Oceans frying too
The city is seeking residents interested in joining its first ever Community Climate Change Advisory Committee. It is offering more information and a walk through the application process in an on-line webinar on Thursday evening (June 22 at 7 pm). It may be none too soon.
Last month was the hottest May ever for both North and South America. But in what Bill McKibben is calling “the scariest moment yet in the climate saga” we are witnessing a dramatic jump in ocean temperatures. Since March, sea surface temperatures in the North Atlantic have been half a celsius degree higher than ever recorded, and they are also at record levels across the globe.
McKibben wrote the first popular book on climate change back in 1989 and went on to establish 350.org as a global NGO that has organized climate actions in every country of the planet except North Korea. The local affiliate, the Hamilton 350 Committee, is holding a public on-line meeting tomorrow night (Wednesday, June 21 at 7 pm), and a rally the following week outside the offices of cabinet minister Filomena Tassi.
Wednesday’s presentation on “The Fires and the Climate Movement” features a speaker from 350 Canada, and the noon June 28 action at Tassi’s office is one of dozens the national group is holding across the country under the title “Canada is Burning”.
As of the end of last week, there have been over 2600 wildfires in Canada this year, and they have consumed more than 5.2 million hectares. That’s in less than half the year, and current conditions are drastically worse than the normals for this time of year.
Applications for the city’s climate advisory committee are open until July 7. They hope to recruit 15-20 members “representing both professional and personal lived experience with climate or social issues”. These will include 1-2 academics, a health professional, 1-2 from the agricultural and food sector, two Indigenous representatives, 1-2 youth, 3-4 from industry and business, 2-3 community citizen members plus 3-4 who “can equally represent the environment and social issues related to climate change.”
