This blog is a reflection on Assignment #2 from CALS503: Climate Risk Management produced for the Masters of Climate Action Leadership program at Royal Roads University.
For agricultural producers in B.C., a changing climate can be seen as both a threat to their business and an opportunity for growth. The path towards climate adaptation is paved with new technologies, government regulations, and an ability to change course quickly, but by no means is there a one-size-fits-all solution.
The BC Agriculture Climate Change Adaptation Risk and Opportunity Assessment published by the BC Agriculture and Food Climate Action Initiative highlights, clearly and concisely, both the climate risks and opportunities facing BC’s agriculture sector. In this blog, I will summarize the report and provide a brief critical analysis, including any perceived shortcomings.
The report is broad, acting as a resource for the entirety of the BC agriculture sector. The authors recognize the importance of collecting regional data and producing more specified reports, however, there is a critical lack of resources of this kind available at the moment. The authors recognize that “in spite of variations within the sector, there are many similarities with respect to key issues and opportunities” (p.7). The report provides both a provincial overview and regional/commodity snapshots that are designed as a general resource for all regions and all commodities within the province. The intended audience of this report includes various stakeholders within the agricultural industry, including government bodies, producers, and academics.
Key objectives of the report include bringing light to the potential impacts of climate change and identifying gaps in the information and resources available to support the sector with climate adaptation. The report brings attention to the many vulnerabilities, risks, adaptive capacities, and opportunities facing the sector, and aims to document past, present, and planned farm practices, thereby assisting producers with managing climate variations by compiling this research into one concise document (p.6).
This assessment was produced using a bottom-up, mixed-method approach with a strong focus on qualitative data collected from non-scientific sources including anecdotal experiences collected from producers across the province. 37 producers and specialists representing 12 region/commodity-specific focus groups were engaged to discuss the industry’s current capacity to adapt to challenging conditions. Provincial government commodity specialists and key private sector advisors were also interviewed for this report. Although the authors state that this study does not employ a quantitative approach (p. 17), this report does include an overview of relevant scientific research and data, including a review of provincial and regional level climate trends and projections and biophysical variables which were used to develop materials for the focus groups (p. 12).
Clearly defined key terms including risk, hazard, and adaptive capacity are available throughout the report and are based on definitions provided by the Pacific Climate Impacts Consortium. A full glossary of key terms can be found in the appendix (p.63).
Data collected from the focus groups and industry experts was compiled and analyzed to produce an overview of impacts, risks, and opportunities for the industry. The potential impacts are summarized and presented in a table, with each key issue presented in rough order. The risks and opportunities were not ranked, as adaptive capacity and vulnerability vary greatly amongst producers, regions, and commodities. Each impact is then explored further, highlighting both on-farm and beyond-farm manageability and adaptation factors.
Finally, the report highlights 6 Principles of Adaptation that will better enable the industry to respond to a changing climate. Key actions are highlighted and organized into five sections intended to “provide producers, governments, and citizens with the background to set priorities for improving the resilience of BC’s agriculture sector” (p. 45).
Overall, this report is written using clear language and an accessible format that makes it a valuable resource for producers, decision-makers, and citizens alike. Despite its large scope, the report achieves its objectives and provides a comprehensive overview of the risks, opportunities, and resilience gaps facing BC’s agriculture sector. A glaring shortcoming of this report is that it does not address Indigenous perspectives in any way, nor make note of Indigenous producers or leaders being included in the focus groups or brought in as expert opinions. British Columbia is home to 198 distinct First Nations (Province of British Columbia, 2022). It is unclear why Indigenous perspectives would have been left out of this otherwise thorough report, and the opportunity to include valuable knowledge regarding traditional land management, invasive species and pests, or historical weather patterns has been lost in not engaging local Indigenous communities.
The BC Agriculture Climate Change Adaptation Risk and Opportunity Assessment provides a clear roadmap for anyone within the industry looking to adapt to a changing climate, regardless of financial, informational, or physical barriers. This report makes it clear to any reader that while climate change will cause major uncertainty for producers across the province, the opportunities available for producers, stakeholders, and government bodies who choose to seriously address adaptation within the industry are abundant.
References:
British Columbia Agriculture & Food Climate Action Initiative. (2012). BC Agriculture Risk and Opportunity Assessment – Provincial Report. Retrieved from https://www.climateagriculturebc.ca/app/uploads/AdaptROseries-Provincial.pdf
Province of British Columbia. (2022). B.C. First Nations and Indigenous People. Welcome B.C. Retrieved from https://www.welcomebc.ca/Choose-B-C/Explore-British-Columbia/B-C-First-Nations-Indigenous-People#:~:text=There%20are%20198%20distinct%20First,are%20spoken%20in%20the%20province.\
Featured Photo: Koblitz, J. (2020). Harvesting Machine. Retrieved from https://unsplash.com/photos/WbCZlA0JAfA
Thanks for your blog Kaitlin! The report you reviewed was so different from the one I reviewed for assignment 2 that I learned a lot just by reading your summary of the assessment. What I found particularly interesting is the conclusion that climate change may be an opportunity for growth within the agricultural sector. I’m curious: do you think that makes conversations around climate change easier or more difficult? Essentially, does the potentially positive impacts of climate change make the topic of climate easier for producers to engage with? Or does it complicate the conversation?
Hi Kaitlin,
Thank you for sharing this summary. BC agriculture is a field that I know little about, and your analysis helps me understand it better. Two things catch my attention.
1. The fact that the report was based on non-scientific collected information. I understand that those with lived experience share their stories and understandings of the climate situation. That seems a great way to get a bigger picture than only having data. Shi et al. (2016) confirm that: “adaptation planners too often only engage community groups on joint fact-finding for vulnerability assessments and education about climate risks, and not for the framing and identification of adaptation strategies.” That is refreshing that the authors of your report did differently.
2. Six principles were mentioned in your summary. I did not see something similar in the other reports that we evaluated. It seems a great way to regroup the actions and communicate them. The term “principles” sounds more collaborative than the word rules or recommended items, for example. I will keep it in mind and try to integrate it into my future work.