Planning for Climate Change in Coastal Regions of Tantramar, New Brunswick: Risks and Recommendations
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Planning for Climate Change in Coastal Regions of Tantramar, New Brunswick: Risks and Recommendations Sabrina Hood Dalhousie University March, 2008 Acknowledgements I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of the people that have helped this project come together. I would first like to thank Natural Resources Canada and the Canadian Institute of Planners for providing the funding without which this project would not have been possible. I would also like to thank my advisor, Amber Nicol, for the support and guidance she provided throughout this project. Additional feedback and information provided by the staff of the Tantramar Planning District Commission, Dr. Michael Fox from Mount Allison University, and Paul Jordan, Program Coordinator of the New Brunswick Coastal Areas Protection Program, provided direction for this study. TABLE OF CONTENTS PART 1 – INTRODUCTION...................................................................... 1 1.1 RESEARCH FOCUS...................................................................................... 2 1.2 STUDY AREA................................................................................................. 2 1.3 PLANNING DISTRICTS IN NEW BRUNSWICK.................................... 4 1.4 METHOD........................................................................................................ 5 1.5 LIMITATIONS............................................................................................... 6 PART 2 – BACKGROUND......................................................................... 7 2.1 ENVIRONMENTAL PLANNING AND NATURAL HAZARD MITIGATION....................................................................................................... 7 2.2 RURAL AND SMALL TOWN PROGRAMME: ADAPTATIVE CAPACITY........................................................................................................... 8 2.3 FEDERAL INITIATIVES........................................................................... 10 PART 3 – LAND USE AND ENVIRONMENTAL INVENTORY AND ANALYSIS.................................................................................................. 12 3.1 HISTORY...................................................................................................... 12 3.2 BUILT ENVIRONMENT AND LAND USES........................................... 12 3.3 NATURAL ENVIRONMENT..................................................................... 14 3.4 ANALYSIS.................................................................................................... 24 3.5 DISCUSSION................................................................................................ 26 PART 4 – POLICY INVENTORY AND ANALYSIS............................ 28 4.1 INTRODUCTION........................................................................................ 28 4.2 MUNICIPAL POLICY FRAMEWORK................................................... 28 4.3 PROVINCIAL POLICY FRAMEWORK................................................. 31 4.4 ANALYSIS.................................................................................................... 34 4.5 DISCUSSION................................................................................................ 36 PART 5 – CASE STUDY: LESSONS AND ANALYSIS........................ 37 5.1 TRURO MUNICIPAL PLANNING STRATEGY.................................... 37 5.2 MUNICIPALITY OF THE COUNTY OF KINGS MUNICIPAL PLANNING STRATEGY.................................................................................. 39 5.3 THE NETHERLANDS................................................................................. 40 5.4 CASE ANALYSIS......................................................................................... 42 5.5 CASE DISCUSSION.................................................................................... 42 PART 6 – RECOMMENDATIONS......................................................... 45 BIBLIOGRAPHY........................................................................................................... 47 LIST OF FIGURES FIGURE 1: STUDY AREA – LOCATION WITHIN NEW BRUNSWICK.............. 3 FIGURE 2: STUDY AREA BASE MAP........................................................................ 4 FIGURE 3: BAY OF FUNDY........................................................................................ 13 FIGURE 4: TYPICAL DYKE....................................................................................... 17 FIGURE 5: EXTENT OF FLOODING AT THE HEAD OF THE BAY OF FUNDY DURING THE SAXBY GALE...................................................................................... 18 FIGURE 6: FLOOD RISK SYNTHESIS MAP........................................................... 25 FIGURE 7: EROSION RISK SYNTHESIS MAP....................................................... 26 FIGURE 8: COASTAL ZONES.................................................................................... 33 LIST OF TABLES TABLE 1: COASTAL ENVIRONMENT OF CHIGNECTO BAY.......................... 15 TABLE 2: OVERVIEW OF EXISTING POLICIES – STRENGTHS, WEAKNESSES, OPPORTUNITIES, THREATS....................................................... 34 LIST OF APPENDICES APPENDIX A – METHOD APPENDIX B – INVENTORY ANALYSIS TABLES APPENDIX C – INVENTORY MAPS BASE MAP BUILT UP AREA SLOPE COASTAL FEATURES SURFICIAL GEOLOGY SOILS APPENDIX D – INVENTORY SYNTHESIS MAPS SYNTHESIS MAP: EROSION RISK SYNTHESIS MAP: FLOODING RISK APPENDIX E – CASE ANALYSIS !"#$$%$&'()*'+"%,#-.'+/#$&.'%$'+)#0-#"'1.&%)$0')('2#$-*#,#*3'456'1%070'#$8'1.9),,.$8#-%)$0' :;'<))83'=>>?' Part 1: Introduction Climate change, a statistically significant change in the mean or variability of the climate over an extended period of time, is now widely believed to be occurring on a global scale (IPCC 2007). While climate change affects virtually every part of the world, it is especially significant to coastal areas where storm surges, flooding, and erosion are most likely to have an impact. Damage from coastal flooding can be devastating and costly; in 2000 over $4.3 million was spent repairing damage from two intense storm surges that occurred on the southeastern coast of New Brunswick. Natural Resources Canada predicts that Atlantic Canada will experience more storm events, increasing storm intensity, rising sea level, storm surges, coastal erosion, and flooding. Because of this, coastal communities will be particularly vulnerable to the effects of climate change (Vasseur and Catto 2008). These conditions have created growing concern about the vulnerability of properties and infrastructure to coastal hazards. Although Natural Resources Canada has designated a large portion of the southeastern New Brunswick coastline as at high risk to such effects, little information exists on specific areas of vulnerability within the Tantramar Planning District. While the effects of climate change in terms of flooding and coastal erosion have not yet become pressing in Tantramar, the region is especially at risk because of the low, flat, marshy relief that is protected from flooding waters by a series of dykes. Because the land is so flat, an increase in the height of a flooding tide of even a few inches could extend the potential reach of the flood hundreds of metres inland. The sea level has risen by about 30 cm in New Brunswick over the past century, and with predictions of a further rise of 50-60 cm by 2100 (New Brunswick Climate Change Secretariat 2007) incorporating risks associated with climate change into coastal land use policy is becoming an important issue. ' @' !"#$$%$&'()*'+"%,#-.'+/#$&.'%$'+)#0-#"'1.&%)$0')('2#$-*#,#*3'456'1%070'#$8'1.9),,.$8#-%)$0' :;'<))83'=>>?' 1.1 Research Focus This study addresses the research question: “What areas of the Tantramar coastline are most likely to be affected by sea level rise and erosion due to climate change, and how can the local planning commission plan for these changes?” The objectives of the study are: ! to identify areas within the southern coastal area of Tantramar that are vulnerable to the effects of climate change in terms of sea level rise and erosion; ! to survey policy approaches used in other regions to reduce vulnerability and mitigate the impacts of coastal hazards; and ! to develop policy plan recommendations based on the findings to help the Tantramar Planning District Commission reduce vulnerability and mitigate the impacts of coastal hazards. 1.2 Study Area The Tantramar Planning District is located in southeastern New Brunswick within Westmorland County. The study area is located in the southern part of this district and includes a cape extending into the Chignecto Bay, the central arm of the Bay of Fundy (Fig. 1). The study area is bounded by the Memramcook River on the west, the Nova Scotia border on the east, and includes the estuaries of the Tantramar and Missaguash rivers that both run through the Tantramar Marsh ecosystem. It includes the municipalities of Sackville and Dorchester, which are planned by the Tantramar District Planning Commission, along with a large unincorporated area for which no land use bylaw exists as of yet. This is especially significant because the entire coastline lies within this unplanned area. The district contains a mix of rural, urban, institutional, and agricultural uses with some recreational areas. The Tantramar marsh ecosystem within the study area straddles the isthmus of Chignecto, the bridge of land between New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. As such, while this project is focused on a New