New P.E.I. climate risk map predicts future coastal erosion and flooding
CBC
A new interactive map created by a UPEI climate scientist allows users to explore the likely future impacts of climate change on the Island's coastline, as well as inland.
The P.E.I. Climate Hazard & Risk Information System, or CHRIS, is part of a larger climate adaptation project by the provincial government, in partnership with UPEI and the federal government.
Peter Nishimura, manager of climate adaptation for the P.E.I. Department of Environment, Energy and Climate Action, said the province already had an online mapping platform for the Island for several years.
He said the previous software — the Coastal Hazards Information Platform (CHIP) — shows flood and erosion vulnerability.
But the newly released CHRIS tool adds important new features, including flood maps with water depth predictions, and rates of coastal erosion.
"We've started to move beyond just coastal hazards into inland hazards — what we call pluvial flood maps — that show the extent of of flooding due to heavy rainfall," Nishimura explained. "And it's also going to give us an opportunity to expand on other areas of climate hazards."
Nishimura hopes CHRIS will be especially useful to First Nations and municipalities in making decisions about development, where to plan and build infrastructure, and how it could be designed.
He said it would also be valuable for other Island residents, both homeowners and tenants, looking for information about how vulnerable their area is to flooding. And it could be of interest to home buyers as well.
"We have a lot of people coming to P.E.I. who might be new to the area," Nishimura said. "They're looking for information about what hazards might be present.
"This way they can make an informed decision around where they might want to buy or build."
The CHRIS tool includes a disclaimer against any liability claims from anyone using the program.
Nishimura said the software should be seen as "a piece of the puzzle" helping Islanders learn about climate hazards and risks.
"One of the climate hazards that I think people are becoming more familiar with now is flooding due to heavy rainfall," he explained. "These maps will show people where that rainfall tends to collect.
"I think it can inform property owners with regard to their risk."
Run 3 Space | Play Space Running Game
Traffic Jam 3D | Online Racing Game
Duck Hunt | Play Old Classic Game
Ontario's Ministry of Health announced on Thursday the first recorded death of a measles patient from the current outbreak that started in October of last year.
The incoming CEO of the Toronto Transit Commission says he hopes to leverage his experience working for two of the largest transit agencies in the world to make the TTC the most reliable transit system in North America.
London police are urging downtown residents, businesses and property owners to be on alert amid an uptick in copper wire thefts in the core over the last several months.
Canada posted its largest merchandise trade deficit on record in April — at $7.1 billion — as exports fell sharply in the face of U.S. tariffs.
A seven-year-old boy who was hit by an SUV while riding his bicycle in a St. John's neighbourhood has died.
A seed company in the Sudbury, Ont., community of Lively is helping with Canada's national re-greening efforts by working to expand national seed production.
The majority of people who have spent time in foster care need support — and not just free tuition — to succeed in higher education.
New Brunswick's rent cap, introduced after the Liberals won last fall, will remain at three per cent for the 2025-2026 fiscal year, Housing Minister David Hickey announced in the legislature Wednesday.
Recently appointed federal cabinet minister Rebecca Chartrand harassed a former employee at Winnipeg's Red River College Polytechnic over a period of several months in 2019, according to an external investigation commissioned by the college and conducted by a Winnipeg law firm.
While residents of La Ronge and the surrounding area have escaped from northern Saskatchewan's wildfires to safer spots, many of their pets had to be left behind.
You could argue the United States isn't exactly the most welcoming country for visitors at the moment.
It's not clear what increased U.S. steel tariffs will mean for Hamilton, but workers and industry leaders agree it's nothing good.
The idea of "no tax on tips" has found a way to appeal across party lines in the U.S. The policy is winding its ways through the halls of American government — but economists warn, it's not an idea worth pursuing here in Canada.