Council told to brace for more volatile local climate

In just over three decades, the temperature in Calgary could rise above 30 degrees Celsius for 28 days a year, compared to the current average of four days annually.

By the year 2050, in addition to intense heat waves, Calgarians could see more localized flooding, an increase in severe winds and a decrease in annual river-flow rates, a council committee heard Wednesday.

“As Calgarians, we know that our climate is changing and we can already see it around us,” Dick Ebersohn, the program manager for the climate program at the City of Calgary told council’s utilities and corporate services committee Wednesday.

“The impacts range from increases in intense precipitation to warming temperatures, and an increase in extreme weather leading to flooding, (we’ve seen that), hail, (we’ve seen that) and wind storms (we’ve experienced that),” Ebersohn said.

“These changes have serious consequences on service delivery and infrastructure.”

Ebersohn spoke to councillors about Calgary’s current climate program and a to-be-developed planning document called the “climate resilience plan,” a climate change strategy that is scheduled to be presented to council in early 2018 following citizen engagement.

But some citizens came to City Hall on Wednesday to say more action needs to be taken on climate change in a city recently rocked by extreme weather events, including the 2013 flood and 2014 Snowtember storm and hail storms.

Yvonne Spies expressed deep concerns Calgary is lagging far behind other major cities in its approach to climate change.

“The problem is this report is about adaptation, it’s not about significant prevention.

“It’s cautionary and polite,” she said of the 20-page climate program report, a pre-report to the 2018 climate resilience plan.

“There’s one ingredient alone that’s going to drive climate action in the city and that’s political will.”

Emergency doctor Joe Vipond told the committee he came to council chambers after a night shift to speak on behalf of his young children.

“Whatever you feel about the science behind climate change, there are youth out there that are going to be sincerely impacted by this,” he said.

Vipond said tackling climate change is needed both for the functionality and safety of the city, and for future generations.

Ebersohn, with the city, said engagement with Calgarians shows there is strong support for taking action on climate change, noting 69 per cent of citizens surveyed felt the city should do more.

But not all members of the public who addressed councillors Wednesday were in favour of developing a climate change strategy.

“Calgary has no need for such a plan,” said Peter Bulkowski. “It’s a make-work project.”

After hearing from citizens and quizzing Ebersohn, the committee voted in favour of receiving the climate program report for information with councillors Diane Colley-Urquhart and Joe Magliocca opposed.

The plan will now go to council as a whole for final approval.