New tool hopes to help municipalities better prepare for floods
A new tool aims to make it easier for Canadian municipalities to access information about flood hazards and be better prepared.
Called “The Municipal Flood Risk Check Up,” it was developed in Waterloo Region through the Intact Centre on Climate Adaptation and the University of Waterloo.
“This is hopefully going to be a catalyst for action at the municipal scale,” says Joanna Eyquem, managing director of Climate-Resilient Infrastructure at the Intact Centre.
The hope is to make it easier to be prepared for Mother Nature’s forces.
“It is a broad-based assessment so that people can get to know what their flood risks are in terms of river, costal or intense rainfall risks and how they’re preparing,” added Eyquem.
The tool took two years to develop with insight from 53 people, all levels of government and multiple municipalities.
“It includes large municipalities who already are a fair way along their flood risk management journey, as well as smaller missing parties who have less resources... and so this tool is designed with those concerns in mind,” says Eyquem.
Using the checklist as a roadmap to reduce risk, could be used as another resource in municipalities’ toolboxes. Jo-Anne Rzadki is with Conservation Ontario and was a part of the team who developed it.
“We’re really interested in learning about how the municipalities respond to it in Ontario. We think that many of the boxes will be checked off in Ontario and so we’re interested in seeing how we compare to the rest of the country,” said Rzadki.
The idea is that municipalities could use the tool prior to finalizing their budgets in order to better allocate funding for preparedness for the upcoming season. With a few easy steps, staff can assess flood management risks.
“That’s one reason for continuing the investment in the flood management program conservation authorities implement in Ontario, and then maybe help to recommend where more resources could be allocated to continue to reduce that risk,” added Rzadki.
The tool is now live and is completely free. It can be accessed through the Intact Center on Climate Adaptation website.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Freeland leaves capital gains tax change out of coming budget implementation bill, here's why
Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland will be tabling yet another omnibus bill to pass a sweeping range of measures promised in her April 16 federal budget, though left out of the legislation will be the government's proposed capital gains tax change.
Ontario woman surprised after 20-year-old fines suddenly tank credit score
An Ontario woman says that she was shocked when provincial fines from 20 years ago suddenly tanked her credit score last week, but the situation may not be as unusual as it seems, according to at least debt expert.
Avalanche eliminate Winnipeg Jets from playoffs with 6-3 road win
Mikko Rantanen's first two goals of the playoffs propelled the Colorado Avalanche to a 6-3 victory over the Winnipeg Jets on Tuesday that clinched their opening-round playoff series in five games.
Protesters clash at UCLA after police clear pro-Palestinian demonstrators from Columbia University
Dueling groups of protesters clashed Wednesday at the University of California, Los Angeles, grappling in fistfights and shoving, kicking and using sticks to beat one another. Hours earlier, police carrying riot shields burst into a building at Columbia University that pro-Palestinian protesters took over and broke up a demonstration that had paralyzed the school while inspiring others.
Will an 'out of sight, out of mind' cellphone policy make a difference in Ontario schools?
Ontario’s cellphone ban in schools has been met with mixed reaction, with some teachers concerned about constant policing of kids and experts applauding the change as necessary for student learning.
WATCH Arnold Schwarzenegger spotted filming in Elora, Ont.
The name of the project has not been officially released although it’s widely believed to be the Netflix series FUBAR.
Poilievre kicked out of Commons after calling Prime Minister Justin Trudeau 'wacko'
Testy exchanges between the prime minister and his chief opponent ended with the Opposition leader and one of his MPs being ejected from the House of Commons on Tuesday -- and the rest of Conservative caucus walking out of the chamber in protest.
National strategy must recognize caregivers as 'backbone' of society: centre
Canadians need help looking after family members who are aging, sick or have disabilities, and many caregivers are seniors who need help themselves, says a new report calling for a national strategy that recognizes the mental and financial toll of the job.
Baby, grandparents among 4 people killed in wrong-way police chase on Ontario's Hwy. 401
A police chase which started with a liquor store robbery in Bowmanville Monday night ended in tragedy some 20 minutes later when a suspect fleeing police entered Highway 401 in the wrong direction and caused a pileup which killed an infant and the child's grandparents, as well as the suspect, investigators say.