Opinion: Homeowners pay heavy price for weather disasters; need to build more resilient communities
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Extreme weather is making its mark on Alberta again this year. Communities evacuated. Structures destroyed by wildfire. Numerous hail and severe storm warnings.
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All this, and summer has yet to officially begin.
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Long a fact of life in Alberta, severe weather is getting worse and our communities are not resilient enough to withstand the damage it is causing. That must change, fast.
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The numbers are clear. Alberta has averaged at least one major hailstorm per year for the past two decades, causing a total of $11 billion in insured losses — $3.2 billion from last year's Calgary hailstorm alone. Add in floods, wildfires and windstorms, and that number explodes to more than $22 billion (adjusted for inflation).
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Alberta has suffered five of the 10 costliest severe weather events in Canadian history, so it's no wonder our province is increasingly known as the 'Disaster Capital of Canada.'
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As insurance claims rise, there is an effect on insurance costs. Amid calls for action, the solution is clear — we must properly invest in making our homes, businesses and communities more resilient against severe weather.
Alberta's insurers will pay out $4.4 billion in insured losses for last year's Jasper wildfire and Calgary hailstorm. That's more than the federal government has spent on adaptation investments over the past decade. Specifically, the federal government has invested $41.8 billion in long-term emissions-reduction measures, but only $4.1 billion on efforts to make communities more resilient.
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Just this week, the federal auditor general issued a scathing report on the poor implementation and underfunding of Canada's National Adaptation Strategy.
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It's paramount that we start treating severe weather as a question of when, not if, and act accordingly. This will require everyone — insurers, homeowners and governments — to do their part.
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Canada's insurance industry is doing what it can to drive adaptation efforts. Many insurers reward homeowners who make upgrades with discounts or coverage that helps offset the added cost of resilient materials.
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Many insurers provide fire mitigation services to their customers and assist with grants aimed at improving flood and wildfire resilience. The industry also provides millions of dollars annually to the Alberta Hail Suppression Project.
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Toronto Star
an hour ago
- Toronto Star
Mark Carney has set the tone for the G7. He knows the cost of playing it safe is irrelevance
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Global News
2 hours ago
- Global News
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Toronto Sun
2 hours ago
- Toronto Sun
Carney's task at G7 will be to keep the group alive as experts question the outcome
Published Jun 15, 2025 • 5 minute read Prime Minister Mark Carney walks as he greets Canadian troops of the 4th Canadian Division as he attends a tour of the Fort York Armoury in Toronto on June 9, 2025 in Toronto. Photo by Cole Burston / GETTY IMAGES OTTAWA — As Prime Minister Mark Carney gets ready to host U.S. President Donald Trump and other leaders at the G7 summit in Alberta, analysts say Canada's most important goal will be to keep the G7 from falling apart — even if that means not issuing a joint statement. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account 'Keeping this informal international organization together will, I think, be a mark of success,' said Sen. Peter Boehm, a former diplomat who played a central role in Canada's participation in the G7 for decades. 'The challenge I think that we will be seeing at Kananaskis is whether we still have like-mindedness in the G7, and whether that can still project (unity), in terms of dealing with some of the big global challenges.' The G7 includes the United States, France, Germany, Japan, the United Kingdom, Italy and Canada, as well as the European Union. For five decades, the group's members have coordinated how liberal democracies respond to economic and social challenges. The group has set the tone for other industrialized democracies and the United Nations for decades, and in recent years has gone beyond economics to focus on global security. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Each G7 nation takes a turn at a rotating presidency of the group; this year is Canada's turn. Carney will welcome leaders to Kananaskis, Alta., on Sunday and the summit runs through Tuesday. The meetings come days after Israel and Iran exchanged missile strikes and after months of Trump disparaging multilateral institutions and implementing tariffs widely seen as damaging to the global economy. Trump has said repeatedly that Russia should rejoin the group it was expelled from after it invaded Ukraine in 2014 _ despite Moscow saying it has no interest in doing so. This year's summit was organized hastily. This spring's election and Justin Trudeau's resignation as prime minister caused the bureaucracy to scale back its planning and outreach to other G7 countries. Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. It will be Carney's first major summit, though Boehm notes he took part in G7 and G20 meetings during his former career as a central banker. The summit normally ends with a joint communique, a lengthy statement outlining views shared by G7 countries that is negotiated over the course of weeks, and often through the night during the summit. In 2019, however, France issued a chair's statement — a step Boehm said G7 leaders reserve for the worst-case scenario when the leaders are unable to arrive at a consensus. 'What's the point of driving towards consensus when you're not going to get it?' he said, adding he does not expect this year's G7 summit to issue a full communique. 'There is always going to be some bumps and hiccups, and one country not seeing it quite the way the others do, but it's a venerable institution.' This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Federal officials who briefed Canadian media last Thursday hinted that this G7 might not end with a joint statement. 'Canada is adopting a focused approach this year. We have a streamlined number of priorities, ministerial meetings and negotiated outcome documents,' said a senior official who spoke on the condition she not be named. 'We really want to ensure that we continue to focus on actions that we can take together.' Kerry Buck, a former Canadian ambassador, said it might be 'impossible' to reach agreement with the U.S. on things like Russia's invasion of Ukraine, climate change and the need to preserve free trade. 'It's in no one's interest to pick a fight and have open conflict at the table,' Buck told a panel held by the Canadian International Council on June 4. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'A message of disunity coming from the leaders would actually do more damage to the G7 and it's in our interest to preserve it.' Buck said she expects the one-on-one meetings on the sidelines of the summit will lead to fruitful 'quiet diplomacy.' 'I would aim for a thin G7 leaders declaration at best, (and) work to minimize damage to the institution,' she said. Carney arrives Sunday afternoon in Alberta and has a series of bilateral meetings scheduled with G7 leaders and some of the non-G7 guests who he invited. The actual summit kicks off Monday. Boehm said it usually starts with a discussion on the global economy led by the U.S. president. A working lunch could touch on themes like energy security, artificial intelligence and critical minerals. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. The afternoon is expected to be about security, including Canada's concerns about wildfires and foreign interference. Tuesday is expected to focus on foreign policy and involve at least 10 invited leaders from non-G7 countries or international institutions. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy could play a large role, though the recent hostilities between Israel and Iran might also loom large. North Korea is a frequent topic at the G7 table, Boehm said, adding he hopes the discussion also touches on the crisis in international development spurred by the U.S. pulling back from foreign aid. The agenda has lengthy gaps between the sessions — time set aside for leaders to meet their new peers. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz only started his new job last month, just as Carney's post-election ministry was sworn in. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Boehm said many leaders will want to meet Trump and the president prefers one-on-one chats to multilateral meetings. This month's talks could also shape ministerial meetings that Canada can host later in the year, particularly on energy and the environment. John Kirton, head of the G7 Research Group at the University of Toronto, notes that two G7 ministerial meetings already hosted by Canada generated much consensus on issues like artificial intelligence in banking and maritime security. Kirton said he is 'predicting a significant performance' even if there is no joint communique. 'I'm expecting that there will be probably a short, crisp, compact concluding chair's statement,' he said. He also predicts Canada will release six subject-specific documents summarizing the general position of G7 members. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. G7 hosts also tend to unveil a major development or humanitarian project — a 'signature initiative' — in a bid to get funding from partner countries. Canada has previously used the G7 to advance education for girls in conflict zones and maternal health in poorer countries, while Italy last year focused on biological threats in Africa. It's not clear if Canada will have the cash to make a major announcement this year. Kirton cited a budget crunch among G7 members, while Boehm said the spring election stopped a lot of outreach Canada would normally do in the months leading up to a summit. Some are anticipating a project pitch that wouldn't involve large sums of money, such as an initiative aimed at countering transnational repression. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Given its power, the G7 is a target for advocates on a range of issues who hope to see their priorities reflected in the communique. Ottawa has faced calls to speak out against arbitrary detainment, Africa's debt crisis and Pakistan's Kashmir dispute with India. Business and civil society leaders will be holding a series of side events associated with the summit, although many will be far removed from the leaders' summit in Kananaskis. The RCMP said it has set up 'three designated G7 demonstration zones' that will be broadcast to G7 leaders with video and audio, and that the leaders will be far from the protests. Read More Sunshine Girls Golf Editorial Cartoons World Golf
