Parliamentary Secretary Terry Beech announces new projects to strengthen the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority's resilience to climate change

VANCOUVER, Aug. 19, 2019 /CNW/ - Canada's trade moves through many of our federal transportation assets, such as the St. Lawrence Seaway, major ports, airports, and land border crossings. These assets are vital to the country's trade and economic competitiveness. In this era of rapidly moving global supply chains, federal assets are part of a transportation system that must be reliable, efficient and resilient to various stressors, including climate change and extreme weather.

Today, Terry Beech, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Transport and Member of Parliament for Burnaby North?Seymour, on behalf of the Honourable Marc Garneau, Minister of Transport, announced that the Government of Canada is investing more than $300,000 in two projects at the Port of Vancouver to strengthen its transportation system and better prepare for climate change and extreme weather events.

Through the Transportation Assets Risk Assessment initiative, the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority is receiving funding for two important projects.

• The Government of Canada is providing $49,000 for the Climate Risk Assessment Criteria and Methodology for Assessment of Risk due to Sea Level Rise and Flooding in Vancouver. For this project, the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority will develop specific infrastructure risk assessment criteria and methodology for assessment of risks related to climate change. The project will quantify risks related to Vancouver Fraser Port Authority assets.
• The Government of Canada is also providing $254,430 for the Fraser River Climate Risks Project. The Vancouver Fraser Port Authority will perform coastal flood hazard and risk assessment for the Port's assets along the Fraser River.

By funding projects that assess climate risk, Transport Canada is taking action to protect Canadians and their communities from the effects of climate change while strengthening the resilience of the transportation system.

Quote

"Our Government recognizes the important role that Canadian ports play in supporting jobs and expanding trade. The investments announced today for the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority will help local communities prepare for the effects of climate change while supporting the growth of regional economies."

The Honourable Marc Garneau
Minister of Transport

"Our communities depend on transportation, and taking action to protect our infrastructure from the effects of climate change is critical. The projects that the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority will undertake will help us understand the climate change risks and improve the resilience of our local infrastructure."

Terry Beech
Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Transport

Quick Facts

• Climate change and extreme weather events can damage transportation infrastructure such as roads, bridges, rail lines, ports and airports, which can cause costly travel and transport delays and undermine the safety and reliability of our transportation system.
• The Transportation Assets Risk Assessment initiative funds the assessments of climate risk to provide information to asset owners and operators on what infrastructure components may be vulnerable to climate and weather-related hazards to support investment and asset management planning.

Associated Links

• The Pan-Canadian Framework on Clean Growth and Climate Change
• Transport Canada's 2017-2020 Departmental Sustainable Development Strategy
• The Transportation Assets Risk Assessment

SOURCE Transport Canada