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Cycling in Vancouver: A portrait of bicycle ridership and safety in Vancouver 2010-2020
The report finds that bicycle ridership in Vancouver grew consistently between 2010 and 2020, driven by a 28% expansion of the protected cycling network. While total collisions decreased in 2019 and 2020, the highest collision risk occurs in late fall and early winter. A key finding is the distinction between high-frequency collision sites (often in the downtown core on existing facilities) and high-risk sites (often on arterials lacking protected infrastructure).
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Document type: Report
We’ve been building for a world that no longer exists
The author warns that Canadian investors and infrastructure owners are operating in a world that no longer exists, as the financial risks of a warming climate remain underpriced. Citing a Canadian Climate Institute report, the text highlights that annual flood damage to homes and buildings could reach $4.5 billion to $5.5 billion within 30 years. The document contends that a lack of open-access climate risk data leads to flawed financial analysis and calls for regulators to mandate the disclosure of climate risks to prevent a systemic financial shock.
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Document type: Statement
Western North American extreme heat virtually impossible without human-caused climate change
A rapid analysis of the June 2021 Pacific Northwest heatwave concludes that the event was virtually impossible without human-caused climate change. The study estimates the event as a 1-in-1000-year occurrence in the current climate, noting it was approximately 2°C hotter than it would have been before the industrial revolution. Projections indicate that with 2°C of global warming, such events could occur every 5 to 10 years.
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Document type: Research paper
Rapid attribution analysis of the extraordinary heatwave on the Pacific Coast of the US and Canada June 2021
The report concludes that the June 2021 Pacific Northwest heatwave was virtually impossible without human-caused climate change, estimating it as a 1-in-1000 year event in the current climate. The analysis indicates the event was approximately 2°C hotter than it would have been in a pre-industrial climate and would have been at least 150 times rarer without anthropogenic warming. Future projections suggest that in a world with 2°C of global warming, such an event would occur every 5 to 10 years and be another degree hotter. Meteorological drivers included an 'omega-block' high-pressure system and dry antecedent soil conditions, while natural variability modes like ENSO and PDO played little to no role.
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Document type: Research paper
Costing Climate Change Impacts on Canada’s Infrastructure: Results for “Deep Dive” Statistical and Process-based Models Final Report
The report finds that inland flooding represents the highest annual cost of climate change for Canadian infrastructure, with mid-range estimates between $5 billion and $8 billion per year. Proactive adaptation can significantly reduce costs for roads, rail, and the electrical grid, though it is less effective for permafrost thaw and inland flooding. The analysis highlights that while total costs are often concentrated in high-population areas like Ontario, specific geographic risks such as permafrost thaw disproportionately affect the three territories.
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Document type: Report
Clean Growth in Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia has achieved significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions between 2005 and 2018 while maintaining economic growth, driven by fuel switching in electricity, energy efficiency, and a growing clean tech sector. However, the province faces structural unemployment in rural and Indigenous communities, high energy costs for households, and difficulties in decarbonizing the transportation sector to meet its target of net-zero emissions by 2050.
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Document type: Case study
Mesurer le chemin parcouru vers la croissance propre
The Canadian Climate Institute introduces a framework of 11 indicators to track 'clean growth' in Canada, balancing economic prosperity with climate action. The report identifies that while most provinces have decoupled GDP growth from GHG emissions since 2005, significant gaps remain in technology adoption, data collection for climate costs, and the protection of vulnerable populations and ecosystems. It argues for a 'skeptical optimism' approach, where governments actively resolve barriers to transition rather than assuming growth will naturally follow emission declines.
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Document type: Executive summary
An Online Environmental Scan of Right-wing Extremism in Canada
The report identifies a significant online presence of right-wing extremism in Canada, involving 6,660 accounts and channels across seven platforms with a collective reach of over 11 million users. While ethnonationalists are the most prevalent group on mainstream platforms like Facebook and Twitter, explicit white supremacist activity is concentrated on fringe sites such as Iron March and Fascist Forge. The study finds that RWE activity spikes around key events, specifically the Christchurch attack and the 2019 Canadian federal election, with anti-Muslim and anti-Trudeau rhetoric serving as primary drivers of conversation. Offline findings indicate a growth in RWE activity in the Maritime provinces and an increasing fascination with paramilitary training and weaponry among groups like the Three Percenters.
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Document type: Report
Climate Change Toolkit for Health Professionals
The document details how climate change affects Canadian health through extreme heat, air pollution, UV radiation, and the spread of vector-borne and water-borne diseases. It emphasizes that marginalized populations, including Indigenous peoples and low-income individuals, face disproportionate risks. Regional analyses highlight specific threats such as melting permafrost in the North, hurricanes in Atlantic Canada, and increased drought in the Prairies.
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Document type: Guide
Climate Change Toolkit for Health Professionals
The document outlines adaptation strategies for various climate-related health risks in Canada, including extreme temperature events, flooding, wildfires, food insecurity, vector-borne diseases, and water quality issues. It provides specific examples of municipal actions—such as Toronto's green roof bylaws and Vancouver's warming centres—and offers actionable tips for health professionals to support vulnerable patients and advocate for resilient community policies.
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Document type: Guide
Submission to the City of Edmonton IPM Review
The Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE) submitted a brief to the City of Edmonton arguing that the current Integrated Pest Management (IPM) policy fails to adequately address human health risks. CAPE highlights that children are particularly vulnerable to pesticide exposure, which is linked to developmental deficits and childhood cancers, while adults face risks of Parkinson's disease and various cancers. The document criticizes Health Canada's Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA) for relying on industry-supplied data and failing to conduct timely re-evaluations of registered pesticides. CAPE recommends that Edmonton formalize a policy to eliminate routine toxic pesticide use in city-managed parks and for mosquito control, and implement a bylaw restricting non-essential pesticide use on residential and private lawns.
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Document type: Statement
Estimating consumption-based greenhouse gas emissions at the city scale
The document explains that consumption-based emissions inventories (CBEIs) capture the full carbon footprint of a city by including emissions from goods and services produced outside city borders. It identifies that for wealthy, industrialized cities, CBEIs are often significantly higher than territorial inventories. The guide details three main estimation approaches: spending data with input-output models, physical data with life-cycle analysis, and hybrid methods. It advises city planners to align their choice of methodology with their specific goals, such as resident education, peer comparison, or local policy design, while emphasizing the importance of detailed categorization to identify high-leverage areas for emissions reduction.
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Document type: Guide
PLANIFICACIÓN DE LA ADAPTACIÓN AL CAMBIO CLIMÁTICO EN LAS CIUDADES ESPAÑOLAS
The document finds that climate adaptation planning in Spanish cities is in its early stages, with only 11 of 54 analyzed cities having specific plans, most of which were developed in the last three years. While these plans show strengths in international network adherence and risk assessment, they lack binding legislation, dedicated budgets, and sufficient integration of equity and justice. The brief highlights Barcelona, Córdoba, and Murcia as high-performing cities and suggests that the Spanish state and regional governments should provide more technical and financial support, potentially through mandatory planning regulations similar to those in the UK, Denmark, France, and Slovakia.
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Document type: Policy brief
Submission to the City of Calgary IPM Review Avoiding Pesticide Health Risks in Calgary
CAPE submits that Calgary's current Integrated Pest Management (IPM) plan is insufficient to protect residents from the health risks of toxic pesticides. The organization highlights specific vulnerabilities of children and adults, criticizes the federal PMRA regulatory process, and recommends a corporate ban on routine toxic pesticide use alongside a municipal bylaw for private properties.
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Document type: Briefing
Microsoft Word - Letter to TrudeauClimateHealth2018
Health professionals argue that the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion (TMX) poses significant risks to public health and the environment, claiming that the National Energy Board's review process was flawed and failed to account for climate-related health impacts and the toxicity of diluted bitumen.
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Document type: Statement
Tracking Progress on SDG 8
The document evaluates the performance of Canadian cities against SDG 8, focusing on GDP per capita, labour productivity, median income, unemployment, and youth unemployment. While GDP and median incomes have generally risen, the report highlights persistent gender pay gaps and regional disparities in unemployment, particularly in Prairie cities.
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Document type: Briefing
The Carbon-Free City Handbook: Electricity
The document outlines four specific actions for cities to achieve carbon-free electricity: implementing LED smart streetlighting, creating electric districts by removing natural gas infrastructure, installing municipal solar photovoltaics, and leveraging renewable energy supply mechanisms like power purchase agreements.
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Document type: Guide
The Carbon-Free City Handbook: Biological Resources
The document outlines three primary actions for cities to reduce their carbon footprint through biological resource management: diverting organic waste from landfills to prevent methane emissions, expanding urban forestry to create carbon sinks and reduce cooling energy needs, and promoting plant-based diets to lower food-related emissions.
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Document type: Guide
Carbon-Free City Handbook: Transportation and Mobility
The transportation sector accounts for 36% of greenhouse gas emissions in large cities. To address this, the handbook outlines several strategic actions: electrifying municipal fleets, reducing internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles through bans or restrictions, managing urban freight emissions, expanding EV charging infrastructure, creating car-free downtown zones, and enhancing public transit and mobility alternatives like bikeshare and pedestrian-friendly streets.
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Document type: Guide
The Carbon-Free City Handbook: Buildings
The document outlines five strategic actions for cities to address the built environment, which accounts for nearly 50 percent of GHG emissions in large cities. These actions include performing deep energy retrofits on city-owned buildings, implementing net-zero and progressive building codes, supporting citywide LED lighting upgrades, and requiring energy benchmarking and public transparency for building energy use.
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Document type: Guide