Planning for Stormy Weather
On June 11, 2002, Peterborough was hit by a severe summer storm, causing extensive flooding and sewer back-ups. This storm was estimated to be a rare, “one-in-100-year” event. But only two years later, on July 14, 2004, a much more extreme storm battered the city with 230 mm of rain in 24 hours and caused flood-related damages in excess of $100 million.
Such extreme weather examples – early warnings, perhaps, of a changing climate – prompted an EBR application in April 2007. The applicants argued for mandatory municipal climate change adaptation strategies, with a focus on stormwater infrastructure.
Ontario does not have a regulation specific to stormwater management, and the current guidance documents available to municipalities related to stormwater do not consider climate change. The applicants argued that several ministries should address this issue: the Ministries of Environment (MOE), Natural Resources (MNR), and Municipal Affairs and Housing (MMAH). (For a detailed description of this application, see Section 5 of the Supplement to this report.)
MOE wisely recognized the importance of this issue, and undertook a three year review of the matter. The ministry’s summary report, completed in March 2010, acknowledged a need for a policy framework “to support resilient municipal stormwater management systems.” MOE also concluded that the ministry’s key guideline for stormwater management needs updating, since the 2003 Stormwater Management Planning and Design Manual (SWMP) focuses mainly on conveyance and end-of-pipe facilities, and fails to address climate change.
The ministry also highlighted the existence of research and monitoring gaps: “no province-wide inventory is available for municipal stormwater systems to gauge the size of the problem or to compare any achieved progress on system condition or vulnerability to climate change.” As well, current approvals for stormwater sewage works rarely require reporting on the condition or performance of stormwater infrastructure.
MOE’s report recommended that stormwater management be addressed as a collaborative responsibility of several ministries (i.e., MOE, MMAH, MNR, the Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure [MEI] and the Ministry of Transportation [MTO]), along with municipalities and Conservation Authorities. However, MOE stopped short of committing itself to any actions or timelines.
| Bill 72, the Water Opportunities and Water Conservation Act, 2010 |
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| On May 18, 2010, the Minister of the Environment introduced Bill 72, the Water Opportunities and Water Conservation Act, 2010. If passed, the act would enable a regulation requiring municipalities to submit a water sustainability plan, including an assessment of risks to stormwater management services posed by climate change and a plan to deal with those risks. |
ECO Comment
The ECO is pleased that MOE undertook this review and supports the ministry’s vision for resilient municipal stormwater management systems. MOE’s review signals a move forward from its previous goal for stormwater management – “to minimize the risks of loss of life and property damage due to urban floods” – to a more holistic goal that considers ecosystems and climate change. However, the ECO warns that MOE must act swiftly, with the right tools, in order to bring this vision to fruition.
The ECO is disheartened at the absence of timelines for this needed policy reform. MOE has committed to reviewing the SWMP Manual, revamping the approvals process, and creating a policy framework for municipal stormwater management – but the review does not say how, or when. The ECO expects that these policy reviews and developments will be timely and include public participation.
To redefine Ontario’s stormwater management, a suite of innovative approaches will be necessary. No single, low impact development approach or best management practice will be sufficient. Incentives for innovative source control options are desirable in a transitional capacity. However, over the longer term, mandating green infrastructure would create a more level playing field for developers and municipalities, spark innovation, and ensure Ontario is on track to deal with climate change adaptation.
MOE has no overview of how many municipalities are following best management practices outlined in the SWMP Manual, or to what extent. The lack of monitoring hinders the ability of MOE to identify shortcomings in the Manual or assist those municipalities unable to meet best management practices. The ECO agrees with the ministry that data collection efforts on uptake are necessary to track and assess vulnerability to climate change; the ECO urges MOE to ensure collected data is publicly available and accessible.
The ECO has observed an even more important information gap, which needs urgent attention. Ontario municipalities are continuing to rely on outdated regional data on the intensity, duration and frequency (IDF) of storms, as they plan and build new infrastructure. With changing weather patterns and climatic conditions, old data can no longer be relied upon to predict future conditions. The province needs to take responsibility to ensure that municipalities have the tools they need – scientifically-based on local, reliable and long term monitoring data – to adapt stormwater systems to the impacts of climate change. While some municipalities, such as the City of London, have moved forward in developing updated IDF projections and amending their own bylaws to address the need for innovative stormwater solutions, others have not. With recent closures of Environment Canada stream monitoring stations in the province, it is increasingly important that collaborative work be undertaken between provincial ministries, conservation authorities, municipalities and the federal government to ensure that the right data are being collected and fed into municipal planning. The ECO believes MOE should be a lead agency in this initiative.
| Recommendation 15:
The ECO recommends that the Ministry of the Environment take the lead on collecting appropriate hydrologic data, and creating models, to allow stormwater management planning to reflect changing climate patterns. |
| This is an article from the 2009/10 Annual Report to the Legislature from the Environmental Commissioner of Ontario. |
Citing This Article:
Environmental Commissioner of Ontario. 2010. "Planning for Stormy Weather." Redefining Conservation, ECO Annual Report, 2009/10. Toronto, ON : Environmental Commissioner of Ontario. 162-4.
