Adaptation concerns changing policies, regulations and practice in order to influence outcomes that alleviate harm and negative impacts of climate change. What constitutes harm or impact, however, and how these can be managed, highly depends upon the perspectives within these implications are framed and understood, as well as the broader socio-political and environmental context in which these impacts take place. As such, what is considered appropriate, effective and successful adaptation, is very much determined by what people, groups, sectors and decision-makers deem worthy of protecting and/or enhancing. This means, what people, groups and communities value become an important marker for successful coastal flood adaptation.

The province has advised First Nation communities and local municipalities to plan for 50cm of sea level rise by 2050 and 1 meter of sea level rise by 2100. Since sea level rise will continue to rise beyond 1 meter, Living with Water is also considering more extreme futures and planning horizons.

Currently there is no authority with jurisdiction (federal, provincial, municipal or territorial) to implement a regional coastal flood adaptation plan for BC. Instead, the responsibility for flood-risk management lies with municipalities and First Nations, who face resourcing and legislative barriers to planning beyond their own boundaries. With the scale and frequency of coastal flooding projected to increase due to climate change, an integrated approach is needed to ensure the best societal, environmental and economic outcomes.

As the interface between human and natural systems, infrastructures have constructed a myriad of multi-dimensional networks that underpin contemporary urbanization. A failure in this infrastructural system can have cascading effects and impact ecosystems as well as water, energy, food, waste, and logistics networks. Sea level rise and flooding pose significant challenges and risks. The consequences of floods related to Hurricane Sandy in the New York area, for example, were manifold—affecting subways, road tunnels, major airports, as well as heating networks, sewage treatment, telecommunication services, and a breakdown of the electric grid which left over 21 million people without electricity for several days. It is therefore increasingly important for coastal planners and decision-makers to analyze and understand potential cascading effects and risk associated with different projected flood scenarios

Common language associated with coastal adaptation–including terms such as protect, resist, accommodate, and managed retreat–invoke notions of power and control. These terms are closely associated with the military, where retreat conjures negative images of defeat and loss to the enemy (in this case climate change). This language carries assumptions about who is deciding adaptation pathways and how these decisions can, or sometimes, must be accepted by others. As such, how, and what language is used changes how certain adaptation options are perceived and understood by individuals and communities. This requires all of us to rethink when, how, and what language we are using.

Living with Water is funded by the Pacific Institute for Climate Solutions. The team is led by the UBC Coastal Adaptation Lab (CAL) at the University of British Columbia (UBC) in partnership with Simon Fraser University, University of Waterloo, Wageningen University and West Coast Environmental Law. The “solution seeker” partners who are directly involved in the project and plan to use the research findings include the City of Surrey, City of Vancouver, District of Squamish, Squamish Nation (Skwxwú7mesh),Tsleil-Waututh Nation, and the BC government.