When was the last time you remember 30 to 40 C temperatures last as long as they did this summer? Have you driven through BC, I did and the smoke was so thick that rolling down the car window was not an option from Alberta to Vancouver during the first part of August. This fire season is now noted as the worst ever recorded.
According to NCEI (National Centers for Environmental Information) out of the top 10 warmest places in the world, Lytton and Vancouver BC were also noted. So, if you think our northern position is an advantage to avoiding heat waves from climate change, these facts state differently.
It is noted that Electricity and Heat production are the top contributors of global greenhouse gas emissions. This is mainly due to the burning of coal, natural gas and oil followed by transportation, manufacturing, construction (mainly cement) and agriculture for its global deforestation, for which alternative greener solutions now exist. If you’re a farmer west of Ontario you already know the cost that this heat dome has caused, which will affect what we’ll all pay.
Socially it has been reported that hundreds of Canadians died from the heat. Six of the warmest years reported have been in the last 10 years that are above the 20th century average by 1 to 1.5 C, where wind, flooding, fire, warming ocean’s, and melting glaciers have increased in intensity. As reported in Ratesdotca, Alberta has seen a 140 percent premium increase in insurance coverage from $741 in 2011 to $1778 in early 2021.
In this one example of climate effect, what do you think the future holds for your family in the next 10 years if we don’t act now, not only for insurance costs but just about everything else. Current modeling predicts that temperatures will increase to 3.5 C above average over this century if we continue down the path we’re on without real change to how we live and consume.
To the point I’m making, given the science has been telling us for over 20 years that climate change is real and now we’re living with it, does it make sense to support the conservative party that has voted climate change is not a reality? Given that fact, what kind of meaningful policy could be expected for addressing what’s happening now from a party that chooses not to believe in science.
Ask your MP what the plan is, and if it sounds like it’s someone else’s problem you’ll have your answer. Having a job or making money investing won’t matter if you can’t live on this planet. Not to mention the global unrest for survival, which as shown in Afghanistan when people have no other choice it can get chaotic real quick.
To the voting youth now more than ever, it’s your choice to choose what type of government you want for your future on this planet, and according to science time to act in a meaningful way is running out within this decade to reverse the tipping point, if we are not there already?
Dennis Bigras
Wheatland county
