Climatologist looks towards N.L.'s environmental future on Earth Day
Joel Finnis says governments need to be reminded of their climate commitments
This is the time of year when a Memorial University climatologist says he starts wondering what surprises lie in the months ahead, including increasingly severe weather events strengthened by climate change.
April 22 is Earth Day and Joel Finnis says he uses it to reflect on the current health of the planet and think about its future, which he sees as fraught.
"Given what we've seen the last few years, I prepare myself increasingly every year to see new extremes," Finnis told CBC Radio's The St. John's Morning Show.
Forest fires and wildfires across North America come to his mind, as does post-tropical storm Fiona, the strongest storm Canada has seen in terms of barometric pressure, he says.
Those events are indicators that "something is shifting," Finnis said.
Newfoundland and Labrador is seeing a shift in precipitation events, he says, adding heavy rainfall after heavy snowfall can create potential for flooding when the water melts.
The ice is changing, too, says Finnis.
"If you're living along the Labrador coast and you use the sea ice to get from place to place, that sea ice has become much less reliable than it was even a decade or two before," said Finnis.
"We've even seen sort of heavy, warm, extreme warming events in the middle of winter, creating problems for things like Cain's Quest as a sporting event."
Our power, our planet
The changing climate is manageable albeit daunting, according to Finnis, who says there's one simple thing individuals can do to help: listen.
"Pay attention to your weather forecasters and whatever warnings come out of Environment Canada," Finnis said. "We really need to pay attention to some of the experts who can give us some context for some of that."
Finnis says governments can aid in the fight against climate change by trying to "control the scale of the problem."
This year's Earth Day theme is 'Our Power, Our Planet' and the St. John's-based climatologist's advice is to honour that sentiment by reducing reliance on fossil fuels and oil consumption within the province.
"Last year, we actually got pretty close to finally seeing the growth in [the] carbon emission plateau," said Finnis.
"That doesn't mean the problem's solved.
The province introduced its Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund program in 2024 to support projects in the industrial sector that reduce on-site fossil fuel use.
Three years before that, its 2019 Climate Change Action Plan committed to "reduce provincial [greenhouse gas] emissions by 30 per cent below 2005 [greenhouse gas] emissions level by 2030."
Finnis says governments need to be reminded of the promises made to fight climate change.
"Make them realize that, you know, if we don't live up to those commitments, there will be a cost later at the polls," he said.
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With files from The St. John's Morning Show