CLIMATE CHANGE

• What is climate change?
• How will climate change affect me?
• What is the Ontario government doing about climate change?
• What can I do to help?
• Information and Resources

What is climate change?

Greenhouse gases in our atmosphere (carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide) act like the outside covering of a greenhouse - trapping warmth from the sun and making life on Earth possible.

Over the past 50-100 years, increasing industrialization and human activity, such as transportation, industry, energy production, agriculture and deforestation, have begun to affect the natural climate balance.

The burning of fossil fuels such as coal, oil, and natural gas to generate electricity and in factories and cars has led to increased amounts of greenhouse gases, causing the Earth to heat up at an accelerated rate. This effect is known as global warming. Once this global warming affects our weather patterns and climatic conditions, it is referred to as climate change.

In the past 100 years, we have cleared more land for human use than in all of prior human history. This has resulted in the loss of forests and wetlands, which absorb and store greenhouse gases and naturally regulate the atmosphere.

Global warming is already affecting Ontario’s climate, particularly in the north and is likely to impact on agriculture and our other climate-sensitive industries, native ecosystems, infrastructure, health, biosecurity, society and economy.

Some changes to the climate are inevitable – even if we stop emitting gases now, the gases we have already released will have an effect. However, we must do everything we can to avoid further damage and to adapt to the new situation we find ourselves in.

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How will climate change affect me?

Ontario is lucky to have a wide variety of ecosystems within its borders. Changes in regional climate patterns may have positive and negative effects on these important ecosystems and resources.

In Ontario, we can expect that average temperatures will rise by as much as three to eight degrees Celsius over the next century. The impacts may include milder winters, longer growing seasons and higher frequency of severe weather events like record-breaking storms, thunderstorms, ice storms, tornadoes, floods, droughts and heat waves.

Global warming doesn’t mean that Ontario’s weather will change drastically. Winter will still be chilly and there will still be plenty of snow to shovel.

Rising temperatures in the Great Lakes could change the hydrological cycle, resulting in less precipitation. This could lead to a drop in water levels, potentially reducing our drinking water supply. The changing water levels can also alter valuable shoreline and wetland habitats, disrupt navigation, create new infrastructure requirements, have an impact on fisheries and affect shoreline property values. Bottom dwelling organisms that contribute to healthy lakes could be threatened because it would take longer for lakes to be stratified, resulting in longer late season periods of low oxygen conditions.

Forests could suffer from more fires and newly-introduced insects or disease. Changes in temperature and precipitation may help the survival of insect borne diseases, such as Lyme disease and malaria. Wildlife may begin to shift their range further north and new species from the south could spread further into Ontario.

Hot weather related health impacts, including heat stress and poor air quality, could increase. In 2005, Ontario recorded 53 smog advisory days and 27 hot days (defined as above 30 degrees Celsius). This exceeded the previous records of 27 smog advisory days and 23 hot days in 2002.

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What is the Ontario government doing about climate change?

The Ontario government is building on four years of action fighting climate change with an ambitious plan for our province to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions.

• Download the complete Action Plan on Climate Change in PDF
• Download Ontario Greenhouse Gas Emissions Targets: A Technical Brief in PDF

Scientists, and most notably, the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) have shown that the earth’s climate is changing dramatically, and human industrial activity and the burning of fossil fuels are largely to blame. Before the Industrial Revolution, the carbon dioxide (CO2) concentration in the earth’s atmosphere was about 280 parts per million.

We are now at about 380 parts per million. At 380 parts per million, coral reefs are dying, glaciers are melting, seas are rising and an estimated 35,000 people died in the 2003 European heat wave. According to the IPCC, without significant action to reduce emissions, CO2 concentrations may reach 750 parts per million this century.

Partly, this is because molecules of CO2 remain in the atmosphere for up to 200 years. Which means the CO2 molecules produced by the first cars, the Wright brothers’ plane and the first coal-fired electricity plants may still be airborne.

Climate change is a crisis we caused together, and a responsibility we all share, together. So it’s important we act, not only because we can’t ignore the science, not only because we bear the responsibility, and not only because we have an obligation to our children.

We must also act, because this environmental crisis is also an economic opportunity. As a province with a strong manufacturing sector, plenty of natural resources, and a smart, educated, skilled workforce, there are opportunities for Ontario.

We don’t have to choose between a strong economy and a healthy environment.
Faced with the challenge of climate change, the only way to have a strong economy is to go green. And the only way to go green is to have a strong economy.

Go Green: Ontario’s Action Plan on Climate Change is Ontario’s greenprint for creating solutions, here, together. The time for imagining is over. Ontario is going green – now.

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What can I do to help?

We can't stop the effects of the greenhouse gas emissions that have already taken place. But we can influence the future.

The majority of scientists agree that to avoid radical changes of temperature in the future, action is needed now. Many believe that emissions of greenhouse gases, which are continuing to rise, must begin to decline over the next 10–20 years to avoid extreme changes to our climate.

Carbon dioxide is the main greenhouse gas that causes climate change. Every tonne emitted into the atmosphere commits the world to more warming. But every tonne we avoid emitting helps reduce the risk.

The good news is there are lots of ways we can tackle climate change. There is so much that each one of us can do to help. Climate change sounds frightening, but it doesn’t have to be.

At Home and On the Road

Your daily decisions about energy use, transportation and waste are affecting the climate because of the greenhouse gas emissions they produce. There are many steps you can take to help protect the environment by reducing these emissions in your home.

At Home

Around 26 per cent of our electricity is generated by burning fossil fuels such as coal and gas which emits carbon dioxide and other pollutants into the atmosphere. To reduce these emissions, we need to think about to use less energy and to use energy more efficiently. Making your home more energy-efficient will also save you money on your energy bill. Just heating and cooling your home accounts for about 60 per cent of your energy costs.

• Install ceiling fans and use them to supplement or even as an alternative to air conditioning – ceiling fans generally use very little electricity. Make sure your fan is blowing air downwards in summer.
• To save money on heating costs, reduce the temperature of your home a few degrees at night and when you’re away.
• Keep blinds, shades and drapes closed during the hottest part of the day in the summer. (And open south-facing blinds on sunny winter days!)
• Use area rugs on cold floors – if your feet are cold, your body will feel cold.
• If you feel cool, put on a sweater rather than simply turning up the thermostat.
• Clean or replace the air filter on your furnace every month to improve efficiency.
• To save more on central air conditioner costs, try cooling your home to only 24 or 25 C instead of the low 20’s. Each degree below 26 C will noticeably increase your electricity use!
• Turn off unnecessary lights in the house (they produce a lot of heat which works against the AC.)
• Lighting consumes around 10 per cent of the power in your home. Replace your lightbulbs with energy-efficient compact fluorescents.
• Conservation can be as easy as planting a tree. Plant leafy (deciduous) trees on the sunny side of your house. During the summer they provide shade, and in the winter they will shed their leaves to let the warming sunshine through. Pine or fir trees on the north side provide an energy-saving windbreak.
• Turn off lights, appliances & computers when you're not using them.
• Make sure you switch off equipment on 'stand-by' (with display lights and clocks visible) such as televisions, VCRs, DVDs, stereos & microwaves at the wall.
• Wash clothes in cold water (try to wash full loads) & hang clothes out to dry instead of using the dryer.
• Close windows, doors and curtains to keep in the heat.
• Use the dishwasher only when you have a full load.

Transportation

In Ontario, transportation contributes more than 30 per cent of the total greenhouse gas emissions.

There are all sorts of small things you can do to cut fuel consumption, which will help save you money.

• Walk, cycle or use public transport instead of your car when possible.
• Get your car serviced regularly and keep tires inflated.
• If your car has a roof rack, remove it when you don't need it - the air drag from a roof rack means your can use 5 per cent more fuel.
• Air-conditioning can add 10 per cent to your fuel bill - try using the air vents instead.
• Go easy on the pedal to reduce fuel use - heavy braking and accelerating uses a lot of fuel.
• Choose a fuel-efficient, low-polluting option when buying a car.
• Organize or join a walking school bus in your area.

Waste

Nearly half of every bag of garbage that we throw into the garbage could be composted. That's a huge waste of space in our landfills. When garden waste and kitchen scraps are send to the landfill, they break down into methane, a potent greenhouse gas which contributes to climate change.

• Compost organic material as much as you can (this will reduce methane emissions from landfills and your garden will love you for it!).
• Recycle glass, plastic items and tins.
• Buy products with less packaging.
• Take a recyclable shopping bag to the supermarket instead of using plastic bags each time.

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Information and Resources

• The Green Lane: Climate Change - What is Climate Change?
• The Green Lane: Climate Change - Overview
• The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
• United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
• The Ministry of the Environment's Climate Change Studies
• News Release: Climate Change: Government and Canadian Steel Industry Reach Agreement (Natural Resources Canada - January 2005)

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