Webinar: Vulnerability Assessment and Climate Change Adaptation Options for the Great Lakes Coastline – The Chatham-Kent Lake Erie Example

September 28, 2020

Presented by:

Pete Zuzek (President of Zuzek Inc.)
Linda Mortsch (University of Waterloo)

A coastal vulnerability assessment was recently completed for 120 km of Lake Erie shoreline considering both historical extremes and projected climate change impacts on future lake levels, ice cover, and exposure to wave energy.  The project was supported by Natural Resources Canada’s Climate Change Adaptation Program.  The researchers worked closely with the community and staff from the Municipality of Chatham-Kent and the Lower Thames Valley Conservation Authority to co-develop a series of community scale adaptation options to reduce exposure to coastal hazards and increase resilience.  The recommended adaptations ranged from traditional avoid, accommodate and protect options, to more innovative managed re-alignment, managed retreat, and transformational approaches.  The overall study findings, community engagement, and outputs were presented in the webinar.

Additional project information can be found at the following link:

https://www.letstalkchatham-kent.ca/chatham-kent-lake-erie-shoreline-study

Click here to view Presentation Slides