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quality, resulting in increased death and illnesses in the four cities studied in the report: Montreal, Toronto, Calgary, and Vancouver. In Toronto alone, the report suggests the cost to the health care system for climate change-related illness could top the $11 million a year mark by the 2050s. Adaptation is a concept that's still gathering momentum and hasn't broken through the public consciousness yet, says Chris Tollefson, a professor of environ- mental law and sustainability at the Uni- versity of Victoria in British Columbia, but the academic community is squarely focused on the issue. "We have scientists, both hard scientists and social scientists, looking at how we manage the timber supply, the species of plants we grow, the measures that need to be taken to pro- tect communities from forest fires, and how we maintain healthy economies," he says, pointing out there can be significant returns on investments made in adapta- tion initiatives. "There are things that can be done around adaptation that can sup- port mitigation and achieve a good bang for the buck. In the mitigation debate, people wonder if the bang for the buck is worth it." Donna Shier has witnessed a lot of change in environmental law over the last 30 years. When Shier began her Toronto practice, Willms & Shier Environmen- tal Lawyers LLP in 1978, environmental mishaps where the lawyers were called in were referred to as "toxic torts." "It was barely a discipline," she says. "From there we moved to environmental management problems, and there was a lot of it in the late 1970s and early '80s: midnight dumping, buried oil drums; that was the heyday of that sort of thing." Since then, Shier insists, there has been much consciousness raising and com- panies have followed suit, incorporating sound environmental practices into their overall business operations. "A dozen years ago, I would have said environmen- tal management is not like heat, lights, and taxes, but today I would say waste disposal and property waste management are right next to the heat, lights, and taxes" on the financial balance sheet. A recent report from the Conference Board of Canada emphasizes the obliga- tions of the private sector in responding to climate change by developing strategies that promote resilience and adaptation. The August 2011 report "Beyond Sand- bagging: Building Community Resilience to the Impacts of Climate Change," states that "given the importance of critical infrastructure to mitigating and recover- ing from a climate-induced threat, owners and operators have an important role to play." Serving up protection To date, much of the work in climate change has been focused on mitigation efforts that aim to reduce carbon emis- sions on a global scale, but for a variety of reasons, these efforts have realized only moderate success. Add to the equation Framing the adaptation discussion E STEP 2: Assess present status and trends. Where are we heading now? a. Examine current development challenges, planning principles, and capacities. b. Estimate impacts of climate change. STEP 3: Develop a vision of the future. Where do we want to be in the coming decades? a. Identify future development priorities based on the principles of local sustainability and community planning. b. Assess impacts of climate change and the potential for adaptation and mitigation within community goals. STEP 4: Set trajectories to meet priorities. How can we get there? a. Identify actions to achieve the vision of the future. b. Develop capacities and institutional linkages to support implementation. STEP 5: Monitor, reassess, and adjust. Re-examine the identified actions in a project or address new challenges. nvironment Canada has outlined a five-step framework that aims to promote development of adaptation responses with mitigation co-benefits tailored to local long-term priorities. Environment Canada suggests starting with the selection of the focus of the sustainable adaptation and mitigation project and ending with a strategy to implement the actions and define potential follow-up activities: STEP 1: Identify the focus and objectives of a sustainable adaptation and mitigation initiative. 28 • DECEMBER 2011/JANUARY 2012 INHOUSE