A researcher says storms like the ones the Maritimes have experienced for the last several weeks may be due to climate change. (David Smith/Canadian Press)

A researcher with New Brunswick's Environment Department says severe storms that hit the province this month may be examples of climate change.

Robert Hughes said Wednesday that the provincial Climate Change Secretariat is working to identify erosion rates and make projections of future rises in the sea level.

That's to prepare for weather events and to plan development accordingly.

"There's certainly many areas where, really, development is better not to take place or to be relocated or reconsidered, rather than to deal with many years of battling nature. In the end, nature will tend to win," Hughes told CBC Moncton's Information Morning.

Hughes said places where people want to live can be the most vulnerable.

"The problem can be [that] some of the most desirable areas for recreation and scenic and other activities do tend to be in places that can be vulnerable either on the coast or along river valleys and on flood plains," said Hughes. "So if you're in a flood-prone area, you're probably better off without a finished basement."

Hughes said the Climate Change Secretariat is also studying the dike lands in the Tantramar region, storm-water management and the potential effects of sea level rise on drinking water supplies.

Its findings will be released gradually over the next couple of years.