Implementing the Global Framework for
Climate Services in Canada: A National
Effort to Assess Capacity
World Weather Open Science Conference
Palais des Congrès, Montréal
Jamie Smith, jamie.smith@ec.gc.ca
Meteorological Service of Canada
August 19th 2014
Presentation Outline
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Introduction
Methodology
Initial Results of the Assessment
Conclusions and Next Steps
Q&As
Definitions: Climate Services and Adaptation
Climate Services refers to:
– The timely production and delivery of
useful climate data, information and
knowledge to decision makers through
effective engagement and follow-through.
Climate Adaptation refers to:
– Adjustment in natural or human systems
in response to actual or expected climatic
stimuli or their effects, which moderates
harm or exploits beneficial opportunities.
Canada’s Climate Service Challenge
…A large country with a modest tax-base
• Meteorological-related
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hazards account for vast
majority of economic and
social losses
Vast area of responsibility
means a significant
challenge to be an effective
Service
Country of significant
weather & climate extremes
Little infrastructure North of
60
Shared responsibility
Impacts of a changing climate are already evident
• The climate is changing and will continue to change for decades to come –
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regardless of greenhouse gas reductions
Climate has changed and will continue to change
Impact of
permafrost
degradation on
infrastructure
Reduced ice cover affecting economic
development and traditional ways of life
Reduced reliability of ice roads to
access remote mine sites and
northern communities
Increased pest
(pine beetle)
and fire activity
Reduced glacier cover
affecting western
water and hydro
resources
Increased
frequency of
drought affecting
forests,
agriculture
Lower Great Lake
water levels affecting
shipping, hydro,
recreation
Changing animal distributions
affecting country food supply
Sea level rise and
increased
coastal erosion
affecting
infrastructure
Health issues due to heat stress and
vector-borne diseases
Initial Stakeholder: Scoping Exercise
Key Challenges
• Gaps Exist for both Current and Future Water and Climate Information
• Barriers Exist that limit Users’ Access to Water and Climate Information
• Barriers Exist that limit Users’ Understanding of Water and Climate Information
Recommended actions at a National Level to Improve the Use of Water
and Climate Information for Adaptation
• Undertake a more fulsome assessment of future data needs and availability of data
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and services (mapping)
Investigate the potential for a “single” window access point/portal for Canadian water
(both quantity and quality) and climate information
Inventory of existing tools, access and services, methods and approaches for using
the water and climate information.
Development of stronger documentation for climate and water products
Examine training opportunities and needs (e.g. using climate scenario data).
Rationale/Method
• Canadians’ demands for more comprehensive and accessible services are increasing.
• Federal government is only one of many climate services providers and users;
understanding the state of climate services in Canada requires a collective look at
services across the country.
• Conduct an exercise to map existing climate services at the national level
• Results will be useful to understand what and how climate information is currently
delivered in Canada in order to:
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Articulate gaps in services
better align our efforts and to eventually build a more efficient and coordinated service in
Canada
clearly articulate roles and responsibilities and work through partnerships to optimize the
services.
Use the World Meteorological Organization’s (WMO) Global Framework for Climate Services
(GFCS) to define the water and climate services categories used for the exercise
Global Framework for Climate Services (GFCS)
• Enable better management of the risks of climate variability and change
and adaptation to climate change
Observations and Monitoring
Original – EC network
Preliminary mapping results
Observations and Monitoring: Highlights
• There are gaps in the current monitoring system; however a
full assessment of what is available is not yet complete;
Federal government is investing in new capacity that is based
upon assessment (Network Design)
• There are opportunities to consolidate monitoring information
in Canada:
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Several federal organizations are critical to observations and monitoring,
and could be consolidated (FGP-Federal Geospatial Platform)
Several provinces and volunteer networks are contributing significantly, and
consolidation/Merging data sets would be beneficial (Networks of Networks)
Some private companies are also potential partners (e.g. WeatherFarm has
over 1000 stations, providing considerable support for Agriculture in the
West.)
Universities are making modest contributions in terms of coverage but
essential for innovation
• Different user needs with varying data standards are used in
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Canada for diverse applications and purposes, and need to
be considered in the development of monitoring and
dissemination of data
Gridded datasets, satellite, and models can offer an
alternative to station based data
Research, Modeling and Prediction
LEGEND
National scope
The Canadian Network for the Detection of Atmospheric Change
Réseau canadien en modélisation et diagnostics du climat régional
The Canadian Network for Regional Climate and Weather Processes
International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI)
Regional Climate
Consortia
Research
Collaboratives
Consultants
The North / Cold Regions
ArcticNet
Canadian Sea Ice and Snow Evolution Network
Northern Climate Change Network
Changing Cold Regions Network (CCRN)
Hydro, Mining, Smelting, Power, Forestry, Telecom, and Agricultural interests.
PCIC
PICS
Private Companies
Academic
Institutions
Federal
Organizations
The Community Collaborative
Rain Hail and Snow Network
Federal
----PARC, PRAC---Environment Canada
Fisheries & Oceans
OCCIAR,
Natural Resources
OCC OURANOS
Canadian Space Agency
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada
Health Canada
Public Health Agency of Canada
Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development
Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council
Other Relevant
Organizations
AMEC
Supercomputer
Research, Modeling and Prediction: Highlights
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There is a growing demand for climate model and prediction products at all timescales (past,
present and future)
Federal organizations, regional climate consortia, and academia (including research
collaboratives) are key to the participants - Provinces/territories are less implicated.
There is a growing role for private consultants, particularly where climate consortia are not
established, and the resource development industry (oil, gas, electricity) are also making
significant contributions.
Defined suite of climate modelling products that best meet the broad range of user needs is
required
National information inventory on climate research activities (institutions/groups, research
areas/projects, climate research funding mechanisms, and opportunities for collaboration) would
facilitate research
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°C
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1890
1900
1910
1920
1930
1940
1950
Year
1960
1970
1980
1990
2000
Climate Services Information System
• Principal mechanism through which information about climate (past, present
and future) is routinely collected, stored and processed to generate
products and services that inform decision-making processes
• Climate Service Providers
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Federal, provincial, consortia, and private sector
• Climate Data Access Portals
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EC National Climate Archive – official (legal) climate data
record for Canada
(http://climate.weatheroffice.gc.ca/prods_servs/index_e.html)
EC Adjusted and Homogenized Canadian Climate Data
(AHCCD) –understanding climate change and long-term
impacts (www.ec.gc.ca/dccha-ahccd)
EC: global and regional climate projections –global and
regional climate models
(http://www.cccma.ec.gc.ca/data/data.shtml)
EC Canadian Climate Change Scenarios –
(http://www.cccsn.ec.gc.ca/?page=main&lang=en)
EC Hydrometric Archive - water levels, streamflows data
(www.wateroffice.gc.ca)
Canada's Water InfoStream (Prov/Terr/Fed)
Water and Climate Adaptation Portal (TRCA)
PCIC's Tools and Data
Yukon Water, a compilation of water-related data for
Yukon
Climate Services Information System: Highlights
• Significant depth to climate information; however, the
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provision in Canada is largely organized by producer, not
user, and is therefore highly fragmented.
There are a multitude of access points to climate
information with few linkages among them, making retrieval
and application of comprehensive information very difficult.
There are no national standards for climate data collection,
and format, and no accreditation for climate service
providers.
Barriers Exist that limit Users’ Access to Water and Climate
Information
Barriers Exist that limit Users’ Understanding of Water and
Climate Information
Climate Portal Prototype: Federal Pilot
User Interface Platform
• User interface platform is not necessarily
an IT platform, can be face-to-face and
bidirectional flow of information is critical
component.
• Engagement - A number of direct user-producer
relationships are well established:
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Adaptation Platform
FPT Adaptation Policy Committee
Regional Outlook Forums
ArcticNet
Region Bulletins (Great Lakes, Maritimes, Arctic?)
Federal-led workshops, meetings and events
Consortia-led meetings and events
Conferences
User Interface Platform: Highlights
• User Interface is about building relationships among producers, providers, and users
of climate
• National engagement on climate adaptation, including climate services, is increasing
thanks to new forums
• Natural Resources Canada, Environment Canada and ArcticNet continue to provide
leadership and resources to promote user-consideration of adaptation.
• There are many climate information providers; finding ways to promote consistent
messaging will be important.
• Credibility is fundamental to climate service provision and can be mutually developed
through clearly defined roles, and transparent and effective communication of
accurate, actionable information
Capacity Development
• Capability to manage climate risk
effectively:
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governance, management, human resources
development, education and training,
leadership, partnership creation, science
communication, service delivery, resource
mobilization and infrastructure.
Domestic capacity is building…
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Evidence of capacity building in all pillars of the GFCS
as noted from the analysis
Evidence of increasing collaboration and
communication among stakeholders (Adaptation
Platform, others)
Federal efforts with Adaptation Policy, outlook forums
and bulletins, departmental climate risk assessments
underway, and establishment formal agreements with
partners for climate services
Climate consortia and private sector strengthening
capacity
Conclusions
• We are entering uncharted territory…
 Consequences of future climate change on Canada and globally are a significant cause for
concern.
 Canadians’ demands for more comprehensive and accessible services are increasing.
 Canadians do not currently receive equitable levels of service, notably in rural and marine
Canada and in the North.
• Federal government is only one of many climate services providers and users;
understanding the state of climate services in Canada requires a collective look at
services across the country.
• The Assessment to date has highlighted a number of strengths, weakness and
opportunities for improving climate services in Canada, however we are well
positioned to move forward:
 Identifying gaps in service and areas where services can be optimized by reducing
duplication.
 Creating a common understanding of water and climate services that will form the basis of
improved coordination, and may facilitate enhanced governance.
 Identifying opportunities for improved sharing of climate information and products, such as
data from distinct observation networks currently not shared among providers.
A very big thank you to all the contributors
From EC:
Sharon Ribero, Grace Koshida, Olivier Gagnon,
Giselle Bramwell, Sharon Stone, Marjorie
Shepherd, Chris Doyle, Rick Fleetwood,
Chantale Cote, Louise Bussieres.
Atlantic Provinces:
Adam Fenech, UPEI Climate
William Green, Nova Scotia Environment
Quebec
Alain Bourque et Diane Chaumont, Ouranos
Prairies Provinces
David Sauchyn, Prairie Adaptation Research
Collaborative
Bob Savage, Alberta Government
Virginia Wittrock, Saskatchewan Research
Council
British Columbia
Francis Zwiers, Director, Pacific Climate
Impacts Consortium
Ontario
Allan Douglas, Ontario Centre for Climate
Impacts and Adaptation Resources
Yukon, NWT and Nunavut
Colleen Healey, Nunavut Government
Lacia Kinnear, Yukon College
Brian Sieben, NWT Government
Page 17 – January 22, 2011
Thank You
To provide input to the National Climate Services Summary
Please contact :
Jamie Smith (jamie.smith@ec.gc.ca)
Or
Grace Koshida (grace.koshida@ec.gc.ca)
QUESTIONS?