MONTREAL — The windswept archipelago of Iles-de-la-Madeleine used to spend most of every winter firmly encased in the ice of the Gulf of St. Lawrence, protected from the worst effects of winter storms. With the funding of the Quebec government, the university has embarked on a multi-year project to study coastal resilience and develop tools to help eastern Quebec communities adapt to the realities of climate change. Some towns, including Iles-de-la-Madeleine, have already had to make the unpopular decision to relocate people and homes, and Bourgeois says more tough decisions are coming. But he’s wondering how the provincial and federal governments will react down the line, when more and more coastal towns are faced with huge rebuilding costs they can’t handle themselves. “If you add up the needs of coastal cities across Quebec and Canada, it’s going to be astronomical,” he said.

Source: National Post September 03, 2017 15:45 UTC