Climate change risk assessment for P.E.I. will look at 'bigger picture'

The P.E.I. government has issued a request for proposals for an extensive climate change risk assessment.

It will look at the effect of climate change on the Island and make recommendations on how government should respond.

Erin Taylor, manager of the Climate Change Secretariat for the province, said there has already been a lot of study done on coastal risks such as flooding and erosion as well as on infrastructure.

The new $150,000 risk assessment study, which is partly funded by the federal government, will go beyond that.

"We want to get a bigger picture of what the impacts are on the rest of the province," Taylor said. "So we want to look at environmental, economic, health, social, cultural kinds of risks, which many of those areas are areas we haven't fully explored before."

Taylor said the study will also look at effects on important Island industries.

"If you think about our key economic sectors, we're typically talking about agriculture, fisheries and tourism," Taylor said. 

"So what impacts will climate change have on those sectors and the ability of those sectors to continue to support economic growth here in P.E.I.?"

The work is expected to begin early next year and be complete by June 2021. 

"We think that's an appropriate amount of time for them to do this type of thorough, comprehensive kind of look," Taylor said.

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