There has been a lot of talk in Canada lately about the need to develop technological innovations that address global warming. After all, since humans cause global warming by burning too much fossil fuels such as coal, oil and gas, as well as destroying natural ecosystems that absorb and store carbon, it's up to us to fix it.
Of course, replacing traditional sources of energy that we've come to rely on so heavily Is no easy feat. It requires big effort.
But here's the good part: most of the technologies needed to usher in a clean and sustainable future are already available. Even better, many of these technologies are being developed right here in Canada.
By supporting innovative solutions, we can phase out the older polluting forms of generating energy that contribute to global warming and thus create a cleaner world. These innovations will create new jobs and boost our economy.
For too long the environment and economy have been treated as two separate solitudes. But they aren't. We can protect and conserve the environment and have a vibrant economy.
But first, bear with me for a little climate change 101.
In order to put reasonable, practical solutions in place, we have to understand how global warming works. Not all scientists agree on when certain things will happen, but most scientists agree on the basic mechanism that is warming our planet.
It's really pretty simple.
Heat from the sun comes down through the earth's atmosphere, and some of it bounces back into space. The atmosphere acts like a cozy blanket, thanks to certain atmospheric gases that act as a layer of insulation to hold some of the heat.
But, over the last several centuries, as the Industrial Revolution has taken place, humans are burning more and more fossil fuels to meet our energy needs. Thanks to our cars and factories, we've released more of these heat-trapping gases than the biosphere can reabsorb so they build up and thicken the heat-trapping blanket of insulation around the Earth. Human land use practices, such as the destruction of tropical rainforests, also release carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. The heat builds up, the globe warms, and the atmospheric balance that keeps the climate stable is disrupted.
Global warming is more about a mechanism that gets destabilized and broken, like a thermostat that goes haywire. It doesn't work the way it should, and this results in extreme weather effects around the globe. As we now know, according to the UN's blue-ribbon panel of scientists who studied global warming, it's happening right now. Ten of the warmest years on record have occurred since 1980.
Scientists have been closely observing the results of this thickening blanket and corresponding rise in global temperatures. The effects are impossible to ignore: rapidly melting glaciers and ice caps, warmer temperatures, stronger storms, and even the migration of tropical diseases, animals, and plants into temperate regions.
The loss of Canada's boreal wilderness? The disappearance of Canadian icons such as the polar bear and caribou? Scientists tell us that this could very well happen if global warming continues unabated due to personal and political inaction to seriously tackle the problem.
There is broad agreement that global warming results in more negative consequences than positive ones. So the best course is to make practical choices that reduce the drivers of climate change. We all need to meet the challenge directly to ensure against the worst outcomes. And we can do this through innovative technology.
This brings me back to my original point. We don't have to wait for some brilliant inventor to create an earth-shattering technological wonder. Using technology that exists right now, we could accomplish a lot of things.
Several years ago, the David Suzuki Foundation released Power Shift that showed with technology already available, Canada could reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by more than 50% over thirty years. The key point was to make a start.
For example, we could significantly increase the average fuel efficiency of today's automobiles, one of the world's major sources of heat-trapping gases. In fact, there is already a great deal of momentum around the world. In Japan, auto makers are required to improve the fuel efficiency of their vehicles by 20 percent by 2015. And California's Republican governor made history by passing some of the toughest vehicle standards in the U.S.
Together, we can make Canada a global warming problem-solver, not a problem-maker. Existing examples of legislation and technology are right in front of us. The clock is ticking... What are we going to choose?
