A federal audit showed a five-year program, which cost $133.7 million, did not show any proof of reducing diesel pollution in Northern Canada..According to the auditors, the program helped build “trusting and respectful relationships” with the local indigenous people..“Officials described the program as primarily ‘about relationships’ which is the primary driver of program success,” said the department of Crown-Indigenous Relations. .“The program has successfully built trusting and respectful relationships with Indigenous and Northern communities.”.In 2016, a program called the Climate Change Adaptation Program was started to reduce pollution from diesel generators, the primary electricity source in small Arctic communities. .According to Blacklock’s Reporter, a review of the program did not show any decrease in diesel pollution..Funding was targeted at “reducing reliance on diesel,” said the Evaluation of the Climate Change Adaptation and Clean Energy Program 2016 to 2021. .However, the program “cannot be assessed on the extent to which it has helped ‘solve’ climate change adaptation and mitigation issues but rather the extent to which it has helped some communities better understand the issues and problems they are facing,” said the Evaluation..“Over the last 30 years, the Arctic has warmed at roughly twice the rate as elsewhere on the planet. This is primarily caused by melting ice. As ice melts, it becomes less reflective and more absorbent of sunlight and this results in increased warming.”.“Like all other nations, Canada is and will continue to be vulnerable to wide-ranging repercussions of climate change,” said the Evaluation. .“Indigenous and Northern communities are suffering disproportionate impacts of climate change, exacerbating the political, social and economic challenges they are already facing. There will continue to be a broad, continued and urgent need to support adaptation and mitigation in indigenous and Northern communities.”.Auditors complained of “inefficiencies,” “delays,” “limited capacity and expertise” and said program elements appeared “unclear” and “confusing.” .However, numerous committees and working groups were established with “dialogue” and “information sharing,” said Evaluation..In 2015, the Standards Council of Canada warned climate change could cause significant problems in the North..“While the North may be regarded as a region of perpetual ice and snow because of the long and cold winter season, it is the short, warm summers and brief shoulder seasons of spring and fall that create the perpetual surface drainage issues that are catastrophic in the extreme case,” said the report Community Drainage System Planning..Annual mean temperatures increased by 1.5C in Canada from 1950 to 2010, according to official estimate, and up to 3C in the North. .“Plans and infrastructure are often inadequate to accommodate the effects of a changing climate,” wrote the Standards Council.
