Climate Change
What is climate change and what are its impacts?
Climate change, the long-term change in Earth’s weather patterns, is contributing to enormous environmental, social, and economic challenges both globally and locally.
In the Lake Simcoe watershed, the changing climate is already contributing to extreme heat, drought, flooding, and more intense weather, impacting natural areas and wildlife, farming, urban areas, and the lake itself. In fact, there is already measurable evidence of impacts to stream flow, flood risk, phosphorus loading, and the period of ice cover on Lake Simcoe.
How is the climate changing in the Lake Simcoe Watershed?
How will climate change impact the Lake Simcoe Watershed?
What does this mean for you?
Here are some examples of how climate change might impact different communities across the watershed. It’s important to keep in mind that certain communities may experience these impacts more than others. Equitable climate action is critical.
The growing season might become longer, but climate change will bring about new or more dramatic stressors for crops and livestock, including expanded ranges of pests and disease, interspersed drought periods and flood events, and unpredictable, extreme weather.
Expect to see more salt on roads across the watershed as cycling between freezing and thawing increases. More salt applied to our roadways will have negative impacts on water quality and the health of species and ecosystems across the watershed.
We are already seeing a shorter ice season for Lake Simcoe, but this will continue to shorten as climate change intensifies. That’s not just bad news for those who enjoy ice fishing. A number of key lake and biological processes are driven by lake temperature, which can have dramatic impacts on the cycling and distribution of oxygen and nutrients in the lake, and alter populations of fish, invertebrates, and other aquatic species, including invasives.
Increases cycling between freezing and thawing in Lake Simcoe and within its tributaries brings about increased erosion risks. Extreme storm events will also impact water quality.
Towns and cities across the watershed will become warmer, especially in the summer with extreme heat events becoming more frequent, due to heat absorption by impervious surfaces like asphalt and concrete.
Impervious surface cover in urban environments will also increase risk to flash flood events from the predicted increase in intense, longer, and more frequent storm events.
What are we doing about climate change?
Adaptation Planning
Adaptation actions focus on building resilience so that we can better prepare for the impacts of climate change such as extreme weather, drought, and flooding.
Our Climate Change Adaptation Strategy reviews the potential impacts of a changing climate on watershed function and showcases our plan for watershed-wide adaptation action.
Mitigation Planning
Mitigation actions focus on decreasing the magnitude of climate change impacts through reducing the amount of greenhouse gases that are causing climate change. To achieve this, we are decreasing our reliance on fossil fuels and promoting the uptake of carbon through the protection and enhancement of natural areas such as forests and wetlands.
Our Climate Change Mitigation Strategy and Corporate Carbon Reduction Strategy showcase our plan to implement mitigation action across the Lake Simcoe watershed and within our organization, respectively.
Taking Action
We have committed in our Strategic Plan to address climate change across the Lake Simcoe watershed, and strive to do so equitably. To remain accountable to this commitment, we annually track our progress on implementing the recommendations from the Adaptation, Mitigation, and Corporate Carbon Reduction Strategies in a public Climate Change Implementation Plan report.
The summary report provides a high-level overview of this progress and highlights climate action by various teams.
The detailed progress table provides an in-depth view of progress for each action from the Climate Change Adaptation, Mitigation, and Corporate Carbon Reduction Strategies.
Our Forestry team published the Adapting Forestry Programs for Climate Change report in 2018 to address the challenges faced to our forests as a result of climate change. Their annual progress report showcases how Forestry is implementing these recommendations, and the Climate Resilient Planting Guide advises which species forestry and restoration practitioners should plant to be resilient to future climate conditions in the Lake Simcoe watershed.
Ongoing Research
We are tackling climate change together! Learn more about our other collaborative climate change projects here.
- Natural Asset Carbon Assessment Guide and Toolbox: to standardize and guide carbon accounting across and beyond the watershed
- Durham Forest carbon study: research by the Forestry team on carbon sequestration and storage in a manage forest
- Town of East Gwillimbury carbon/ greenhouse gas inventory: a land cover-based greenhouse gas inventory in East Gwillimbury
- Town of East Gwillimbury urban heat study: a land cover-based study about impacts of climate change on urban heat in East Gwillimbury, and mitigation suggestions
- Urban Forest studies: research and publications by our Forestry team to guide management of urban forests across York Region
- Climate Change Engagement Guidebook: a quick-reference document to guide internal staff on engaging partners about climate change
What can you do?
Be aware of upcoming flooding or low water events
Visit our website for information about general flood risk and low water events
Assess your property’s flood risk
Check our Regulation Maps page to find out if your property may be prone to flooding: https://lsrca.on.ca/index.php/watershed-health/flooding/
Work with us to help you plant trees or restore natural features on your property
Check out our forestry and restoration programs to find out how you may be eligible for funding to restore natural features on your property or plant trees or start your own environmentally-focused community event, funded by us!
- Tree Planting and Community Action: https://lsrca.on.ca/index.php/funding-expertise/tree-planting/
- Fund restoration on the Farm: https://lsrca.on.ca/index.php/funding-expertise/on-the-farm/
- Fund restoration on the Country: https://lsrca.on.ca/index.php/funding-expertise/in-the-country/
- Fund restoration on the Shore: https://lsrca.on.ca/index.php/funding-expertise/on-the-shore/
- Fund restoration in Town: https://lsrca.on.ca/index.php/funding-expertise/in-town/
Mitigate your contribution to climate change by reducing use of fossil fuels, and save money too!
- Check out the Durham Greener homes page to explore efficient fixtures and appliances and see how you can also save on energy costs: https://durhamgreenerhomes.ca/energy-efficiency/
- Carpooling can help reduce emissions. Smart Commute can help you find a commuting partner: https://www.smartcommute.ca/public/home.aspx
Become climate ready
- Learn about how you can use low impact development to better manage rainfall: https://lsrca.on.ca/index.php/planning-permits/lid-practices/
- Build a rain garden: https://lsrca.on.ca/index.php/home/rain-gardens/
- The Intact Centre on Climate Adaptation has Climate-Ready Infographics to show how you can deal with extreme heat, flood risk, and more: https://www.intactcentreclimateadaptation.ca/climate-ready-infographics/
- If you live in Durham Region, you may be eligible for financial incentives to support climate readiness for your home: https://durhamgreenerhomes.ca/financial/
Who to Contact
Integrated Watershed Management
✆ 905-895-1281
✆ 1-800-465-0437 Toll free 
info@LSRCA.on.ca
Climate Change Resources 
Lake Simcoe Sessions Podcast
Join us for an audio learning journey, where you will have the chance to hear how climate change is impacting us locally, here in the Lake Simcoe Region.