Why save the planet?

The climate is changing, and the impacts on the planet could be substantial.  Due to burning fossil fuels such as coal, gas and oil and clearing forests we have dramatically increased the amount of carbon dioxide in the Earth’s atmosphere and the temperatures are rising.

Effects:

Climate Change and Your Health
When we burn fossil fuels, we create two main kinds of pollution: greenhouse gases and smog-causing pollutants.  Smog has been linked to many health problems, from respiratory diseases to cancer.

Climate Change and Forests
Forests are threatened by climate change.  Shorter, warmer winters mean that invasive species, such as the Asian longhorn beetle, are devastating trees.  In addition, warmer and drier weather also increases the likelihood of forest fires which release carbon dioxide.  Trees are important because they act as carbon sinks and extract carbon dioxide from the air.

Climate Change and Water
The Great Lakes make up 20 per cent of the world’s fresh water supply.  They are fed by thousands of smaller lakes, streams and wetlands.  Warmer temperatures cause more of this water to evaporate, resulting in lower water levels and possible shortages. 

Source: Government of Ontario

Global Warming

The world is warming faster than at any time in the last 10,000 years. As global warming increases, its effects are being felt from land to sea, from the Equator to the poles. This warming is manifesting changes that can be seen in the weather, our economy, and definitively our health and way of life. Every day we feel the effects of climate change in the form of:

• More extreme weather events (droughts in the Prairies, ice storms in eastern Canada, floods in Manitoba and Quebec)
• More mild winters, hotter summers and higher levels of smog in our cities, resulting in increases of asthma and respiratory problems for Canadian citizens
• Changes in the timing and rate of reproduction of some mammals
• Glaciers in every region of the world are melting, putting millions of people at risk for floods, droughts and lack of drinking water
• Great Lakes water levels are declining, smaller streams and rivers will become dried out, leaving many forests vulnerable to fires
• Increases in the amount of greenhouse gases (GHG) in the atmosphere

Source: Tree Canada