Reviewing the main issues, risks and possible solutions for adapting the conservation of Quebec's built cultural heritage to the impacts of climate change

The summary issued for this topic under study reviews the various climatic phenomena affecting Quebec, recalls some precedents where heritage buildings have been damaged or destroyed by a hazard, and makes a (non-exhaustive) inventory of adaptation measures implemented in Quebec or elsewhere.

Project details

Scientific program

2020-2025 programming

Theme(s) and priority(s)

Adaptation of Living Environments

Start and duration

October 2023 • March 2024

Project Status

Completed

Principal(s) investigator(s)

Claudine Déom

Université de Montréal

Context

The combination of the built environment and climate change has been well covered in previous Ouranos programs, not least in terms of analysis of vulnerability to various climate hazards. The connection between our built heritage and climate change, on the other hand, have received much less attention, and merits a closer look. As Quebec’s sustainable development commissioner pointed out in 2020, [translation] “Several phenomena associated with climate change may make it more difficult to safeguard real estate assets. In general, rising temperatures, as well as changes in the amount of precipitation or humidity, can exacerbate the degradation of materials used in the construction of heritage buildings.” Heritage is a non-renewable resource whose value is increasingly threatened by the intensity and recurrence of hazardous climate events. The floods of recent years, including those in Beauce and Baie-Saint-Paul, are striking examples of these threats to buildings and landscapes. However, they are not the only ones: coastal erosion, rising sea levels and repeated freeze-thaw cycles are other factors to consider.

At the international level, there are ongoing discussions on the impact of climate change on the management of built cultural heritage. Climate change adaptation strategies may call certain heritage conservation standards into question. Responding to both climate issues and the desire to transmit our built cultural heritage may require flexibility.

Built cultural heritage has strong potential in terms of sustainable development. As many people already recognize, “the greenest building is the one that’s already built.” Internationally, heritage is considered to be beneficial in achieving certain sustainable development goals (2015 SDGs).

Objective(s)

The aim of this project was to review the climate change issues involved in managing built cultural heritage. The additional knowledge required to preserve at-risk heritage properties must be identified, since many such properties are subject to severe risks due to climate change and research to find adaptation solutions allowing for their conservation is needed.