Alberta Acts
 
 

10 Reasons You Should Care About Climate Change

  1. We are losing biodiversity at an unprecedented rate. More than a million species globally could be driven to extinction by 2050.
  2. More people will go hungry. 25 million additional children will go hungry by 2050 as climate change leads to food shortages and skyrocketing prices for staples such as rice, wheat, maize and soya beans. The global number of malnourished people will increase to an additional 70-125 million by the end of this century.
  3. People may be forced from their homes. Carbon emissions increase the incidence of extreme weather events, such as the tornado that struck Edmonton in 1987 injuring 253 people and killing 27, the 1991 Calgary hailstorm that caused 340 million in damages, and the 2003 heat wave that killed 50,000 people across Europe. In the 1990's, approximately 600,000 deaths occurred globally as a result of weather-related natural disasters.
  4. The seas are warming. The Arctic Ocean could be ice free in summer by the end of this century. The warming of arctic ice shelf sediments is causing frozen methane to bubble out of the ocean, releasing a heat-trapping gas that is 25 times more potent than carbon dioxide.
  5. The seas are rising. The global sea level is projected to rise up to 88cm by 2100. Small islands such as Kiribati and the Maldives will be completely submerged. 50-60% of the world's population will be at risk. Almost half of all coastal development in Prince Edward Island could be lost by 2100.
  6. We face increased health risks. In Canada, increasing smog levels and both natural and man-made air-borne particles are leading to higher rates of asthma and heart disease. About 300 million people globally suffer from asthma, and 255 000 people died of the disease in 2005. Asthma related deaths are expected to increase by almost 20% in the next 10 years.
  7. We could lose our forests. In western Canada, changing temperatures could cause the boreal forest to retreat northward up to 1,100km by 2100. Current forests could be replaced by grasslands that thrive under warmer temperatures.
  8. Albertans already need more water. Alberta is facing a severe drought due to increasing temperatures, and decreasing precipitation. The glaciers feeding the Bow, Saskatchewan, and Athabasca rivers have shrunk by 25% in the last century. Decreasing water levels, combined with changing water chemistry in wetlands, ponds, lakes and dugouts, means less water for crop irrigation, cattle industry and general water use in Southern Alberta.
  9. Every aspect of our current quality of life depends on a stable climate. Since Alberta is responsible for 32.5% of Canada's greenhouse gas emissions, we are in a unique position take scientific, technological, and industrial leadership. By creating opportunities for industrial innovation, development of clean energy technology, and environmental stewardship at a provincial level, we have the chance to build our economy while addressing climate change.
  10. You can make a difference. See our 10 ways to reduce your carbon footprint to find out what you can do to slow climate change.