Article by Eric Worrell
If this deadly global warming continues, Canadians may have to invest in T-shirts and shorts.
Breaking temperature records is shocking, but it's not too late to limit global warming
Published: 11:51pm (AEST) on 3 September 2024
Alex Crawford
Assistant Professor, Department of Environment and Geography, University of ManitobaJuly 22, 2024 is the hottest day in human history, with the global average temperature being 17.16 degrees Celsius.
It was the hottest June on record and the hottest May on record. This all comes after 2023 was the hottest year on record, 1.48 degrees Celsius warmer than the 1850-1900 average, according to the Copernicus Climate Change Service.
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…A total warming of 1.48 degrees Celsius doesn’t sound like much. So while these numbers are useful global benchmarks for scientists and policymakers, most Canadians will likely only feel the effects of climate change through specific (often extreme) weather events.
For example, global warming means more oppressive heat waves that leave Canadians sweating, tired and, in some cases, requiring medical attention.
Take the city of Montreal, for example. Between 1900 and 1923, there were an average of six days a year in Montreal with temperatures exceeding 30 degrees Celsius.
Any hot day might still be just a hot day – it's the weather. But twice as many hot days in 24 years as a century ago? This is climate change.
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Read more: https://theconversation.com/broken-Temperature-records-are-alarming-but-it-is-not-too-late-to-limit-global-warming-236300
As an Australian living three hours from the southern edge of the tropics, I want to reassure Canadians that we are doing just fine in this deadly warm climate. Some of us even like it. If Montreal has 14 days a year with temperatures above 30 degrees Celsius/86 degrees Celsius, you won't die.
But if global warming eliminated harsh winters, some of you might live longer.
Even in a hot country like India, cold weather kills far more people than warm weather.
The fact that cold weather poses far greater threats to human health than heat waves should come as no surprise to anyone, except maybe climate scientists.
Humans are a tropical species. In the environment in which our ancestors first evolved, clothing was optional. Elsewhere, we all need clothing to protect us from the extreme conditions outside the tropics, where we would otherwise die from exposure.
As the Indian study I linked to above shows, the biggest threat to human health from ambient temperature is people ignoring temperatures that are slightly cooler than comfortable. How many Canadians are dying young because green policies have driven up energy costs while they hesitate to turn on their indoor heaters?
The evidence is clear. Even mild cold discomfort can put our bodies under medical stress, stress enough to cause significant increases in mortality, stroke, and heart disease. Even in a hot country like India, mortality spikes from cold weather are much greater than from hot weather.
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