Coastal resilience and supply networks face new challenges with changing climate
SustainabilityThe Sustainable Growth Initiative at McGill University recently invited sustainability experts from the marine, rail, insurance and municipal realms to focus on the interconnected challenges of maintaining resilient coastal systems and supply chains in view of climate change.
“The first impacts we’re seeing relate to workers’ health and safety,” Claudine Couture-Trudel, QSL’s Vice President, ESG Policy & Future Initiatives, told students at the Third Annual Grand Challenge on Sustainability Powered by Gildan on March 18th.
Photo: william william on Unsplash
“Our people are working in unprecedented harsher weather conditions such as two snowstorms in Houston, Texas, in the last four years, and this often requires halting operations, which disrupts the supply chain and requires us to work around these disruptions,” she said, adding that having 66 port terminals gives QSL agility, but it’s nevertheless a challenge to redirect cargo.
Sarah Favel, CN’s Senior Manager – Sustainability, said climate change is already causing impacts that heighten risk management. “We just had a derailment because of the atmospheric river conditions in the Vancouver area,” she noted.
“We’re also dealing with rail buckling during the winter, which is unusual, but happening with temperatures swinging from -15° Celsius to +15°C. And because our network stretches from East to West and into the South, the risks vary from snow and ice to forest fires to flooding to hurricanes.”
Prioritizing risk assessment
Couture-Trudel noted that the investment fund that owns QSL is keenly interested in the risk assessment for the company’s existing and planned infrastructure. “They’re especially concerned from a health and safety standpoint because this involves human lives and can be so costly,” she said.
“Our customers want to know that we’re ISO 14001certified because their environmental risks are lowered by that certification,” she added.
And now – especially as it relates to container shipments –Patagonia, Nestlé, Microsoft and others want to know the amount of GHG emitted by each shipped container so they can relate this to their customers and in some cases enter those calculations into a credit carbon system.
Mitch McEwen, the Director of Sustainability, Climate Resilience & Community Impact at Wawanesa Insurance, noted that premiums across Canada have risen about 20% with risks heightened, particularly in areas such as British Columbia where forest fires have hardened the ground making floods worse.
It’s getting harder to obtain insurance.
Municipal burdens
Sophie Mauzerolle is seeing the direct effects of climate change as a municipal councillor in L’Île‑Verte in the Lower St. Lawrence region.
Sophie Mauzerolle is seeing the direct effects of climate change as a municipal councillor in L’Île‑Verte in the Lower St. Lawrence region. “In past winters, everyone used an ice bridge to and from this island, but now that opportunity is very brief or unavailable,” she shared. “We have to rely on helicopters for groceries and medicine.”
A former Montreal councillor, Mauzerolle noted that municipalities find themselves at the forefront of climate emergencies.
We’re the ones dealing with the washed-out roads, and fielding calls about the power outages. And the ones setting up shelters, even though we don’t have the financial levers to take care of all of this.
McEwen said there isn’t always the political will to make investments that extend beyond likely terms in office. “All the levels of government, industries, financial institutions, and others have to take a holistic societal approach on these really complex issues and make some really uncomfortable decisions,” he said.
Achieving consensus
Couture-Trudel noted that the maritime industry took major initiative in launching the Green Marine environmental certification program in 2007 because ship owners, port authorities and terminal operators on the Canadian and U.S. side of the St. Lawrence River and Great Lakes wanted to convey that maritime transportation emits significantly lower carbon emissions per ton-mile compared to other modes.
“I sit on the Green Marine board and what impresses me the most is how we have always invited scientists from universities and other research institutions, as well as the representatives of environmental organizations and community groups, to sit with us to reach consensus on how we can improve sustainability while still operating our business,” she said.
Heightened community engagement can slow things down as a project’s managers grapple with competing interests, she added. “We might have to drop some great suggestions because either time is of the essence, or resources are limited,” she noted. “For instance, everyone wants to involve Indigenous communities in consultations so they’re being asked to give their opinion on various projects at the same time and might not have all the in-house expertise available.”
Enduring ramifications
She acknowledged that the current U.S. federal government has discouraged the clean energy transition by eliminating various supportive funding that made returns on investment more attractive or mitigated innovation risks. “But a change in policies doesn’t shift the climate change risks,” she added. “Companies will face impacts no matter what’s happening politically.”
Couture-Trudel also cited the need at times to wait on others. “The Quebec maritime industry is highly motivated to electrify vessels for both directions of some routes, for example, to keep pace with Europe’s clear electrification schedule,” she explained. “But Hydro-Quebec isn’t willing at this point to give ports the capacity for sufficient plug-in power at a price that’s feasible for our industry.”
Prioritizing ESG reduction, QSL is working alongside others to have the Port of Quebec authorized to handle international containers*. “There are only five such ports in Canada right now,” Couture-Trudel related. “Adding the Port of Quebec would reduce cargo-related emissions on the scale of a major public transportation project.”
*Editor’s note: The Canadian government’s announcement designating the Port of Québec as an international container port was made on April 24, after this panel took place..
Innovative approaches
Couture-Trudel encouraged out-of-the-box thinking to respond to changing trade realities in ways that advance sustainability. “In one case, we installed 2.5 kilometres (1.5 miles) of electric conveyors and electric crane-lifts to seize a new agri-food opportunity at a port no longer receiving heavy cargo,” she said.
With these and other initiatives, such as discouraging truck idling, we’ve reduced our GHG emissions by 55% since 2008.
QSL is working in partnership with others to find other innovative long-term solutions to climate change risks, such as potentially lower St. Lawrence water levels. “We’re creating a floating wharf in Sorel, which is not easy to do in a river with a strong current and frequent ice conditions,” Couture-Trudel shared. “It will not only be more flexible, but will have less of an impact on biodiversity, particularly the endangered copper redhorse fish that exists only in Quebec.”
Favel noted that CN is keenly aware that people want to know how the Company is responding to changing climate conditions across its network.
CN has a responsibility to protect its infrastructure and assets, but also to the communities it serves, especially in the event of extreme weather events. When the Jasper (Alberta) fires happened, CN deployed its firefighting fleet with railcars of equipment and water.
In 2025, CN spent approximately $3.7 billion in its capital program, with about $1.8 billion going towards the safety and integrity of its network. “We also talk a lot with customers, suppliers, and service providers, such as port authorities, to identify risks and how we can manage them better together,” Favel said.
McEwen said the long-term risks of forest fires, heat waves and other climate change impacts are yet to be assessed. “If you care about resiliency, you should also care about emissions reduction,” he added. “For the insurance industry, that’s very obvious.”
Couture-Trudel said governments will need to make courageous decisions in their use of taxpayer dollars to help mitigate impacts that will not affect people in the same ways. “Climate change is accelerating but we, as people, are slow to adapt so there will be more disruptions until we catch up.”
Properly communicating risks and proposed solutions to the public is essential, along with taking the feedback from consultations into serious consideration.
You can’t wait for a project to be perfect in everyone’s opinion to proceed with it, but you need people to trust that you are committed to continuing to improve.
In response to a question as to what young people can do, Favel encouraged the students to be curious about issues rather than quickly settle on a solution. “Even the way you word a ‘problem statement’ changes whom you consult.”
Third Annual Grand Challenge on Sustainability Powered by Gildan, organized by Sustainable Growth Initiative at McGill University
Photo: Edmond Chung Photography
McEwen reminded everyone that goals such as emissions reduction must be founded in science and not political or corporate preferences.
“Get out there!” Mauzerolle insisted. “Finding out what others in your field are doing gives you a broader perspective.”
Couture-Trudel echoed the sentiment. “Just listening to your presentations, I’ve gained new insights,” she said. “So be open to ideas that differ from your own in working towards solutions for a better tomorrow.”