Research projects and publications

It is important to take into account both the direct impact and indirect impact (via disturbance regimes) of climate on vegetation in order to understand how climate change will affect the future distribution of species.

This project has highlighted the importance of changing stormwater management practices in urban areas in order to adapt drainage systems to climate change. One of the actions suggested in this project is to promote projects that reduce impervious surfaces.

Agricultural land has become increasingly sensitive in recent years to climate extremes. This work is a preliminary phase in developing regional management strategies for agricultural practices and land use.

The use of the maps created with this project as a tool for community land-development planning was a simple but fundamental initial means of adapting to climate change.

The results of this project have led to a better understanding of the relationship between the surface layer and permafrost processes. They have also benefited local communities by providing an innovative methodology for planning transport infrastructure maintenance on sensitive permafrost in particular.

This project has helped to develop an international-scale pilot project in the field of integrated watershed management in the context of climate change.

In light of the results obtained, the scope of the expected water-level declines will require equally significant adaptation measures.

The benefits for adaptation of this project include the confirmation of the importance of the time of application in relation to heavy rainfall events, and also the identification of a potential increase in the contamination of runoff in the near future (2040) for apple scab.

This research made it possible to inform and educate regional stakeholders about the main invasive exotic species posing a risk to soybean crops in Quebec. It also provide more in-depth knowledge of the future establishment risk of three of these species. This will be useful for evaluating the feasibility of implementing adaptation measures (monitoring network, recognition tools for agricultural advisors and producers, documentation on ways to combat the phenomenon, etc.).

This project enabled us to adapt values for dimensions of liquid and solid manure storage structures based on climate change forecasts; and to update the guides created by Joncas et al. (1993) and train designers of open-air liquid and solid manure storage structures to use this new guide.

This projet allows to raise awareness among dairy producers and their agricultural consultant on the impacts of climate change for different styles of farms. Moreover, it will enable government departments to assess the potential impacts of climate change on the profitability and environmental performance of businesses in the dairy sector.

The results of this project will allow to ensure better management of fish stocks in lakes by taking account of future thermal profiles under climate change. It will also permit to assist the government of Québec formulate its strategic orientations and policies with respect to fauna, contributing to the survival of aquatic ecosystems and species in Northern Québec by quantifying the sensitivity of fish to climate change.

The study findings suggest that it is important to put information panels in parks and wooded areas in the Montérégie region to increase the awareness of users about the potential risks and the steps to take to protect themselves.

The hydrodynamic model of the river is now calibrated and ready to be used for low-flow and high-flow simulations of contaminant diffusion and dispersion, allowing hydrologists to adapt infrastructure according to anticipated climate change.

This project allows to improve knowledge about the competitive position of Quebec under climate change for three major agricultural sectors, as well as the identification of adaptation measures that could optimize production costs under climate change.

This project made it possible to raise awareness on the magnitude of climate change impacts and the evolution of agricultural land use on surface water quality in the future (2041-2070); and to improve the model used to evaluate the effectiveness of various combinations of agricultural adaptation options to reduce sediment and nutrient transport towards surface waters.

Taking into account both forest productivity and fire risk, as developed under this project, was used by the committee to study the northern limit for forest attribution in Québec as one of the determining criteria for evaluating a region’s potential for sustainable forest management.

This project enabled local forest stakeholders to identify key vulnerabilities and preferred adaptation approaches, and as much relevant information as possible to initiate a climate change adaptation strategy, and to become aware of the strengths in their governance practices that can serve as a foundation for building a possible climate change adaptation strategy.

These results help Québec maple syrup producers develop a vision and a development strategy for the sector, taking climate change into account. The results also help MAPAQ and the Table filière acéricole better adapt their programs and support measures and improve strategic planning for the maple syrup sector in the face of climate change.

This project made it possible to identify economic sectors influenced positively and negatively by climate change in order to devise and implement compensation measures, which may greatly facilitate the implementation of an adaptation program.

This project aims to get an overall view of hydrological drought episodes in southern Quebec in the context climate change by better identifying the meteorological conditions leading to such events and analyzing their prevalence in future climates. The project could pave the way for a hydrological forecast adapted to low water levels.

The results of this project have produced better tools and methods that hydropower companies can use to incorporate the impacts of climate and climate changes on the power production of their installations.

The involvement of the MRCs resulted in a better understanding of the notion of essential systems as well as greater awareness of the impact of climate change on essential systems and the importance of considering their vulnerabilities from an adaptation perspective.

This project made available for practitioners in the assessment of climate change adaptation a list of indicators collected and categorized in a logical structure that can be implemented and adapted according to context and assessment requirements.

This project provides monetary valuations of ecological goods and services that can be used in cost-benefit analyses, assessments of damage, or quantifying compensation for environmental damages using the benefit transfer method. It can serve to guide the choice of the most relevant valuation method for each type of ecological goods and services and analytic situation.

The lessons learned, the choice recommendations and the implementations can be used by other municipalities when incorporating economic tools in the management of their climate change adaptation strategy.

This project made it possible to provide important information, thereby giving specialists better tools with which to model marsh evolution based on climate change with a view to protecting at-risk environments.

The economic analysis generated plausible economic values for wetlands in both regions studied, offering a useful reference scale for cost/benefit analyses of wetland conservation projects.

This project made it possible to guide the planning of a green belt for Montreal and provide science-based advice to the Quebec government, in particular the provincial government departments, the municipalities (RCM), local and regional conservation NGOs and researchers and biologists working in the field.

The knowledge and tools generated by this project may be integrated into plans aimed at managing biodiversity and monitoring natural environments and protected areas. They may also be used for the development of various practices (e.g. prevention, early detection and control of invasive species) and environmental/natural heritage protection policies, as well as various scientific programs seeking an understanding of invasion mechanisms.

The widespread adoption of TBI systems in the south of Quebec could help limit the dependance of farmers to risk management programs. It could also generate substantial savings for the institution that largely finances these programs.

The results show the importance of working in close collaboration with local populations in order to implement political strategies that are appropriate and context-specific.

This project made it possible to formulate principles and guidelines to orient the adaptation of the management of protected areas toward climate change, a process in which Parcs Québec has already embarked. Moreover, it made it possible to reproduce the method for assessing the vulnerability of species to climate change.

This project helped to raise awareness among produce sector stakeholders about the main climate risks and their future evolution in relation to climate change, to identify mitigation measures for these risks in the form of production practices and technological solutions, and to recommend possible ways to guide and assist produce growers in diagnosing climate risks on their farm.

The methodological framework provides the scientific basis upon which to establish a network for monitoring biodiversity and the impacts of climate change in Quebec. Monitoring of biodiversity will provide the opportunity to assess the impacts of human disturbances and development and conservation efforts, as well as changes in biodiversity and ecological services, in the interest of climate change adaptation.

The results presented in the Atlas will help actors of the forest sector to better understand the links between the expected changes in climate and ecological impacts; to evaluate the opportunities and the risks associated with climate change for this sector; to better focus future projects on forest ecosystems and more generally on terrestrial ecosystems in Quebec in terms of adaptation to climate change.

The results of this study point out that for the salamanders, it may be more important to monitor anthropogenic activities than climate changes. It also allows to illustrate the relevance of a comprehensive approach to land conservation at the local scale.

In the current context of declining caribou populations, the inclusion of climate components in the analysis of space use by the migratory caribou sheds new light on the factors that determine the dynamics of these populations. These factors are being taken into account in the development of management plans.

The approach and the toolbox have been distributed among various major partners in the environmental assessment field, in particular the Commission sur les enjeux des mines uranifères, appointed by the Bureau d’audiences publiques sur l’environnement (BAPE).

The project helped to raise awareness among plant health professionals regarding the potential impacts of climate change on crop pests and their natural enemies.

As a result of this research, Quebec stakeholders in crop protection will have the elements needed to launch a climate change adaptation strategy for the sector based on an analysis of the coherence between the actions identified in Quebec’s 2011-2021 crop health strategy and the priority adaptation measures identified during this project.

Agricultural sector users have now access to summary knowledge on climate change and its potential impacts on the agricultural sector. They can access resource documents validated by experts, including an inventory of the knowledge and tools available for dealing with expected climate changes.

The tool developed in this project describes the levels of freedom space and can serve to integrate this concept into municipal and provincial water management policies. The analyses revealed the important role wetlands play in the proper functioning of rivers, especially in the climate change context, and supports efforts to better protect these essential areas.

This project has allowed to increase awareness through regular meetings of the municipal water withdrawers who share the same finite resource. It will allow improved preparedness for expected low flow periods, through a decision support tool that helps municipal users react more
rapidly and equitably. Moreover, it is an approach to monitoring that can be adapted to circumstances other than low flows.

The results obtained for the Yamaska basin will allow the extension of the studies to other basins and could eventually allow the implementation of the methodology within the forecasting system of the Centre d'expertise hydrique du Québec.

The results of this study reinforce the importance of avoiding disturbance of wetlands, which encourages the establishment of the common reed through seed germination, and revegetating any areas disturbed by work in marshes as quickly as possible.

This project reccomands the reduction of the fragmentation of habitats to encourage the spatial reorganization of species; to expand the network of protected areas and to conceive it based on climate change considerations. Moreover, a better system for monitoring biodiversity in Quebec is needed to detect changes and respond to them in time.

This project has revealed that it is to the advantage of the tourism industry to take a proactive leadership role in raising awareness and training; increased knowledge among participants and encouraged decision-making bodies in the pilot regions to adopt a practical approach to climate change adaptation; and shown the need for a support system and regulatory framework for the tourism industry that will encourage better climate change adaptation.

The project helped raise awareness about the health risks related to ragweed for property owners, managers and residents from neighborhoods in the eastern part of Montréal. It also enabled researchers to test the effectiveness of measures such as information mailings to owners of ragweed-infested land in limiting the impacts of ragweed during the pollen season so as to inform decision makers in terms of efforts to be made for heightening awareness.