Becoming a Climate-Ready Toronto

Read Toronto’s Climate Risks: Understanding Vulnerability Today, Preparing for Tomorrow, a report identifying the City’s climate hazards and risks, and future impacts as the climate continues to change.

In addition to reducing GHG emissions, Toronto needs to plan ahead to be ready to cope with and recover from the impacts of a changing climate.

Climate change adaptation means taking proactive action to lower the risks and negative impacts of a changing climate so that communities and ecosystems are prepared to cope with the new climate conditions.

Climate resilience is the ability to respond to climate change and extreme weather events quickly, effectively, and equitably. In a climate-resilient city, the interconnected systems we depend on can respond and reorganize to provide the functions and services we depend on and recognize. Climate resilience is connected to the broader concept of urban resilience.

 

Evidence is clear that Toronto’s climate is changing. The city’s climate is becoming warmer, wetter and more unpredictable, which has a direct impact on residents, infrastructure and City services:

Based on these findings, the main climate hazards and impacts for Toronto include:

  • Warmer temperatures: Toronto’s average annual temperature has been steadily rising. In the future, Toronto is expected to experience higher average temperatures and more heat events with days exceeding 30°C. Increased extreme heat events will exacerbate the urban heat island effect and increase the risk of physical health impacts for residents, especially those with existing health conditions.
  • Varying precipitation: More precipitation is expected but will be localized. Toronto can expect to see an increase in severe rainfall over short periods of time, increasing the risk of flooding and erosion, and damage to public and residential buildings.
  • Fewer cold days and less snow: A decline in cold days below – 20°C is expected. This will also result in less precipitation falling as snow. While cold weather risks are expected to decrease, extreme winter and ice storms will continue to pose a serious threat to the city’s infrastructure and interrupt delivery of critical services.
  • Longer frost-free season: Extended warm-weather periods will benefit agricultural production but will increase the growth and spread of insects and pests.

These changes in weather are costly, affect the health and wellness of Toronto residents, and can damage public and private infrastructure and natural ecosystems. Acting early saves money: investing a dollar of public funds on adaptation today can save governments $15 in the future. Across Ontario, a proactive adaptation approach would save $1.1 billion dollars per year in climate costs by the end of the century, compared with simply reacting to the impacts of climate change. There are also mental and physical health benefits to accessing green urban spaces, creating green jobs, connecting communities and addressing inequities.

Climate change will affect Toronto in many ways. To reduce these impacts, we need equitable solutions to ensure everyone can adapt to climate change.

See the full list of actions in the Technical Report: Toronto’s Climate Risks: Understanding Vulnerability Today, Preparing for Tomorrow.

    More Information

    Toronto’s 2019 Resilience Strategy identified the many important pressures that Torontonians are facing, including housing, mobility, equity, climate change, civic engagement, and the strength of communities, and discussed how we can build resilience to all of these important challenges. To address our resilience to climate change, we need to change how we do business to consider how a future climate will affect the infrastructure, natural systems, services, and communities that make up the City. Examples of projects that increase Toronto’s climate resilience are:

    Climate-Resilient People and Planning

    • Toronto’s Heat Relief Strategy, aims to reduce the incidence of heat-related illness and death in Toronto due to extreme heat and includes a network of cool spaces that are open throughout the summer.
    • The City’s Emergency Plan specifically considers extreme weather events including flooding, winter weather and extreme heat.
    • Toronto’s Wildfire Smoke Response Strategy was developed in 2023 in response to unprecedented air quality impacts.

    Climate-Resilient Natural and Built Environments

    • The Toronto Green Standard sets sustainable design and performance requirements for new private and city-owned developments.
    • A new Bayview Avenue Flood Traffic Management System will enable effective traffic diversion during flooding in this area.
    • Toronto’s Green Streets manage the impact of wet weather events and provides social, economic and environmental benefits.
    • The Wet Weather Flow Master Plan protects our environment and water quality in the Lake, rivers, streams and other water bodies from stormwater.
    • Toronto’s Ravine Strategy guides ravine management, use, enhancement and protection of the City’s Ravines, and the Toronto Biodiversity Strategy aims to support healthier, more robust biodiversity and increased awareness of nature in Toronto.
    • Toronto’s Parkland Strategy intends to expand the system, improve the function of existing parks, connect parks and other open spaces, and remove barriers so that parks and other open spaces are inclusive places and equitably accessible to everyone.

    Climate challenges do not exist in isolation. The impacts will be felt across all the City’s interconnected systems and services. As the climate continues to change, disruptions to public services and amenities will become more frequent. Most importantly, climate change disproportionately affects equity-deserving communities. These communities often face unfair impacts from climate change due to factors like inadequate infrastructure and social disparities. The risks and impacts from heat and flood will not be distributed evenly across neighbourhoods, resulting in unequal impacts to residents and vulnerable communities.

    Climate equity ensures that:

    • Climate resilience efforts prioritize marginalized and vulnerable communities
    • Residents have equal access to resources and information, and that communities are engaged in the climate planning process
    • Resilience efforts are focused around those most affected, foster inclusivity and address historic injustices.

    Climate justice recognizes that climate impacts are disproportionately felt by those that are the least responsible for it. As the City continues to plan for and adapt to climate change, the communities that are most vulnerable to climate impacts will be prioritized, and climate action planning will be informed by the needs of these communities.

    Embracing Indigenous worldviews means respecting the wisdom, knowledge, and practices of Indigenous communities, particularly as they relate to the land. Indigenous peoples have a deep understanding of sustainable land stewardship and ecosystem preservation. For climate resilience initiatives, incorporating Indigenous perspectives means collaborating respectfully with Indigenous peoples, benefiting from their insights, and acknowledging their role as knowledge keepers and environmental stewards.

    Stay informed: Check your local forecast or learn about Weather Alerts for Toronto. During an extreme weather event you can receive information from places like newspapers, telephone, internet and social media, the local television and radio station, or people you know in your community.

    Prepare your home: There are measures you can take to protect your home from climate impacts related to heat, flooding, wind damage, and loss of power. These infographics include measures for people who live in apartments and condos as well as ideas for commercial real estate. There are also ways to weatherproof your home while preparing for extreme heat, cold and wind with the Preparing for Extreme Weather resource.

    Stay connected: Research shows that people who are isolated are the most likely to be affected when there are extreme weather events. Communities with more social connections tend to be more resilient to any kind of stress. Join a community organization, get to know your neighbours – and check in on those who live alone.