WhiteCAP_Plan_01SEPT..

Northern Climate ExChange WhiteCAP Draft Plan
Whitehorse is the political and commercial hub of Yukon, with a relatively diverse
economy and extensive infrastructure. As of December 2009 the community had a
population of 25,690 (YBS, 2010); or 75% of the total population of the Territory. This far
exceeds the population of any other Yukon community 1 . Whitehorse is located within
the traditional territories of two Yukon First Nations; Kwanlin Dün and Ta’an Kwäch’än
(Environment Yukon, 2004). Given the size and diversity of the community of
Whitehorse and the range of potential issues anticipated to result from climate change in
the region, the study area boundary for the adaptation plan was established at the
Whitehorse city limits (Figure 1.1). The community of Whitehorse includes all people
residing within city limits. Although this precludes nearby unincorporated communities, it
is the expectation of the project team that the climate change risks for these
communities will be similar to that faced by Whitehorse. The recommendations of this
plan will therefore also hold true for neighboring communities.
The WhiteCAP plan first documents the methodology used to assess the vulnerabilities
of Whitehorse to climate change. The plan then inventories the current socio-economic
and environmental characteristics of the community to provide a basis for discussions of
risk later in the planning process. While some climate change impacts may be
unprecedented, many represent impacts that are already familiar, but that may occur
more frequently or more severely.
The project team has assessed priority based on the likelihood and severity of impacts
and also by how prepared the community already is to address the impacts – or their
adaptive capacity. Section four discusses climate change in a regional context. The
remainder of the plan is devoted to determining priority adaptations for the community of
Whitehorse. This report concludes with a discussion of potential community partners, a
suggested timeline, mainstreaming recommendations and next steps. Due to the
technical nature of some of the language in this report, a glossary of terms has been
provided in Appendix A and a list of acronyms has been provided in Appendix B.
1.1 The Whitehorse Climate Change Adaptation Plan Vision
A Whitehorse Local Advisory Committee was established at the outset of the Whitehorse
Adaptation project. The mandate of this local advisory committee was primarily to
provide guidance and ensure that the planning process sufficiently reflects community
concerns and is grounded in community capacity. As a starting point for this process, the
Whitehorse Local Advisory Committee was asked to describe their vision of a community
that has successfully adapted to climate change. This vision has guided the
development of the Whitehorse Climate Change Adaptation Plan:
2
The community of Whitehorse is preparing for climate change, including
variability and uncertainty, by building capacity, knowledge, resilience and
partnerships. Adaptation should be proactive and where practical enhance
natural systems, climate change mitigation, and the development and well-being
of the community.