Southern Alberta Council on Public Affairs (SACPA)

In October 2022, the Town and MD of Pincher Creek collaborated with the Piikani Nation land department to begin developing a Climate Resiliency and Adaptation plan. This process was enabled due to funding provided by the Municipal Climate Change Action Center. The plan development focused on a stakeholder-driven methodology to identify key climate risks in the region and develop plans to adapt to those risks within a changing environment. The project was led by a team consisting of members from the Town, MD, regional emergency management organization, and Piikani Nation. The outputs included full climate models for the MD of Pincher Creek to identify what may change based on a 3-degree global warming level, an economic analysis of the cost of not adapting to climate change, and finally a risk assessment and adaptation plan. This presentation will describe the key outcomes, the process for developing them, and lessons learned that can be leveraged by other organizations looking to undertake similar processes.