Harsh Consequences if Immediate and Deep Greenhouse Gas Emission Reductions do not Occur

A newly released report by Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) called “Canada’s Changing Climate Report” describes in detail how the climate has changed in Canada and will continue to do so. One of the headline statements from the report states, “both past and future warming in Canada is, on average, about double the magnitude of global warming”. Canada's Changing Climate Report notes among other consequences, climate change will cause: increased precipitation, more frequent and intense extreme heat episodes, increased wildfires and droughts, and freshwater shortages. In addition, the ECCC report also states “Annual and winter precipitation is projected to increase everywhere in Canada over the 21st century”. Sault Ste. Marie has already experienced a taste of what is yet to come, with a devastating flood in 2013, road closures on highways and residential flooding in 2018, and intense winter snowfalls this last year.

Beyond the impacts of these events being obviously devastating, Canadians may not realize that it will result in their hard-earned taxpayer money to be pooled into reactionary efforts to deal with these issues. For instance, last year Ontario added 100 million dollars to funds for battling forest fires in the province as a reaction to an intense wildfire season, more of which we can expect in the future. According to the Liberal Budget 2019, “the annual economic costs of disasters around the world have increased fivefold since the 1980s, and Canada has not been immune to this trend, as disasters resulting from the impacts of climate change have increased in frequency and severity across the country”. According to the World Meteorological Organization’s Statement on the State of the Global Climate in 2018, nearly 62 million people were directly affected by natural hazards associated with weather and climate events. If that weren’t enough, the World Health Organization also reports 4.2 million deaths every year from ambient (outdoor) air pollution. The cause of this air pollution is due to the burning of fossil fuels – vehicles, power generation, agricultural/waste incineration, and industry. The drivers of air pollution are the same sources as the drivers of climate change.

Make no mistake: climate change mitigation and adaptation will be disruptive, especially considering that it is operating at amplified magnitudes in Canada. If we don't act immediately and deeply, these costs and disruptions will be much greater.