it was this mild although it was also mild 3-4 years before 1958 o Some people would like to come back to GBS, but it‟s hard to (jobs, land, houses, family) o Other people will never move back, there‟s nothing/no one to come back for (friends and family are all gone) o Check with Clarice Bursey/Norm Wight re: old roads around the Bay – water side and upper side of existing road and what the terrain was like, where it has changed/been changed o Think about the next steps once the CCA Plan is given to GBS (and other communities in the region) – will other towns want the same analysis? Is there a mechanism for communities to hire planners? Development of municipal/regional plans? Partnership with the Province and the Park?
Tuesday, February 23, 2010 Met with all students at Bonne Bay Academy to discuss project, climate change adaptation and Heritage Fair - Powerpoint presentations and story, discussions about Heritage Fair ideas
Community supper
Wednesday, February 24, 2010 Patricia interview with CBC Cornerbrook re: project
Patricia travels to Norris Point and meeting with Colleen Kennedy of Gros Morne Co-op
Patricia meeting with Bob Hooper at Bonne Bay Marine Station
April 20, 2010 Third Visit to Glenburnie-Birchy Head-Shoal Brook
GBS Climate Change Adaptation Review Committee Meeting
Kim Vokey Glynn Anderson Melissa Anderson Jim Burden Ian Sharpe Myrna Hynes Raymond Cusson
Patricia Manuel Sarah Herring
Major brooks (watersheds) in GBS = Middle Brook, Sellars Brook, Point Brook and Shoal Brook
Marine station indicated that “bio-erosion” (erosion of shoreline by fish, invertebrates, etc) may increase due to warmer water temperatures. Increase of surface water temp of approximately 6 degrees C in summer. Also mean more swimming for residents/tourists?
Not much information available on groundwater (surface, not dug wells). Anecdotal information from community is “good water and plenty of it”. Concern is that water temperatures may mean more evaporation/evapotranspiration which may result in less groundwater (even with increased precipitation)
Less snow pack may also result in less groundwater.
*need to map rockfall slopes – analysis and local knowledge
Erosion – more intense rain doesn‟t infiltrate into groundwater, runs off and creates more erosion (observation from Ian Sharpe)
Cutting on slopes can increase erosion and decrease groundwater recharge (more run off)
Cutting guidelines/restrictions will be a sensitive issue! “It will be hard to tell people where they can and can‟t cut wood” Education on impacts of cutting will be key. *Look into sustainable harvesting models and programs
1.8 km of municipal road in GBS (most in vulnerable locations) Threat of public and private property loss in hazard areas – impact on individuals and municipal tax base
Municipal Plan update, Emergency Plan, ICSP and CC Adaptation Plan must be integrated – moving toward same objectives
Dalhousie planning grads looking to volunteer in GBS, will need a place to stay – potential projects = shoreline mapping, infrastructure inventory and mapping, trail map...
Roadblock for GBS is slow response time of Provincial Municipal Affairs and Environment Departments - response time is typically 4-12 months and sometimes no response is ever given! *raise this issue with Cory Davis (Planning Director) *discuss issue in report
Opportunities “Necessity is the mother of invention” (Melissa) “We take a million dollar view for granted every day”
Multi-use trail would need to include/allow: snowmobiling, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, walking, dog-walking, mountain biking, ATVing... Parks trails crews can assist with knowledge on standards, widths, materials, signage. Etiquette/safety considerations should be included on signage/in brochures to ensure that safe, courteous trail use continues when there are more (non-local) users
Existing snowmobile trails were developed all with volunteer labour! Students may be able to create/map trail plan.
Adaptations Ensure that all plans are integrated.
Education is key!! Kids, parents, through established groups, word of mouth... Need to emphasize connections between impacts (cutting and more rain), between adaptations (recreation trail and secondary emergency access), and between opportunities (quality of life for residents and tourism)
Examples of connections: The trail = tourism, local recreation, emergency access, safer walking route through town... Cutting standards = sustainable long-term harvest, water quality, flood control, erosion control...
Connection between trail and cutting standards = buffer zone around trail
“Get everyone involved in one small part of this plan and before you know it they‟ll be involved in the whole works”
“Give people a reason to get involved” (emphasize the positive!)
Community and Council will have to make the hard decisions: - Where to build - Where to cut wood - Where to dig for gravel - How to manage streams - Where/what to invest in
Cost/benefit analysis needs to be based on an accurate inventory, value to the community and value to individuals.
Economic Development Opportunities: - Trail - Winter recreation - Longer tourism (shoulder) season
Everything will revolve around tourism sooner or later”
Focus on common sense of adaptations: - Development - Buffers - Protection - Investment
Protect the environment, resources, school, infrastructure, quality and way of life for people who live here, not just for the tourists.
Capacity-Building - Student employment - Co-op work - Environmental/climate history (preserve and use climate journals)
[email protected] - Wants to incorporate maps and CC Adaptation Plan info with Discovery Centre CC display - Staff will need orientation/training in June - Intro panel, maps, potential adaptations, comments/feedback, climate journals... - Wants to incorporate school Earth Day projects into CC display
5.3 Environment and Climate Summary
Summary of environment and climate change information for Atlantic Region, Island of Newfoundland, and Bonne Bay - Glenburnie-Birchy Head- Shoal Brook (GBS)
February 7, 2010
Climate change summary – Atlantic Canada
Historical North Atlantic Climate Change (From Dr. Norm Catto, power point presentation)
• Warming ca. 600-1300 ad • Cooling ca. 1350 – 1850 ad [Little Ice Age in Europe] • Subsequent warming to present in general, but . . , • Effects muted in many coastal areas, and • Temperature is not climate!
Modern climate variation. Is it climate change? (From Dr. Norm Catto power point presentation)
• Warming ca. 1920-1955 • Cooling ca. 1955-1975 • Warming ca. 1975-1982 • Cooling ca. 1982-1997 • Warming recently • Increased precipitation • Increased ‘continentality’ [warmer overall, warmer summers, colder winters, increased precipitation offset by increased evapotranspiration in summer with risk of summer water deficit]
Summary conditions, climate trends and predictions (Details in following table, Summary climate and environment data and information for Southwest Newfoundland, Bonne Bay and Glenburnie-Birchy Head-Shoal Brook)
1) Atlantic Canada will be warmer
Mean annual temperatures predicted to increase 3-4oC over the next 100 years Atlantic Canada has warmed 0.3oC from 1948-2005 • Summer shows the greatest increase (+0.8oC), followed by spring (+0.4oC). Marginal for autumn (+0.1oC). Winter has become colder (-1.0oC). • Daily minimum temperatures have increased (+0.3oC), but daily maximum temperature have decreased (-0.8oC).
The 57 year record includes periods of both warmer and colder temperatures. The trend for the past ten years is for temperatures higher than average. There is a trend toward a more ‘continental’ climate regime for the area.
2) Atlantic Canada will be wetter
Precipitation has increased by 10% between 1948 and 2005, but there is large variation between regions.
Generally higher temperatures and more precipitation means . . .
• longer, potentially more productive growing season.
• change in the water cycle affecting surface and ground water, forests, coastal areas (estuaries and wetlands) and ocean environments (including ocean warming, and increased inflow of fresh water from land and melting ice).
• drier summers (even with increased precipitation) because of higher temperatures.
• a shift in plant and animal communities with an increase in temperate region species in boreal ecosystems and boreal species in subarctic ecosystems. There is a risk of more or different pests and plant and animal diseases.
3) Atlantic Canada will be stormier
There will be more storms and increasing storm intensity.
Stronger storms (50 year or 100 year storms) are occurring more frequently and will become more frequent.
4) Atlantic Canada will experience rising sea levels (retreating coastline)
Current prediction for global sea level rise as a result of melting ice caps, ice sheets and glaciers and thermal expansion of the ocean is between 0.18 and 0.59 metres (as predicted by the 3rd report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Global sea level rise is already occurring at the upper end of the range and rate of change is increasing.
Sea levels are rising along the coast of Atlantic Canada regardless of climate change. The earth’s crust is still adjusting to deglaciation and the coast in this area is sinking. The average rate across the region is approximately 20 cm/century but decreases moving from south to north.
Examples of tide gage measured relative sea level rise (climate change + coastal sinking) are:
• Halifax 32 cm/century • Charlottetown 32 cm/century • Port-aux-Basques 33 cm/century • St. Anthony 10 cm/century • Current sea-level rise at Bonne Bay is approx. 20 cm/century.
Predictions are for an increasing rate of sea level rise.
Predicted sea level in 100 years for Bonne Bay is 80 cm. higher than present.
5) Atlantic Canada will experience more and higher storm surges, coastal erosion and flooding
Impacts are already being felt around the region. Storm surge events are increasing and are predicted to increase with more frequent and more intense storms. Susceptible coastlines (softer rock materials and loose till) will erode more quickly than is already occurring. Changes in sea ice (less, thinner or more mobile) will result in more intense winter coastal erosion). Flooding, such as that already occurring, will increase as a combined result of sea level rise and storm surges.
6) Atlantic Canada will experience change in sea ice duration, extent and distribution
Warmer winters and stronger south westerly winds would reduce (or eliminate) sea ice cover south of the Iles de la Madeleine. Simultaneously, stronger southwesterly winds can drive ice in the Gulf to cause thicker, more persistent ice around Anticosti Island, north shore of the Gulf of St. Lawrence and the Northern Peninsula north of St. Paul’s Changes (intensification or prolonged phases) in the NOA (North Atlantic Oscillation will affect ice extent and flow along the northeast coast of Newfoundland and Labrador. [Prolonged phases or intensification could mean longer, milder/drier or longer colder/snowier winters in Newfoundland and Labrador. 2010 was an example of a strong NEGATIVE NAO winter with mild temperatures and low snow fall or precipitation generally].
Summary climate and environment data and information for Southwest Newfoundland, Bonne Bay and Glenburnie-Birchy Head-Shoal Brook
Science Data Expert Comments Sources: ‘Impacts of Climate Change and Dr. Martin Batterson, NL Department of Tourism in Western Newfoundland.’ Natural Resources, St. John’s NL. Paulina Rada. Master of Science Personal Communication. Thesis. Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John’s, 2009. Dr. Norm Catto, Memorial University of (Data records, summaries and climate Newfoundland, St. John’s, NL. trends for Stephenville ST, Corner Personal Communication. Brook CB, Deer Lake DL and Daniel’s Harbour DH Dr. Keith Nicol, Sir Wilfred Grenfell Total record 1934 – 2007; record College, Corner Brook, NL. Personal incomplete for all stations). Communication.
‘Atlantic Canada’. L. Vasseur and N. Dr. Bob Hooper, Norris Point Marine Catto. Chapter 4 in ‘From Impacts to Station, Norris Point, NL. Personal Adaptation. Canada in a Changing Communication. Climate, 2007. D.S. Lemmen, et al. Govt. of Canada, Ottawa, On. 2007.
‘Past and Future Sea Level Change in Newfoundland and Labrador’. M. Batterson and D. Liverman. Current Research. NL Dept. of Nat. Res. Geological Survey Report. 10-1. Pgs. 129-141. 2010.
‘Geology, topography and vegetation, Gros Morne National Park Newfoundland.’ Geological Survey of Canada. A.R. Berger (coordinator), A., Bouchard, A. I.A. Brooks, D.R. Grant, S.G. Hay and R.K Stevens. Miscellaneous Report 54, scale 1:150,000. 1992.
Data provided by Gary Lines, 13 Jan 2010, Environment Canada, personal communication.
Power Point presentation: Dr. Norm Catto ‘Climate Change and Atlantic Canadian Communities’
Power Point presentation: Dr. Don Forbes ‘Coastal Climate Change and Adaptation Challenges in Atlantic Canada’. Presentation Marshlands Inn, Sackville, NB 17.10.2009 Local Knowledge In discussion with community members, including meetings with the Southside Fire Department (SSFD), GBS Mayor and Councilors, community elders (Elders Lunch), NL Department of Transportation and Works staff (DOTW), Parks Canada staff (PC) TEMPERATURE Mean Annual Temperature (MAT) Expert Comments pattern MAT for: ST 4.4oC, CB 5.0 oC, DL 4.2 oC, DH 3.2 oC General trends (some contradictory years at single stations, but trends prevail): 1934-50 – alternating colder-close to norm 1951-56 – warmer than norm 1957-61 – very strong unsettled alternating warmer-colder 1962-71 – warmer 1972-77 – colder 1978-88 – close to norm 1989-95 – colder 1996-07 - warmer Generally – getting warmer Atlantic Canada overall +0.3 oC increase in mean annual temp since 1948, lesser rate of increase than in rest of eastern NA but past 10 years is comparable to rest of eastern NA (so warming is intensifying in Atlantic Canada). General increase in mean annual temperature, significant for CB & DL, modest for DH & ST. Especially. prevalent for the period 1998 to 2007. Most pronounced in summer, spring, colder winters in DH & ST Overall warming is simultaneous with increased variability of more ‘colder than normal’ and ‘warmer than normal’ years AND more ‘colder than normal’ than ‘warmer than normal’ years
Temperature seasonal pattern Expert Comments Summary Winter Normal means: ST -4.9 oC, CB -5.1 oC, DL -6.4 oC, DH -6.5 oC (Table 3.2, Pg 53) Trends: variable pattern - colder winters in DH&ST, warmer in DL & CB. Increase/decrease is significant for all stations
Spring/Summer/Fall Normal means: (ST,CB,DL,CH) 2.0, 2.2, 1.4, 0.3 / 14.7, 15.5, 15, 13 / 7.5, 7.4, 11.5, 6.2 (Table 3.3, Pg 58; Table 3.4 Pg. 62; Table 3.5, Pg. 66 Trends: getting warmer in all three seasons at all locations, positive trend is significant at all locations, and especially in CB& DL Local Knowledge “-30 was common but we don’t get those cold temperatures now; it’s not as cold as it used to be” (FD).
Temperature daily mean max and Expert Comments min pattern Increase in annual daily mean maximum since 1934 averaged over all stations. 1999-2007 ‘dominantly warm[er]’ than the mean and pattern holds for all seasons. Increase in annual daily mean minimum averaged over all stations and pattern holds for all seasons, BUT, local decrease at DH and slight decrease at ST.
Data from Gary Lines, EC, Jan 13, 2010 – change predictions for 2020, 2050, 2080 against climate norm 1961- 90 DEER LAKE Mean Max increase from 8.6 to 8.7, 9.6811.65 Mean Min increase from -0.6 to 0.88, 1.86, 3.5 Predicts growing season length increase from ??? to 159 (’20), 178 (’50), 194 (’80) days
PRECIPITATION Total Annual Precipitation pattern Expert Comments Increasing precipitation for all locations Overall increase in precipitation. – in order of most to least substantial More summer dry periods. increase: ST, DL, CB, DH Yes, rain patterns are changing. More Only 6 ‘dryer than normal’ years after rain events following dry periods 1976 instead of heavy, persistent drizzle. Before 1970 ‘relatively dry’, after 1970, (N. Catto) generally wet Table 4.1, Pg. 87
Local Knowledge
SSFD “Rain patterns’ve changed” More rain; harder rain; heavier rain “It really rains now where it never used to. It was drizzle.” Less drizzle; less fog
Less lightening (‘dry lightening’) (Mayor/Councilors)
“Rainfall is more intense, but shorter duration” (DOTW)
Elders Lunch “It rains harder now than when we were growing up. When you get a rainy day them times, you’d get drizzle” “This bay and this coast is getting more fog than it used to. Noticed it over the last 10 years. Older people in Norris Point also say that.” Total Seasonal Precipitation Expert Comments seasonal pattern Winter General increase over the whole record Rain on snow events increasing in but with substantial variability – ‘more Humber Arm area (N. Catto) anomalous than normal’ years. Generally drier (less than normal precip.) from 2001 on in ST, CB, DH, but not DL. Spring Marked increase in spring rainfall (N. Wetter, esp. DL, followed by ST, CB, Catto) DH
Summer wetter since 1975, esp ST, followed by CB, DL, DH Fall Wetter, greatest change for DT, followed by DL, DH, DL Pattern is highly variable for ST and CB for entire record and for DH and DL since ‘70
Data supplied by Gary Lines Jan 13, 2010 – change predictions for 2020, 2050, 2080 against climate norm for 1961-90 Slight decrease in winter precipitation (- 1.4 (’20), -2.5 (’50), -3.0 (’80) percent) Increases for all other seasons, with greatest increases in autumn and summer (ranging 16 to 24 percent change)
Winter Snowfall Note Data missing for DH after 1996. Decrease in snowfall (N. Catto) Trend is average snowfall increase over entire record (since 1934) at all Slopes between 30 and 45 degrees are locations Winters ’61 onward more avalanche prone’ greater than 45 snowy generally but with marked degree slopes are self-regulating (snow variability year to year. won’t accumulate) 1977-95 snowiest period in record; ‘95 (K. Nicol) on drier (but not as dry as before ’61), except for DL (more snow after 1999). Rain on snow events are common in western Newfoundland. (K. Nicol, N. Catto) Extra-winter Snowfall Variable data record – only DL has ’34 Often get thaw in January and again to ‘06 around mid-February, more rain than All locations have missing data years snow in March.(K. Nicol)
DL shows DECREASING and DH (’48- Snow pack is quite stable; unclear as ‘96) SLIGHTLY DECREASING extra- to what actually causes local winter snow as percent total snow avalanches, but could be that snow (most falls in winter Dec, Jan, Feb). pack is “running on some kind of rain CB, ST no discernible pattern (no crust.” (K. Nicol) change) Most avalanches occur on easterly facing slopes (NE E SE); snow builds up, develops an overhang than eventually fails. (K. Nicol)
Most avalanche activity is in March – warm day-time temperatures causes heating of snow pack, surface melting – infiltrating the snow pack; snow looses its strength around 0o – so warming destabilizes the pack, makes it failure prone. (K. Nicol)
In Bonne Bay, Trout R. bowl is a known avalanche environment. (K. Nicol)
Main part of Gros Morne Park has snowmobile corridors – is an area of regular avalanches in the spring; Park identifies the area as an avalanche zone, esp. in the spring. (K. Nicol) Local Knowledge
Less snow- Not as many heavy snow storms; “Used to have mountains of snow but not any more”. (Mayor/Councilors)
SSFD “35 years ago, nothing to get 10-12 ft. of snow.” 32 years ago – Grind Stone Pond – 13 feet of snow” “Jan 2009 lots of snow.” “Last winter was a mild winter” “Animals more able to move about, weaker animals are also surviving.”
DOTW Snowfalls used to be of long duration; mid-90s storms started to change – shorter, less intense Most recently storms seem to be lasting 12-14 hours and then weather moves on. “Over the last 7-9 years are getting multiple mild periods throughout the winter maintenance season (mid Oct-late May).
Elders’ Lunch 19.02.10 “Back in the early ‘60s teaming the horses – hauling pulp wood with Bowaters. Saw storms where we had to get the horses to the barn it was that stormy – also saw seabirds after the storm, 10-12 miles inland, they got blown inland; seen horses bleed though the nose – it was that frosty. In them days (early 60s, on the Goose Arm Road – between Bonne Bay and Deer Lake) – it was really stormy.”
“Goose Arm is really hilly – we would get – most winter – most winter the snow was level with the landings of wood (about 6 or 8 feet – landings piled 6 feet high and snow level with the landings).”
(When did snowfall start?) “We would be in there before Christmas hauling pulp wood (would get home just before Christmas and Cyril Goosney would call to haul wood). Snow would be 3 ft deep – need at least 3 feet of snow (to haul wood). Because Goose Arm is hilly so need 3 feet of snow – if you didn’t have enough snow to support your ‘drugs’ (with a chord and half on the flat), if you didn’t have enough snow . . . .”
Season last until March, 5 to 10 thousand chord or wood. April it would melt. Wood was hauled to pond or stream and once snow was gone we would drive to the ocean.
(Summary: wood-hauling season was from late December to March).
Now – wood isn’t hauled with horses. “If we got a winter like this in the 60s Bowaters would not have gotten the wood of the woods – too dangerous for the houses.”
(As a pattern . . . have you seen changes in the winter weather?) ‘Yes – very much. Big time.” “We don’t have such cold winters. We have mild winters. We don’t have the storms.”
(How long ago did this pattern change – how long ago was it that people could skate on the Bay) – “. . . at least 10-15 years ago.” (Have any kids in the community experienced it [skating on the bay]?) – “. . . our kids experienced it. My children are involved with hockey.” (Did you skate on the Bay?)[to a younger woman at a nearby table] – “We used skate down by Jackson’s – I was 10 or 11 - in the ‘80s – ice still formed all the way up to Woody Point.”
Travel with cars, snowmobiles, horses, dogs, walk – people moved houses on the ice –
No road around the arm until ‘66, finished in ‘67 – so summer time was the ferry in the winter used the ice. Ferry operator used to use a power saw to free the ferry from ice . . .
(Where does the ice front normally form now?)– “. . . still freezes up to Shoal Brook or Winter House Brook – not to Woody Point anymore – maybe to Bailey’s Point.”
Snow slides – Avalanches Rex has seen a couple, “well back in the country, out by Goose Arm.”
GROUND FROST N/D Expert Comments
Local Knowledge
“Ground frost pattern is changing. Grave digging – used to be solid ice in the ground to 6 inches, now – last 10 years – no problem digging out at all. Seems to be a blanket of snow on it before it freezes.” (SSFD)
Last 6-7 winters, ground frost is very limited (DOTW).
SEA SURFACE TEMPERATURES – BONNE BAY Expert Comments Summer sea surface temperatures in Warmer water means increased activity Bonne Bay have increased from 17-18 of bio-erosion fauna – specifically oC to 23-23 oC Zirphaea which is a burrowing clam that colonizes and excavates into soft rock cliffs, esp. limestone and also mudstones. The activity undercuts the cliff, leading to slumping and collapse and thus hastens erosion. The implication is that bio-erosion along soft cliffs in Bonne Bay (and elsewhere) will increase with rising sea surface temperatures. (B. Hooper)
Warmer water generally means a change in the relative proportion of arctic and temperate benthic species, particularly those in the tidal zone. (B. Hooper)
Opportunistic Bryozoan, such as the invasive Membranipo, are now flourishing in the warmer water. The organism is a temperate species of marine bryozoan now proliferating in the Bay and smothering native kelp beds. Range is moving northward. (B. Hooper)
SEA ICE – BONNE BAY Northern Gulf of St. Lawrence – Expert Comments increasing southwesterly winds could If you have less ice in the winter then drive ice in the Gulf of St. Lawrence there is more susceptibility to ice resulting in more persistent ice around shove. (N. Catto) Anticosti Island and the Northern Peninsula Newfoundland, north of St. Less ice or thinner ice means higher Paul. susceptibility to ice shove (ice can Positive North Atlantic Oscillation break up and be moved about more conditions are dominated by easily). (N. Catto) northeasterly winds which would allow ice front to move southward. Ice shove can block the streams. (N. (Vasseur and Catto, 2007 report) Catto)
Local Knowledge
SSFD The Bay “2008 winter it froze up to Shoal Brook. 2009 we’re able to go over [cross the Bay] at Winter House. 30 years ago . . .” 13 years Ian’s been here, can only drive on the ice 2 years. “Bay doesn’t freeze up like it used to. Bay froze up last year but it doesn’t last.” “Was nice to have the shortcut [to Rocky Harbour/Norris Point]. “Hospital trips went on the ice. Mail went on the ice. Woody Point was the main distribution centre.”
PC People scheduled medical/dental appointments (in Norris Point) for winter for easier travel. People used to drive their vehicles across the Bay. “Bay hasn’t iced up in about 6 years.”
Elders Lunch “60 years ago, come out of school for Christmas Holiday – where I live – on the big hill, go down on the sled and out onto the ice.” Skating on the ice (on the Bay).
(How far did the ice go before?) “Right up to Woody Point. My aunt used to skate right up to Lomond. Used to drive a car on it. Times when you could go to Daniels Harbour if you really had to. Years ago, you skate up to the Humber and back.”
Used to get ice shoving in from the strait – but not very often. There was bar outside from one point to the other that freeze over – kept drift ice out.
Bay ice would 2 or 3 feet deep. It was a different kink of ice. With the skates we had then (stock skates) the ice seemed harder then. If you got a rain – the ice was hard enough (ice was harder then) you could still skate on it while it rained. Now the ice is softer (couldn’t skate on it now if it rained).
LAKE ICE ND Expert Comments Local Knowledge
“Ice fishing on ponds – holes were always 6 feet deep; Deer Lake – fishing in shacks on Christmas Eve. Can’t do that now.” (SSFD)
WIND Expert Comments Prevailing winds southerly to westerly. Strongest winds are from the Spring winds more south and southwest so bay is relatively safe from southeast. storm surges, but will get Summer winds more southwest. northeasterlies, esp. in winter. No overall trend in wind speed change Northeasterlies will cause storm surges for 1980-2007. ice shove against the shore with a 1955-1980 – increase in wind gust northerly (northwest, north and speed for ST. Slight decrease for DL northeast) exposure. Topography funnels wind through the area. (N. Catto) Local Knowledge
SSFD “Winds are stronger – seem to be stronger than they used to be. Like, when it blows its like when it rains – so much more of it.” “Easterlies – strong winds – lift the wind right out of the water.” “Southeast wind is a Wreckhouse wind.” “These winds are coming more intense.” “November 11 years ago – had a truck picked up and put the tractor trailer right out on the water.”
Elders Lunch “October 2008 – wild winds – roof lifting winds.” Winds from the east – very little snow – our winds when they come from an easterly flow we get very little snow – north east, east – easterly brings very little precipitation. (How common are northeasterly?) Very common. Can get north easterlies any time of year. “We’ve been on an easterly flow – you aren’t going to get any snow here – no amount anyway.” “Just the way the winds are this year – because of the wind this year – Wiltondale is getting lots of snow – Wiltondale – Corner Brook – Deer Lake will get snow but not here”
“Northerly will come in here – no place on this Bay will be protected.”
Summer? “I notice more winds. Seem to be little cooler than they used to be (but then I’m getting a little older so they might not be cooler).”
Rex, Jim “Not much of a change in the summer time. George – “back to when we were kids or our 20 or 30s – we didn’t get as much wind.” Jim agrees Ruby – “when I was growing up it was really nice – now its windy.”
[Generally agreement that there is more fog and that is coming with northeast wind]. ”And we seem to be getting a lot more northeasterly wind.” Jim agrees – “when we grew up we didn’t get as much easterly wind”
George – “seems to be just as much warmth in the northerly winds as with the southerly winds – noticing it with the summer – coming in off the Gulf.”
HYDROLOGY Expert Comments ND Streams have small watersheds. Could flood easily with heavy precipitation/rapid snow melt/rain on snow events and rain running over frozen ground. (N. Catto)
Ice shove dams mouth of streams, leads to flooding. (N. Catto)
Shallow, dug wells. Generally high water tables. Most wells are practically surface water supply systems. (N. Catto)
Some stress on summer water supply due to increasing user demand (N. Catto) Local Knowledge PC Narrow steep gradient, straight streams Brooks flood often, jam with debris SSFD 50 – 100 mm rainfall and ponds and rivers overfill, Boulders along with water into the stream. Wells - good quantity and quality of water.
SEA LEVEL RISE Atlantic Region Expert Comment Bonne Bay is in coastal zone classified Tide gage Port-aux-Basques – 33 as medium sensitivity to global sea cm/century level rise. Tide gage St. Anthony 10 cm/cent Borderline Zones 2 (80-100 cm Extrapolate to Bonne Bay 20 cm/cent increase) and Zone 3 (70 – 90 cm) (M. Batterson e-mail 13 Jan/10) – prediction areas – projecting 80 cm relative SLR by 2099. Recommended selection for Bonne Flood susceptibility in Humber Arm is a Bay is Zone 3 at 30 cm above 1990 good resource for this project. levels by 2049. 80 cm by 2099 (Batterson and Liverman 2010). Local Knowledge
“Tides seem to be getting higher”(SSFD). “In Glenburnie, not many houses are very far above high tide.” (SSFD)
Elders Lunch “We don’t get very big waves in here – not enough space in here to build up – we’re landlocked twice” “We’ve had a lot of high tides – we get more high tides now than we used to.” “Back a number years ago, only high tides we get were in the spring now we ‘em every - all seasons.” “Tides are higher than usual – comes in over the land more – in Silverton – right in up to the houses – or [measured against the warves] – up to the top of the warves or just below. We had a lot of high tides this fall.” “High tide up here in Glenburnie – in here all around. Normal high tide just goes to the break water.”
GEOLOGY and TERRAIN Situated on the flanks of the Marine clays are more stable than Tablelands. brackish clay deposits but will become Coastal environment is predominantly less stable – prone to slipping- if marine terraces atop weathered saturated. (N. Catto) Paleozoic bedrock (Melange). Deltas at river mouths. Slopes over-steepened beyond 30 o Surficial material is marine clays and will fail. Failure will occur on shallower gravels, glacial gravels and river slopes in wet material, which is sediments in delta fans. One small salt frequently the condition in NL and marsh at head of South Arm. might become more frequent with Glaciation has over-steepened increased precipitation. (N. Catto) bedrock slopes making them susceptible to failure. Unconsolidated materials are prone to slope failure when undercut. Vegetation removal also decreases stability of steep slopes in loose materials – erosion, slumping. Natural angle of repose for loose till materials in this area (the marine gravels) is 30o, less if wet.
Local Knowledge Elders Lunch Landslides “Nothing significant – maybe some small ones, a few out at Woody Point to the head of the Bay, no big ones.” “One came down by Bailey Point and out through the gulches”
Snow slides – Rex has seen a couple, “well back in the country, out by Goose Arm.”
5.4 Presentations
February 2010
Community Presentation School Presentations: Kindergarten – Grade 3 Grades 4-6 Grades 7-9 Grades 10-12
June 2010 Community Presentation
Adapting to Climate Change in Glenburnie - Birchy Head - Shoal Brook
February 2010 Who are we?
Patricia Manuel and Sarah Herring Planners in Halifax, NS and Saint John, NB What is this project about?
Helping communities adapt to climate change (4 in Atlantic Canada and 5 in Nunavut)
Using scientific predictions to safeguard and improve our communities
Partnership between Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) and the Canadian Institute of Planners (CIP) What are the steps in this project?
1. Learning about your community and climate change for the local region 2. Bringing the information back to you and using it in a plan to prepare for climate change 3. Developing a draft plan for adapting to climate change 4. Completing the Climate Change Adaptation Plan for Glenburnie – Birchy Head – Shoal Brook What is climate?
Average weather over a long period of time “Climate is what you expect, weather is what you get!” What is climate change?
Long-term change in average weather patterns, from both natural and human causes Why do we need to adapt?
The climate has changed in the past, but now it’s happening at a much faster rate The changes could impact our communities, our jobs, our families… our whole lives! Even if we all stopped contributing to climate change right now, the changes have already started and will continue What is climate change adaptation?
Dictionary says adaptation is: “Change in behavior of a person or group in response to new or modified surroundings”
Climate change adaptation is: Planning ahead and preparing to reduce impacts from changes in climate
Making “no regret” and “win/win” decisions for the future of your community! What could happen here?
Climate scientists predict that this region will get Warmer, Wetter & Stormier
They also predict this region will have:
Higher sea levels
More and higher storm surges
More frequent storms
Changes in sea ice and ocean temperature Here’s what you told us…
The weather in GBS is already changing!
Less ice on the Bay
Less snow and ice
Harder rain and less drizzle
Less ground frost
Stronger wind
Higher tides How could this affect you?
Your home? Warmer weather = cheaper heating? Your health?
Your family? More rain = Your job? landslides? Your food? flooding? Less ice = Your travel? no ice fishing? Your recreation? no skating? Your culture? How can you adapt?
Change your lifestyle? Change how you build your community? Change where you build your houses? Change how you build your roads and bridges? Change where you harvest wood? Do you need adaptation partners? What are your priorities? Community Strengths!
“This community will help anyone, anytime!” Heavy equipment available Fire department and emergency plan Local school, library, community centre, churches Good water supply Cooperation with the Park and other communities Local knowledge Self-sufficiency! Community Changes
Seasonal and out-of-town employment Big seasonal changes in population More people “from away” Not many new babies, shrinking population Hard for seniors to stay at home Rising housing costs Logging rights Who we talked to in November
Thanks to everyone who met with us in November!
Raymond Cusson Susan Galloway Jeff Anderson Scott Taylor Peter Deering Ken Kennedy Boyd Reid Dwayne Kim Vokey Kris Oravec Margaret King Steven Buffet Myrna Hynes Betty Simms Marilyn Wight Jim Burden Ian Sharpe Bill Coates Tony Howell And thanks to everyone who met with us earlier this week! Thanks for Talking to Us! We’d love to talk to more people… the more information and ideas we get, the better!
Questions?? Climate Change & YOU!
Bonne Bay Academy February 2010 K - 3 Hello!
Patricia from Halifax, Nova Scotia Sarah from Saint John, New Brunswick
We’re here to help your community write a Climate Change Adaptation Plan Weather
Weather is what’s happening outside right now…
What is the weather today? What was it like yesterday? Climate
Climate is the total weather over a long time Climate and weather are created by: Climate Change
The earth’s climate has changed in the past, but now it’s happening faster than ever! Climate Change & You
Have you heard people talking about climate change?
How would these things change your life?
Skating? Sledding?
Walking to school?
Playing outside?
Going to your friend’s house? Adaptation
Adaptation is when you do something different because something around you has changed… Your Heritage Fair
Climate is an important part of our heritage and our future! For your heritage project, why don’t you talk to your grandparents and your parents about how the climate used to be? Can they tell you any funny or awesome stories about the climate? Do you have any awesome stories? Thank you!
Thanks for talking to us today!
We’re excited to see your Heritage Fair projects and we’d like to tell your stories in the Climate Change Adaptation Plan for your community! Climate Change Adaptation & YOU!
Bonne Bay Academy February 2010 4-6 Hello!
Patricia from Halifax, Nova Scotia Sarah from Saint John, New Brunswick
We’re here to help your community write a Climate Change Adaptation Plan Weather & Climate
Weather is what’s happening outside right now Climate is the average weather in a place over a long period of time
How would you describe the climate in your community? Climate Change
Climate Change is a change in the average weather in a place Climate Change is caused by natural and man- made changes
What have you heard about Climate Change? Climate Change - right here!
Scientists predict that this region will get warmer, wetter and stormier They also predict that the weather will get MORE EXTREME and WEIRD! Extreme Weather
Extreme weather in Newfoundland
How does climate impact your life? Climate Change Adaptation
Adaptation is when you do something different because something around you has changed…
How could you adapt to more extreme weather and climate change?
This winter is an example of extreme weather!! Your Heritage Fair
Climate is an important part of our heritage and our future!
For your Heritage Fair project, why don’t you look at examples of extreme weather in Newfoundland how they affect people? Can your grandparents tell you about extreme weather that happened here? How did they cope with it? Thank you!
Thanks for talking to us today!
We’re excited to see your Heritage Fair projects and we’d like to include your projects in the Climate Change Adaptation Plan for your community! Bonne Bay Academy February 2010 7-9 Patricia from Halifax, Nova Scotia Sarah from Saint John, New Brunswick
We’re here to help your community write a Climate Change Adaptation Plan
The earth’s climate has changed in the past, but now it’s happening faster than ever!
Why is this? Can you explain how we contribute to climate change? How we can mitigate our impacts? Scientists predict that this region will get Warmer, Wetter and Stormier They also predict this region will experience:
Higher sea levels
More and higher storm surges
More frequent storms
Warmer ocean temperatures
Less sea ice Have you noticed any of these changes already happening here? Adaptation is “Change in behavior of a person or group in response to new or modified surroundings”
Planning for climate change and adaptation will reduce potential negative impacts and take advantage of positive impacts for our communities Climate is an important part of our heritage and our future! Heritage Fair topic ideas:
How has climate shaped your culture?
How could climate change impact your culture?
Are there any traditional adaptations that could be used again today?
What elements of culture do you think have been lost? How could you revive them? Thanks for talking to us today!
We’re looking forward to seeing your Heritage Fair and we’d like to include your projects in the Climate Change Adaptation Plan for your community!
Any questions?? Climate Change Adaptation & YOU!
Bonne Bay Academy February 2010 10-12 Hello!
Patricia from Halifax, Nova Scotia Sarah from Saint John, New Brunswick
We’re here to help your community write a Climate Change Adaptation Plan Weather & Climate Climate Change Climate Change
The earth’s climate has changed in the past, but now it’s happening faster than ever! Climate Change Predictions
Scientists predict that this region will get Warmer, Wetter and Stormier They also predict this region will experience:
Higher sea levels
More and higher storm surges
More frequent storms
Warmer ocean temperatures
Less sea ice Climate Change Predictions
Have you noticed any of these changes already happening here?
How could these changes impact your community? Your natural environment? Climate Change Adaptation
Adaptation is “Change in behavior of a person or group in response to new or modified surroundings”
Planning for climate change and adaptation will reduce potential negative impacts and take advantage of positive impacts for our communities and the natural environment Your Heritage Fair
Climate is an important part of our cultural and natural heritage and our future! Your Heritage Fair
Heritage Fair topic ideas:
How has climate influenced the natural environment here?
Have the community elders noticed a change in the natural environment? In the tree species? The animal and fish species?
How are we changing our natural environment? Are we making it more vulnerable to climate change? Thank you!
Thanks for talking to us today!
We’re looking forward to seeing your Heritage Fair and we’d like to include your projects in the Climate Change Adaptation Plan for your community!
Any questions?? Adapting to Climate Change in Glenburnie - Birchy Head - Shoal Brook
May / June 2010 Who are we?
Patricia Manuel and Sarah Herring Planners in Halifax, NS and Saint John, NB What is this project about?
Partnership between Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) and the Canadian Institute of Planners (CIP)
Helping small communities adapt to climate change
Using scientific predictions and local knowledge and experience to safeguard and improve our communities What are the steps in this project?
November 2009 - Learning about your community and climate change for the local region
February 2010 - Bringing the information back to you and using it in a plan to prepare for climate change
April 2010 - Developing a draft plan for adapting to climate change
May/June 2010 - Reviewing and completing the Climate Change Adaptation Plan for Glenburnie – Birchy Head – Shoal Brook What is climate?
Average weather over a long period of time “Climate is what you expect, weather is what you get!” What is climate change?
Long-term change in average weather patterns, from both natural and human causes What is climate change adaptation?
Measures taken in response to actual or expected changes in climate
Involves assessing the possible impacts on our social, environmental and physical environments
Making “no regret” and “win/win” decisions for the future of your community! Why do we need to adapt?
The climate has changed in the past, but now it’s happening at a much faster rate The changes could impact our communities, our jobs, our families… our whole lives! Even if we all stopped contributing to climate change right now, the changes have already started and will continue What could happen here?
Climate scientists predict that this region will get Warmer, Wetter & Stormier They also predict this region will have:
Higher sea levels
More and higher storm surges
More frequent storms
Changes in sea ice and ocean temperature Many of the changes you’ve already noticed confirm these predictions! Impacts, Challenges & Opportunities
Coastal flooding and erosion Landslides, slope failure Avalanches Groundwater & stream issues Road safety issues Changing community traditions Infrastructure damage Ecosystem changes Longer tourism season Longer growing season Recommended Adaptations
Inventory
Natural features and community infrastructure Interpret
Hazard prone and sensitive areas
Infrastructure and land uses at risk
“Safe” areas for development Protect, redevelop or move infrastructure Protect environmental features and natural processes Recommended Adaptations
Pursue sustainable economic development opportunities Make sustainable development decisions Protect and develop important community traditions:
Sustainable wood harvesting
Food production
Environment-based recreation Recommended Adaptations
Educate decision-makers and community members, encourage discussion Integrate with other Plans Develop cooperative regional responses Take advantage of partnerships and funding opportunities Plan for Action!
Priorities? Leaders? Participants? Partners? Resources?
Plan – Prepare - Partner - Take Action! Thank you! Thank you to everyone who’s been involved in this project… the success of your Climate Change Adaptation Plan depends on your ideas, involvement and enthusiasm! 6. Sources Cited
A Dictionary of Biology. 2004. www.encyclopedia.com
About.com: Geography. Köppen Climate Classification Chart. http://geography.about.com/library/weekly/aa011700b.htm
Agriculture and Agri-Foods Canada. Plant Hardiness Zones in Canada. http://sis.agr.gc.ca/cansis/nsdb/climate/hardiness/intro.html
Allaby, Ailsa and Michael Allaby. A Dictionary of Earth Sciences. 1999. www.encyclopedia.com
Batterson, M. And D. Liverman. “Past and Future Sea Level Change in Newfoundland and Labrador: Guidelines for Policy and Planning”. Current Research (2010) Newfoundland and Labrador Department of Natural Resources Geological Survey, Report 10-01. Pages 129-141. 2010.
Berger, A.R. et al. "Geology, topography and vegetation, Gros Morne National Park Newfoundland”. Geological Survey of Canada, Miscellaneous Report 54, scale 1:150,000. 1992.
Bonne Bay Marine Station. Bonne Bay Marine Station Research: Marine Ecology. www.bonnebay.mun.ca/marine_ecology.htm
Canadian Cancer Society. Healthy Choices, Healthy Future Awards. www.cancer.ca/Newfoundland-Labrador/Prevention/Eat%20well/NF- Healthy%20Choices%20Healthy%20Future/Healthy%20Choices%20%20Healthy %20Future%20Award.aspx?sc_lang=en
Canadian National Institute of Planners. Mainstreaming Climate Change Tools for the Professional Planning Community: A CIP Project funded by Natural Resources Canada, Climate Change Impacts and Adaptation Program. March 2009 - March 2011.
Communities in Bloom, 2006 Provincial Participants. www.communitiesinbloom.ca/
“Climatic Regions (Köppen)”. The Atlas of Canada. 2003-06-09. http://atlas.nrcan.gc.ca/site/english/maps/archives/3rdedition/environment/climate /030.
Discussions with Bonne Bay Academy Principal Margaret King and Vice-Principal Steven Buffet.
Discussions with Dr. Bob Hooper, Director Bonne Bay Marine Station, Norris Point, NL. February 24, 2010.
Discussions with various members of the GBS community.
Geological Survey of Canada. Volcanoes of Canada: Tectonic Environments. http://gsc.nrcan.gc.ca/volcanoes/tecenv_e.php
Government of Canada. Climate Change 101: Canada’s Action on Climate Change. www.climatechange.gc.ca
Government of Canada, edited by Lemmen, D.S. et al. From Impacts to Adaptation: Canada in a Changing Climate. Ottawa, ON.
Government of Newfoundland and Labrador. Community Accounts for Glenburnie- Birchy Head and Woody Point (including Shoal Brook). www.communityaccounts.ca
Government of Newfoundland and Labrador. Urban and Rural Planning Act, 2000, S.N.L. 2000, c. U-8.
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WARMING OF THE CLIMATE SYSTEM IS UNEQUIVOCAL, AS IS NOW EVIDENT FROM OBSERVATIONS OF INCREASES IN GLOBAL AVERAGE AIR AND OCEAN TEMPERATURES, WIDESPREAD MELTING OF SNOW AND ICE, AND RISING GLOBAL AVERAGE SEA LEVEL.
IPPC Fourth Assessment Report