Climate Change Data and Indicators
Extreme Heat Vulnerability Mapping
Due to climate change, the capital region is experiencing hotter summer temperatures, with more extreme heat days and heatwaves. To address this hazard, the CRD, with support from municipal partners, accessed a Union of British Columbia Municipalities Community Emergency Preparedness Fund grant to undertake a regional extreme heat vulnerability mapping initiative. This project was completed, in collaboration with local governments, Island Health and the Province, to support the integration of extreme heat disaster risk reduction and climate adaptation planning and provide tools and data to help community planners and emergency managers to address extreme heat now and in the future.
Through this project, the interactive Capital Region Extreme Heat Information Portal was developed, which is accessible to residents and community planners to explore and understand the capital region's vulnerability and exposure to extreme heat.
If you would like to view the full report or want to inquire about access to the full data package, please contact us.
Climate Projections for the Capital Region
The Capital Regional District (CRD) engaged the Pacific Climate Impacts Consortium to undertake an update to the Climate Projections for the Capital Region report, an analysis of projected changes in temperature, precipitation, and indices of extremes due to climate change in the 2050s and the 2080s. The report is intended to support decision making throughout the region and to help community partners better understand how their work may be affected by our changing climate.
Please cite this report as: Capital Regional District, 2024, "Climate Projections for the Capital Region," 71 pages.
Sea Level Rise
Understanding the impacts and risks associated with sea level rise, coastal flooding and tsunamis is important for our region. The CRD, working with and on behalf of, the 13 municipal governments and three electoral areas, has worked to improve our understanding of these risks through several research initiatives. This work will help planners and emergency managers prepare the region and inform coastal flood hazard policy. Read more >>
Community Energy and Emissions Inventories
The CRD has produced greenhouse gas (GHG) inventories for 2018, 2020 and 2022 to better understand the sources and trends of GHG emissions within the capital region for the following categories:
- Stationary energy (e.g., buildings, construction, energy industry)
- Transportation (including airport and marine emissions)
- Waste
- Industrial process and product use
- Agriculture, forestry and other land use
Data is included from 2007, 2010, 2012, 2018, 2020 and 2022. The 2022 study shows that the capital region emits approximately 1.86 million tonnes of C02 emissions annually. This equates to approximately a 7% reduction from the 2007 baseline. Transportation and buildings continue to account for the vast majority of regional emissions (approximately 75%).
The inventory is intended to be a resource for the CRD and municipalities to inform planning and programming aimed at reducing GHG emissions in the capital region.
Electric Vehicle (EV) and Electric Bike (E-Bike) Infrastructure
The Capital Region Local Government EV and E-Bike Infrastructure Planning Guide (Watt Consulting Group, 2018) contains strategies for local governments, as well as private development, to expand and manage EV and E-Bike charging infrastructure in the Capital Region. Its associated Backgrounder Report provides a summary of the EV and E-Bike research and best practices that inform the Guide.
The Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Roadmap (Dunsky, 2021) provides a high-level indication of the scale of EV charging infrastructure required to accelerate the transition to EVs in the capital region, an overview of the types of charging opportunities needed to support current and future EV drivers, and a summary of collaboration opportunities between key players and actions to support a coordinated approach to charging infrastructure deployment in the region.