City seeking feedback on strategies to respond to sea level rise

NEWS RELEASE - Distributed May 19, 2026 11:00 AM

Summary

The City of Nanaimo is moving into the second and final round of engagement for the 'Our Coastal City' project, an initiative to develop a plan to better understand and respond to rising sea levels.

Technical studies, including coastal floodplain mapping, have been completed to shed light on the sea level rise risks the community could be facing in the future. Based on the technical results, along with the community values revealed in the first round of engagement, initial options and strategies have been identified.

Nanaimo residents can learn about these findings and provide feedback on options for responding to sea level rise by completing a survey open from May 19 to June 12, 2026, or attending an in-person community meeting on May 21, 2026 from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. in the Vancouver Island Conference Centre (Dodd Narrows Room A).

The first part of the community meeting will include a presentation, followed by an open house format to allow for feedback on how we might prepare for sea level impacts in identified areas. In addition, staff from the Regional District of Nanaimo will be on hand to answer questions on their concurrent sea level rise planning project, Our Changing Coast. For more information on the project and the community meeting and to fill out the survey, visit the Our Coastal City page on Get Involved Nanaimo.

Link to Strategic Plan: Developing a Sea Level Rise Management Plan is included in the City of Nanaimo’s Integrated Action Plan as a priority action (C1.2.12).

Key Points

Our Coastal City builds on work completed during an earlier study, which identified areas within Departure Bay, Duke Point, downtown and Protection Island as being vulnerable to future coastal flooding.
Sea level rise caused by climate change is increasing total ocean water levels over time, which, if combined with more intense winter storms, may result in coastal flooding. By completing the plan now, Nanaimo will be prepared to help new and existing development adapt to coastal hazards.
Technical work and early engagement for the Our Coastal City project have been completed. The City of Nanaimo is now considering options for how to respond to sea level rise and wants to hear from residents.
Nanaimo residents are invited to attend the May 21 public meeting and complete the sea level rise options survey, found on the Our Coastal City Get Involved Page.

Quotes

"Responding to climate change is everyone's responsibility. By working together, we can identify actions and opportunities to help our coastal community prepare for sea level rise."

Leonard Krog

Mayor

City of Nanaimo

Quick Facts

The City of Nanaimo has over 30 km of coastline.
Due to an overall increase in global temperatures, oceans are warming. Warmer oceans expand, taking up more space, and melting glaciers and ice sheets in the Arctic and Antarctic add even more water to the seas. Together, these processes increase the volume of water in our oceans, raising sea levels worldwide.
An earlier 2018 Sea Level Rise study identified 247 buildings and 757 lots in Nanaimo that are vulnerable to future coastal flooding, the majority of which are located in Departure Bay, Downtown, Protection Island, and Duke Point.