B.C. Climate News: Germany warns of increased health threats from climate change | Environmental groups seek to delay $10 billion LNG project in B.C.| Nova Scotia blaze is largest wildfire in provincial history
Here's your weekly roundup of climate change news for the week of May 29 to June 4, 2023.
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This week, Germany’s disease control agency warned that rising temperatures due to global warming will increase the likelihood of heat stroke and vector-borne illnesses, while firefighters continue to battle the largest fire in Nova Scotia’s history.
Here’s all the latest news concerning the climate crisis, biodiversity loss, and the steps leaders are taking to address these issues.
In climate news this week:
• B.C. government to provide additional $25 million for marine restoration projects
• Study finds early snowmelt in Western mountains means drier summers, more wildfire risk
• Environmental groups seek to delay $10 billion LNG project in B.C.
The UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has warned for more than a decade that wildfires, drought, severe weather, such as B.C.’s deadly heat dome and catastrophic flooding in 2021, would become more frequent and more intense because of the climate emergency.
The panel has issued a “code red” for humanity and last year it said the window to stop global warming from exceeding 1.5 C was closing. In April 2022, it released a report with solutions for how to drive down greenhouse gas emissions, mainly by transitioning away from fossil fuels.
There is a scientific consensus on climate change (NASA reports that 97 per cent of climate scientists agree that the climate is warming and that human activity is the cause.) Several studies published in peer-reviewed scientific journals show that greenhouse gas emissions are the primary cause of global warming.
Check back here every Saturday for a roundup of the latest climate and environmental stories. You can also get up to date B.C.-focused news delivered to your inbox by 7 a.m. by subscribing to our newsletter here.
Climate change quick facts:
- The Earth is now about 1.1 C warmer than it was in the 1800s.
- Globally, 2022 was the fifth warmest year on record.
- Human activities have raised atmospheric concentrations of CO2 by nearly 49 per cent above pre-industrial levels starting in 1850.
- The world is not on track to meet the Paris Agreement target to keep global temperature from exceeding 1.5 C above pre-industrial levels, the upper limit to avoid the worst fallout from climate change.
- On the current path of carbon dioxide emissions, the temperature could increase by as much as 4.4 C by the end of the century.
- In April, 2022 greenhouse gas concentrations reached record new highs and show no sign of slowing.
- Emissions must drop 7.6 per cent per year from 2020 to 2030 to keep temperatures from exceeding 1.5 C and 2.7 per cent per year to stay below 2 C.
- 97% of climate scientists agree that the climate is warming and that human beings are the cause.
(Source: United Nations IPCC, World Meteorological Organization, UNEP, Nasa, climatedata.ca)
LATEST CLIMATE NEWS
Government body warns of increased health threats from climate change in Germany
Germany’s disease control agency warned Thursday that rising temperatures due to global warming will increase the likelihood of heat stroke, vector-borne illnesses and other health risks in the country.
The Robert Koch Institute said lung diseases from forest fires and agricultural dust may become a growing problem, as will skin cancer due to increased ultraviolet radiation as Germany experiences longer periods of cloud-free weather.
In the first of the institute’s three reports on the impact of climate change in Germany, published in the Journal of Health Monitoring, the authors noted the recent arrival in the country of Hyalomma ticks — capable of carrying bacteria responsible for typhus — as an example of newly emerging disease threats.
The ticks, as well as Asian tiger mosquitoes that can spread dengue, yellow fever and Zika virus, are migrating to new regions that were previously too cold for the species.
—The Associated Press
Barrington Lake blaze in Nova Scotia is the largest wildfire ever recorded in provincial history
Four out-of-control wildfires continue to burn throughout Nova Scotia, including the largest wildfire ever recorded in provincial history.
Despite the best efforts of firefighters, the Barrington Lake fire in Shelburne County now covers more than 200 square kilometres.
Natural Resources Minister Tory Rushton says six more water bombers are arriving from the United States over the weekend, and an unspecified number of firefighters from the U.S. and Costa Rica are on their way to help battle the blaze.
Fire officials say a fast-moving wildfire burning in suburban Halifax since Sunday is 50 per cent contained, but add that while it has not grown since Wednesday, it remains out of control.
Halifax Mayor Mike Savage says at least two people in the city have been fined for violating a provincewide burn ban after one was caught lighting leaves on fire with a propane torch and another decided to have a bonfire.
Ottawa announced Thursday it is establishing a donation matching program with Nova Scotia and the Canadian Red Cross to support those who have been affected by wildfires in the province.
—The Canadian Press
B.C. extends deferral of old-growth logging in Vancouver Island’s Fairy Creek
The B.C. government has extended an order deferring old-growth logging in the Fairy Creek watershed on Vancouver Island.
The extension to Feb. 1, 2025, applies to the order issued two years ago at the request of the Pacheedaht First Nation, whose territories encompass the entire watershed.
A statement from the Forests Ministry says the deferral protects just under 12 square kilometres of timber on Crown land within the watershed. It says the province and First Nation will continue collaborating on long-term forest management of the Fairy Creek region, including management of old-growth forests.
When it announced the initial deferral in 2021, the province said the postponement to old-growth logging would allow Pacheedaht titleholders time to build resource-stewardship plans for their lands.
—The Canadian Press
B.C. government to provide additional $25 million for marine restoration projects
B.C.’s Environment Ministry has announced another $25 million in funding for coastal cleanup and restoration of the marine environment.
This brings its total spending for the clean coast, clean waters fund to about $50 million.
Environment Minister George Heyman told a news conference Tuesday that debris from more than 4,600 kilometres of shoreline has been removed so far, while creating more than 1,700 jobs.
He says the new funding will allow the program to continue to protect the coast and the communities that live there.
The Coastal First Nations-Great Bear Initiative, a group of nine First Nations who aim to restore ecosystems, will receive another $4 million, bringing its total funding to $7.5 million since 2020.
—The Canadian Press
Climate battle looms as Alberta premier takes aim at Trudeau
Alberta’s re-elect conservative leader Danielle Smith has put herself on a collision course with Canada’s Liberal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau over climate policies that would weigh on the province’s massive fossil fuel industry.
Smith, leader of the United Conservative Party (UCP), defeated left-leaning New Democratic Party leader Rachel Notley on Monday, and immediately targeted Trudeau, threatening the country’s ambitious climate goals.
Smith warned Trudeau’s Liberal climate policies will destroy tens of thousands of jobs in the oil and gas sector, which contributes more than 20 per cent to Alberta GDP.
Trudeau’s government is aiming to cut climate-warming carbon emissions 40-45 per cent by 2030, but will struggle to meet that target without significant reductions from Alberta, Canada’s highest-polluting province.
—Reuters
Environmental groups seek to delay $10 billion LNG project in B.C.
More than a dozen environmental groups are asking the province to delay planning on what would be B.C.’s second-largest LNG project so that its effects on federal and provincial emissions caps could be considered.
In an open letter published on May 25, Pat Moss, a coordinator for the environmental group Friends of Wild Salmon and a signatory of the letter, wrote that a lack of details on upcoming federal and provincial emission caps made it difficult to accurately determine how the $10-billion, Nisga’a-led Ksi Lisims LNG project would impact emissions targets.
They asked the province to “significantly” extend the current public comment period, which ran from April 27 to May 29, or to postpone environmental assessment until more information on federal and provincial emissions caps was available.
“A public comment period should not be conducted when it is unclear how forthcoming legislation and regulations will impact what needs to be considered,” Moss wrote.
—Nathan Griffiths
Early snowmelt in Western mountains means drier summers, more wildfire risk: Study
Leaner snowpack in Western Canada and U.S. mountain ranges is causing drier summers and increasing wildfire risk, says a new study from the University of Colorado Boulder.
Lead author Kate Hale said her team analyzed mountain snow data and found snowpack water storage decreased more than 25 per cent from 1950 to 2013. This, she said, can be attributed to earlier snowmelt, less snowfall and more rain.
“We actually saw some of the strongest signals up in the Canadian Rockies, by way of this decrease in snowfall and then earlier snowmelts and rainfall generation,” Hale said.
Snowmelt serves as the primary water resource in western mountain regions, the study says. The ranges store snow throughout the winter, which then melts during spring and summer months when demand for water peaks.
Hale said snow in these regions typically wouldn’t start melting until late May or June, but has begun showing signs of snow thawing as early as March.
—The Canadian Press
Microplastics are harming gut health of seabirds: study
A new study about microplastics harming the gut biome of seabirds warns that humans should be wary of a similar health concern.
The study, published this week in Nature Ecology and Evolution, involved an international team of scientists, including Jennifer Provencher, a research scientist with Environment and Climate Change Canada.
It found microplastics — small plastic particles less than five millimetres in length — in the digestive tract of seabirds altered the microbiome of the gut, increasing the presence of pathogens and antibiotic-resistant microbes, while decreasing the beneficial bacteria found in the intestines.
To understand how species are affected by diets contaminated with microplastics, the scientists examined the gut microbiome of two seabird species, the northern fulmar and the Cory’s shearwater.
Provencher, who plans to study the effects of microplastics in seabirds along the B.C. coast for her next project, said the amount of plastic found in seabirds is disturbing.
—Tiffany Crawford
Firefighters, helicopters battle out-of-control wildfire near Sayward
Dozens of firefighters are working on an out-of-control wildfire burning on northeast Vancouver Island, less than six kilometres from the Village of Sayward.
The B.C. Wildfire Service says the Newcastle Creek wildfire has grown to 1.6 square kilometres — a jump from just under one square kilometre Tuesday night.
The increase is partially due to better visibility that allowed crews to accurately gauge the wildfire’s size, said Nick Donnelly, fire information officer with the coastal fire centre.
The fire has also burned through more fuels as anticipated, he said. “The fire is initially burning through slash, a receptive fuel. It was expected to burn through that.” Now the fire has reached a timber line, where it is expected to slow down.
About 60 firefighters, for helicopters and a water tender were dispatched Wednesday to fight the human-caused blaze, which was first discovered Monday and rapidly grew in size, due in part to gusty winds.
—Cheryl Chan
Northeastern B.C. wildfire grows as evacuations return north of Fort St. John
The B.C. Wildfire Service says a blaze north of Fort St. John has grown significantly, forcing renewed evacuation orders and alerts.
The service website says the Donnie Creek wildfire charred an additional 275 square kilometres over the weekend.
The fire, about 160 km north of Fort St. John, remains out of control and is estimated to have burned a total of 1,575 sq. km of trees and bush since it was sparked by lightning on May 12.
Evacuation orders were issued Sunday by both the Northern Rockies Regional Municipality and the Peace River Regional District for remote areas primarily used by oil-and-gas industry infrastructure and camps.
—The Canadian Press
UAE defends Big Oil’s role at UN climate summit it will host
A senior United Arab Emirates official says the Gulf nation wants the U.N. climate summit it’s hosting later this year to deliver “game-changing results” for international efforts to curb global warming, but doing so will require having the fossil fuel industry at the table.
Environmental campaigners have slammed the presence of oil and gas lobbyists at previous rounds of talks, warning that their interests are opposed to the goal of cutting greenhouse gas emissions — caused to a large degree by the burning of fossil fuels. Last month scores of U.S. and European lawmakers called for the summit’s designated chair, Sultan al-Jaber, to be replaced over his links to the state-owned Abu Dhabi National Oil Company.
The issue complicates already-delicate negotiations ahead of the Nov. 30 – Dec. 12 meeting in Dubai, known as COP28. Preliminary talks starting next week in Bonn, Germany, will show whether the incoming UAE presidency can overcome skepticism among parties and civil society groups about its ability to shepherd almost 200 nations toward a landmark deal.
—The Associated Press
SOCIAL MEDIA
A glance at carbon numbers:
- B.C.’s gross greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in 2020 (latest available data) were 64.6 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (MtCO2e). This is a decrease of 0.9 MtCO2e (one per cent) from 65.5 MtCO2e in 2007, the baseline year for emissions reduction targets.
- B.C.’s net greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in 2020 were 63.5 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (MtCO2e.) This is a net decrease of 2.0 MtCO2e, or three per cent, since 2007.
- B.C.’s net emissions in 2019: 67.2 MtCO2e, an increase of 1.5 MtCO2e, or two per cent, since 2007.
- B.C.’s 2030 target: 40 per cent reduction in net emissions below 2007 levels.
- B.C.’s 2040 target: 60 per cent reduction.
- B.C.’s 2050 target: 80 per cent reduction.
- Canada’s greenhouse gas emissions in 2021 were 670 million tonnes, up from 659 million tonnes in 2020.
- Canada’s 2030 emissions target: Between 40 and 45 per cent reduction.
- Canada’s 2050 emissions target: Net-zero.
GUIDES AND LINKS
B.C. Flood: Read all our coverage on the Fraser Valley and beyond
Frequently asked questions about climate change: NASA
Climate change made B.C. heat wave 150 times more likely, study concludes
B.C.’s heat wave: Intense weather event is linked to climate crisis, say scientists
Expert: climate change expected to bring longer wildfire seasons and more area burned
Vancouver outlines its Climate Emergency Action Plan
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