Engineers Canada is pleased to see the federal government’s commitment to building resilient and sustainable infrastructure, improving water distribution and treatment and investing in First Nations communities.
OTTAWA, March 22, 2016 – Engineers Canada is pleased to see the federal government’s commitment to building resilient and sustainable infrastructure, improving water distribution and treatment and investing in First Nations communities.
“This budget represents an investment in a vision of Canada that is built on a strong foundation of science, creativity, and innovation,” said Engineers Canada Chief Executive Officer Kim Allen, FEC, P.Eng., FCAE, MBA. “Canada’s 280,000 professional engineers are ready and willing to help achieve these ambitious goals.”
“Budget 2016: Growing the Middle Class” includes a number of items that will benefit Canadians and will call upon the expertise of engineers:
- $11.9 billion over five years for Phase 1 of Canada’s New Infrastructure Plan, including investments in public transit systems, green infrastructure and social infrastructure.
- $2 billion over four years for immediate improvements to water distribution and treatment infrastructure.
- $129 million over five years to seven federal departments and agencies to implement programming focused on the science base to inform decision-making with regards to adapting to climate change.
- $40 million over five years to integrate climate resilience into building design, guides and codes.
- $2.24 billion over five years to improve on reserve water and wastewater infrastructure and waste management.
- $255 million over two years to the First Nations Infrastructure Fund to support investments such as roads, bridges, energy systems and physical infrastructure to mitigate the effects of natural disasters.
“Engineers Canada looks forward to working with the federal government and stakeholders to integrate climate resilience into national building codes through evidence-based climate vulnerability assessments,” said Engineers Canada’s Vice-President of Strategy and Partnerships, Jeanette M. Southwood, M.A.Sc., P.Eng., FEC, FCAE. “We are ready to leverage our Public Infrastructure Engineering Vulnerability Committee (PIEVC) Protocol to serve as a valuable resource to provide the science base to inform decision-making and protect the health and well-being of Canadians.”
The PIEVC Protocol—which has been applied more than 40 times in Canada and globally—is a robust, structured and documented process for engineers, planners and decision-makers to identify and recommend measures to address the vulnerabilities and risks from climate change on infrastructure. The Protocol assessment helps infrastructure owners and managers justify design, operations and maintenance recommendations to assure their project’s life cycle through improved resilience to extreme weather events and our changing climate.
Engineers Canada submitted budget recommendations to the House of Commons Standing Committee on Finance in January 2016. This pre-budget submission called for increased investment in climate-resilient infrastructure, promotion of STEM careers and the encouragement of diversity within them, and increased support for green technology and innovations. Read the full submission on Engineers Canada’s website.
Engineers Canada is the national organization of the 12 engineering regulators that license the country's 280,000 members of the profession. Together, we work to advance the profession in the public interest. www.engineerscanada.ca
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For more information, contact:
Brent Gibson
Practice Lead, Communications
Engineers Canada
613.232.2474 x234
brent.gibson@engineerscanada.ca
