Summary

The Region of Durham wanted a better understanding of how vulnerable its transportation network was to future flooding, so staff performed a flood risk assessment to aid in future decision-making and resilience planning. The assessment is a 2024 Sustainable Communities Awards winner in the Reconciliation and anti-racism, equity and inclusion (AREI) category thanks to its innovative use of a social equity lens to ensure that transportation planning considers the needs of more-vulnerable communities. The Region is now using this risk assessment to help inform asset management priorities and has shared its work to be replicated elsewhere.

The challenge  

The Region of Durham, located east of Toronto, encompasses eight rural and urban municipalities with a total population of about 750,000 that is predicted to grow to 1.3 million by 2051. Durham experiences regular flooding and projections for the region indicate upcoming surges in storm severity and frequency, winter rain and freeze-thaw cycles.  

By conducting flood risk assessments, the region can plan for protective measures to make its 2,500 lane kilometres of roads and 250 bridges and culverts more resilient to potential flooding. Other specific challenges Durham wanted to address include:

• The high cost of maintaining transportation infrastructure and dealing with the effects of flooding. Having as much data as possible to set priorities helps keep budgets efficient over the long term.
• The effects of flooding that worsen existing inequities, such as when residents lose transportation options that are already limited.

The approach

Durham worked with multiple partners including local conservation authorities and municipalities to gather and analyze already existing flood- and climate-related data as well as output from climate prediction tools. Staff with practical experience dealing with flood impacts were included in the process.

Social equity was not initially part of the project. However, staff quickly realized it was needed and worked with Durham Social Services and the Durham Region Health Department to build it in.

“Not all communities are equally prepared to deal with climate change, so the equity lens is very important.” 

– Mani Rajendran, Senior Project Manager, Transportation Design and Chair, Transportation Resilience, Region of Durham 

Together, they built a scoring system for the assessment. The idea was to better prioritize flood-vulnerable roads near communities that already face multiple barriers and might need additional assistance during flood events due to limited accessibility, mobility, support networks, financial resources or other issues. The Region’s social services and health teams contributed with community health and social equity indicators including low-income, unemployment, mental health, Indigenous population, visible minorities and seniors living alone. This information was scored and averaged by neighbourhood and then added to the overall score of nearby transportation assets. This gave planners relevant details on equity-related needs.

While considering the socioeconomic impacts of road network flooding, the assessments also prioritized the community’s most critical transportation routes, which include:  

• major commuter routes
• transit routes
• goods-movement routes
• remote communities that do not have alternative access routes
• those serving essential facilities such as hospitals, child care, schools, retirement homes, emergency services, power plants and community services.

The solutions and results

Durham’s completed assessments identify vulnerable water crossings and roads under current and future flood scenarios. This information will help staff and elected officials make data-driven decisions on improving the transportation system’s adaptive capacity and resilience. Specific results include:

Environmental:

• A better understanding of high-priority assets for mitigation work to reduce the overall impact of flooding both on infrastructure and on nearby communities.
• Better flood risk data now available to numerous conservation authorities and local governments thanks to a collaborative approach.  
• Predicted reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from stalled vehicles due to fewer road closures and delays thanks to improved management of transportation assets.

Economic:

• Reduced financial and legal risk to the Region.
• Better, data-informed decisions on how to plan for flooding will lead to cost savings from vehicle traffic delays and disruptions thanks to fewer road closures.
• Increased budgetary efficiency:  
  • Routes that are already sufficiently protected have been identified, freeing up resources for other areas.
  • Climate change impacts and adaptation measures can more accurately be considered in infrastructure financing, resulting in more strategic and forward-thinking decision-making.

Social:

• A better understanding of how to reduce the socioeconomic impacts of flooding on road networks.
• Equity-oriented prioritization of roads for future resilience measures, including those identified as designated transit routes.

Lessons learned

By collaborating with conservation authorities, local municipalities and experienced consultants, the Region was able to leverage and analyze existing data to create predictions and assess risk without having to gather new data or develop new climate models. This close collaboration model has also had the benefit of obtaining early buy-in from all partners and the ability to team up to push initiatives forward.

Flood risk data is now incorporated into the Region’s corporate asset management information systems, which enables transportation infrastructure project managers to more easily consider options to improve flood-vulnerable locations using a scientific and systematic process.  

One factor that helped the project succeed was support from organizational leadership, who were able to ensure the risk assessment was seen as a priority by everyone involved.

“It doesn’t have to be all or nothing. We don’t have to build big, expensive bridges to solve the problem or do nothing because of lack of funding—we can build relief culverts to solve most of the problem or buy time.”

– Mani Rajendran, Senior Project Manager, Transportation Design and Chair, Transportation Resilience, Region of Durham 

Next steps

Durham’s flood risk assessment process has been replicated several times elsewhere, including by the Central Lake Ontario Conservation Authority and the Ganaraska Region Conservation Authority, and has inspired work in other Canadian municipalities as well.  

Internal next steps include developing guidance and training materials for decision-makers and staff on how to use the data, and beginning an assessment of emergency and evacuation routes.

The Region is exploring how to use socioeconomic mapping in other areas, such as for home retrofit programs, while feeding the flood risk assessment data into decision-making such as finding safe sites for hazardous waste facilities. In addition, staff are cross-referencing the Region’s risk assessment and current 10-year capital plan to inform the design for community-centric transportation needs and priorities, such as key flood-vulnerable road segments and road crossings. 

Summary 

As part of ongoing efforts to adapt to the intensifying impacts of coastal flooding, the Comox Valley Regional District (CVRD) is redeveloping Dyke Road Park by removing failing hard infrastructure and invasive plants in favour of native species and visitor amenities with minimal impact on the surrounding environment, all with input and support from the K’ómoks First Nation. This nature-based solution project is a 2024 Sustainable Communities Awards winner in the climate adaptation category due to its efforts in making the shoreline more resilient to flooding and boosting biodiversity while improving user experience and showcasing Green Shores principles. 

Background 

The CVRD, on the east coast of Vancouver Island, encompasses the communities of Comox, Courtenay and Cumberland as well as Indigenous land of the K’ómoks First Nation.  

Land within the CVRD is highly susceptible to flooding and erosion from extreme rainfall events, high tides, storm surges and rising sea levels. Flood hazard mapping developed in 2021 identified areas at particular risk including Comox Road, which connects Comox, Courtenay and the K’ómoks First Nation and has experienced flooding in the past. This area includes Dyke Road Park, which is located between Comox Road and the K’ómoks Estuary.

The CVRD has been a member since 2017 of the Stewardship Centre of BC’s Green Shores Local Government Working Group, which promotes nature-based solutions for better shoreline management. 

The challenge 

Dyke Road Park and its environs were identified as a high-risk area for flooding that would benefit from key adaptation measures. Before getting started, CVRD identified other challenges that would need to be addressed as well. 

Environmental: 

• The park’s concrete bird-watching platform was acting as a hardened shoreline. This type of infrastructure diverts wave energy and disrupts natural processes, which can cause erosion.
• As an estuary site with connections to both a river and the ocean, the area is important for biodiversity. CVRD recognized the potential to host improved habitat for a variety of plants and wildlife, including salmon, as well as to showcase Green Shores principles as a demonstration site. 

Social: 

• The K’ómoks estuary is a culturally significant and sacred place to the K’ómoks First Nation.  
• Dyke Road Park was already on the list for upgrades to make it safer and more enjoyable for the community: the bird-watching platform’s foundation was beginning to crack, and the CVRD wanted to improve parking and lessen road noise.

The approach 

Elements of the project include: 

• removing invasive plants and planting native species such as sedge meadows
• creating a new tidal channel.
• removing the bird-watching platform and its concrete foundation.
• installing infrastructure such as elevated boardwalks and signage to improve the visitor experience.
• implementing a design aimed at resilience to projected flood levels and events up to the year 2100.  

The project’s technical advisory committee includes subject matter experts and representatives from a number of land use authorities. All participants contributed toward the preliminary design concepts, final schematic design and implementation plan. For example, the K’ómoks Guardian Watchmen, a group of First Nations environmental stewards, provided guidance on archeologically sensitive areas and ensured habitat restoration was a key objective in park design and implementation. They are also participating in invasive species removal, rare plant salvage and project monitoring.

“Making time for meaningful relationships has been a huge part of making the vision cohesive.” 

– Robyn Holme, Manager of Long Range Planning and Sustainability, CVRD

This nature-based solution incorporates Green Shores principles such as life-cycle thinking, a whole-system approach, increasing public access and understanding the site’s ecology, geomorphology and coastal processes. Green Shores is a scoring system that awards points based on how many goals are met. The CVRD is aiming for Gold certification by achieving as many targets as possible, and intends for the site to help educate the public on the benefits of the Green Shores approach and encourage owners of coastal homes to implement Green Shores principles on their own properties. 

Expected results 

The project is still in progress and on track to be completed in 2025. Expected results include:  

Environmental: 

• Restoring natural ecological processes and critical habitat for salmon and other species, thereby boosting both biodiversity and flood resilience and reducing erosion.
• Reducing human impact on natural areas thanks to boardwalks and other directional infrastructure. 

Economic: 

• Lowering future costs due to flooding of Comox Road and its vicinity. 

“This project really helps people understand what flood resilience can look like.” 

– Robyn Holme, Manager of Long Range Planning and Sustainability, CVRD

Social: 

• A public education opportunity that uses signage to highlight the area’s Indigenous culture, history and ecology and showcase how nature-based solutions can protect communities from flooding.
• An improved park experience for users, including less road noise, better accessibility and new viewing platforms. 

Lessons learned

An early approach to internal coordination at the CVRD turned out to be a win-win, as they were able to time work on the park with planned road closures due to a sewer conveyance project that was already going to prevent public access to the park for more than a year. Park staff scheduled landscaping work so that new plants will have a full year to establish before public access is restored.

Involving multiple partners increased scope and resulted in a much more complex project. This turned out to be a benefit as the added scope improved overall impact and partners were able to apply for a variety of funding opportunities, which helped to cover the higher costs, though the increased scope also required a solid understanding of roles and responsibilities to keep things moving. The collaborative approach also helped to strengthen relationships between partners and contribute toward a coordinated approach to a number of restoration projects in the estuary. 

Next steps 

Construction is still in progress, with upcoming steps including boardwalk installation and parking improvements and reopening planned for late 2025. The team is working on a project record that will serve as a road map for other communities wanting to undertake similar endeavours. 

Summary

The Town of Bridgewater, in the heart of Nova Scotia, has pioneered a three-pronged approach that reduces greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions while tackling energy poverty. Winner of a Sustainable Communities Award 2024, the Energize Bridgewater project combines leading-edge energy monitoring technology, an innovative client-oriented  navigation program, and comprehensive social support services that address housing insecurity and homelessness.  

Background

Home to approximately 8,790 residents, Bridgewater is the largest town in the province’s South Shore region. Bridgewater made a commitment to reducing GHG emissions when its town council  passed a Community Energy Investment Plan in 2018.

After applying for and receiving Smart Cities funding— a national innovation program to which the Town pitched its ambitious proposal to tackle energy poverty  —the town then spent several years studying and testing solutions to the barriers that prevent broad adoption of deep home-energy upgrades.

Challenge

Bridgewater set an ambitious goal of achieving an 81 percent reduction in community GHG emissions by 2050 compared to its 2011 emission levels. At the same time, the town had to address the fact that 38 percent of Bridgewater residents were struggling to afford and access heating, cooling, and other essential energy services—a prevalent issue throughout the Atlantic provinces. Bridgewater therefore committed to reduce the town’s energy poverty rate by 20 percent, but needed a multi-pronged approach that would address both climate and social challenges simultaneously.

The Energize Bridgewater project set out to address two critical and interconnected needs: reducing energy poverty and improving energy efficiency. It focuses on helping residents—particularly those struggling with high energy costs—by offering tailored support to reduce their energy consumption, lower costs of upgrades and improve their living conditions.

Throughout its implementation, there were significant changes to the available funding and incentives for home energy upgrades. While in many cases these ultimately proved advantageous, they required flexibility and the coordination of more complex deep energy upgrades. Additionally, given the relatively small size of the town, limited contractor and trades capacity resulted in slower implementation of the Home Upgrades program.  

Approach

Energize Bridgewater consists of three interconnected services, designed through a holistic approach that recognises the day-to-day challenges faced by people living in energy poverty.

“Energy poverty looks different in rural areas versus cities, and the spectrum of energy poverty is broad. That’s why we wanted to cast as wide of a net as possible within the scope of Energize Bridgewater.”

– Leon de Vreede, Senior Policy & Program Planner, Town of Bridgewater

1. Energy management information system: This unique, municipally-developed technology combines energy monitoring and indoor air quality monitoring for residents . The software then generates personalized suggestions on how to save on energy costs and improve air quality  based on their unique data.  
2. Home Upgrades Program: A navigator that guides homeowners and landlords to the best technical and financial  options for energy efficient improvements. The program also provides support in selecting the most effective upgrades for their homes. Eligible upgrades may include heat pumps, insulation, draft proofing, and more. This program is delivered in partnership with Efficiency Nova Scotia  and Clean Foundation.
3. Coordinated Access system: Recognising that energy poverty is connected to other social factors like housing insecurity and health, this program provides wrap-around community support services to Bridgewater residents experiencing energy poverty, housing insecurity, and homelessness. This central access point connects individuals and families to the programs that best meet their unique needs, ensuring they receive the right support at the right time.

Benefits and results

Environmental:  

• As energy upgrades progress, participating homes are expected to cut their GHG emissions by an average of 51%.
• 183 home energy efficiency upgrades like heat pumps and draft proofing were in progress or complete by July 31, 2024.  
• The first single-unit homes retrofitted through the Home Upgrades program have reduced their GHG emissions by 22-39% .  
• Two retrofitted multi-unit buildings are cutting GHG emissions by up to 48%.  
• Project participants are experiencing improved indoor air quality and comfort.

Economic:  

• The Energize Bridgewater program is expected to stimulate over $10M in local and regional economic activity.  
• Homes in the program are expected to save an average of 52% on their energy bills.

Social:  

• The project’s focus on energy poverty has helped bring this challenging issue into the public discourse, accelerating both media interest and political action.
• Over 600 households have received social support through the Coordinated Access system, improving their health and wellbeing.

Lessons learned

• Bridgewater can’t be a “smart city” on its own. Local and regional partnerships and service relationships are the key to a successful sustainability project.
• High-quality data can help inform home-energy efficiency solutions that create more sustainable, prosperous, and equitable communities.
• Gaining a deeper understanding of residents' unique circumstances is essential for offering the right support and implementing deep home energy upgrades.

“We’re trying to take a trauma-informed, accessible approach to meeting people where they’re at. We really aim to make the process of retrofitting and energy monitoring as human, simple and straightforward as possible.”

– Josie Rudderham, Energize Program Navigator

Next steps

Bridgewater is exploring opportunities to work with Efficiency Nova Scotia and the Province of Nova Scotia to scale its home upgrade services province-wide. The energy management information system  technology developed for Energize Bridgewater also has the potential to be applied more broadly, allowing other municipalities to gather and leverage their own energy and indoor air quality data.

Should the project ultimately be able to scale across all homes in Bridgewater, there could be a community-wide reduction of over 25 kilotonnes in GHG emissions per year.

Summary  

Facing an affordable housing crisis and rising to the challenge of reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, Waterloo Region Housing (WRH) has undertaken its first net-zero community housing build. Winning a 2024 Sustainable Communities Award, the project features a variety of energy-efficient design elements as well as tenant amenity spaces to foster a sense of community.

Background

Located in Southern Ontario, the Waterloo Region contains the cities of Cambridge, Kitchener and Waterloo along with townships of North Dumfries, Wellesley, Wilmot and Woolwich. It is a rapidly growing region, with a current population of more than 630,000 people.

There is a long waitlist for affordable housing in Waterloo Region, with approximately 9,000 low-income households currently awaiting community housing. Recognizing the urgency of this situation, Waterloo’s Regional Council approved the WRH Revitalization Plan in 2019. It maps out a 20-year timeline to create at least 600 new community housing units.

Waterloo Region also crafted a community-developed strategy, called the Transform WR Action Strategy, to reduce local GHG emissions by 80 percent by 2050. The strategy states that, “By 2050, businesses and homes no longer use fossil fuels for space heating and cooling, and hot water heating.” Moving forward, all new community housing builds will aim for Canada’s Green Building Council’s Zero Carbon Building - Design Standard certification.

The challenge

As the Region prepared to break ground on its newest community housing development at 420 Kingscourt Drive, they had no previous experience constructing new net-zero buildings. There were concerns regarding how best to attract the right contractors, with fears that the ambitious energy efficiency plans might scare some away. 

Additionally, households with lower incomes may struggle to afford energy costs and often face barriers to accessing more sustainable energy technologies like geothermal heating and cooling, solar power, or smart thermostats. Waterloo Region was committed to ensuring these households were not left behind in the transition away from fossil fuels.

“Everyone deserves a place to call home. We are working hard not just to build homes across the Region of Waterloo, but also to be responsible stewards of the environment as we grow. 420 Kingscourt is a proud example of the care Region staff have put into creating homes that serve this community. These energy-efficient projects help us build what we need for today and tomorrow.”

- Regional Chair Karen Redman, Region of Waterloo

Approach

WRH’s 420 Kingscourt Drive blends affordability with thoughtful design, offering a mix of income-geared rent, below average market rent and low-end market rent. Situated on the same site as WRH’s existing 416 Kingscourt Drive building, WRH made sure to utilize existing regional land and prioritize engagement with the existing tenants throughout the development process, ensuring their voices were heard and their needs addressed. This was done primarily through virtual meetings led by both regional staff and City councillors.  

The building has 73 units, ranging in size from one to five bedrooms, with 19 units designed with enhanced accessibility. In addition to comfortable living spaces, the project brings people together with three inviting resident amenity spaces, including a spacious 2,125-square-foot seniors services programming area.

Environmental considerations were critical throughout the design process, incorporating energy-efficient building technologies and practices that will reduce energy consumption, enhance indoor environment quality and lower energy costs for the tenants. Key features include:

• ground-source heat pumps connected to an open-loop geothermal system with integrated Energy Recovery Ventilators
• triple glazed high performance vinyl windows
• low-flow Domestic Hot Water fixtures
• LED lighting systems
• solar PV panels
• meter to track water and energy consumption of individual units and the building as a whole

This project is also piloting a Community Benefits Program to help recruit, engage and retain a diverse construction labour force. The program creates opportunities for individuals from groups traditionally underrepresented in the industry.

Benefits and results

The 420 Kingscourt project is expected to be completed in summer 2025. Anticipated outcomes are as follows.

Environmental:

• The building’s GHG emissions are 47.1% below the 2015 National Energy Code for Buildings (NECB) standards.  
• The project’s roof-mounted solar panels are estimated to generate 111.9MWh of green electricity per year, enough to power 10 average households.
• The design of this building will result in a net annual total energy use intensity (TEUI) of 77.4 kWh/m2, versus the Canadian residential building average of 181 kWh/m2 per year.  
• Waterloo region is now pursuing Zero Carbon Building V2–Design Standard certification by the Canada Green Building Council, recognizing their efforts to help combat climate change by designing a building with low carbon emissions.

Economic:

• Housing expenses for those living in rent-geared-to-income units (1/3 of all units) will remain at an affordable 30% of tenants’ income for the long term.  
• Approximately $54,000 in energy costs will be saved annually through energy-efficient design.  
• Tenants will also benefit from reduced energy costs as a result of the building’s efficiency, paying a flat fee for both water and electricity.  

Social:  

• 73 households with various levels of income will have a comfortable, energy-efficient home near public transportation corridors.
• Two people have been trained in construction through the Community Benefits Program. One has now entered a unionized skilled trade.

Lessons learned

• Tenants are the experts of their communities and know what works and what can be improved. Feedback from this project resulted in the development of Tenant Liaison Committees for subsequent WRH builds, where tenant volunteers will be part of the early design process.  
• Ensuring there is a clear vision for the design before opening bidding to contractors will help attract the right talent.  
• Consulting with the people who will be running the building early on is crucial to ensuring both its longevity and end-user comfort.
• Building a net-zero affordable housing project is not only possible, but less challenging than anticipated despite an initial lack of experience.

Next steps  

This was the first of six affordable housing redevelopment projects for the region. Project data will be used to inform the direction of future builds, with a focus on early tenant engagement.