Download NIR-15-12 - Global Warming: Canada`s Melting Glaciers

 IN THIS ISSUE Global Warming: Canada’s Melting Glaciers (Duration 14:58) The cause of climate change has long been debated by scientists, but the melting of the planet’s glaciers is
an example that the heat is causing serious change. News in Review joins Chris Brown on a breathtaking
journey into British Columbia where he witnesses first-hand the disappearing giants. Then meteorologist
Johanna Wagstaffe explains some of the effects of long term global warming.
News in Review Study Modules The Copenhagen Climate Change Summit,
December 2009
The Dangers of Global Warming, May 2007
After Kyoto: Trying to Cool the Planet,
February 2006
Related CBC Programs 1000 Days for the Planet: Global Climate
Disruption
The Antarctica Challenge: A Global Warning
Arctic Meltdown
One Ocean: The Changing Sea
Playing God with Planet Earth
The Polar Explorer
The Politics of Polar Bears
Weather Gone Wild
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News in Review – December 2015 – Teacher Resource Guide GLOBAL WARMING: Canada’s Melting Glaciers VIDEO REVIEW Before Viewing The Columbia Icefield is an incredible natural phenomenon in the Canadian Rockies that attracts millions
of tourist every year. The biggest glacier in the icefield, the Athabasca, has retreated 1.5 kilometres since
1890 and, with its rapid five metres of melting ice per year, could be completely gone within the next 25
to 30 years. Why? Mostly because of humanity’s consumption of fossil fuels and the by-product of that
reliance: greenhouse gases. Burning fossil fuels creates greenhouse gases that wind up trapping heat in the
atmosphere, causing the earth to warm up. This is the process that, if left unaddressed, could see the
Athabasca Glacier become a thing of the past.
1. Is the Athabasca Glacier, and the Columbia Icefield that it inhabits, worth saving? Why or why not?
2. Why would it be important to introduce measures to prevent runaway climate change?
3. What impact do you think melting glaciers could have on river ecosystems, hydro-electric power
generation, agriculture, tourism and the forestry industry?
The Columbia Icefield straddles the B.C.‐Alberta border and stretches from the northern part of Banff National Park to the southern part of Jasper National Park. It is the largest icefield in the Rocky Mountains. Viewing 1. Why should we be worried about melting glaciers?
2. What kind of emotional impact do images of Canada’s iconic glaciers have on you?
3. How far has the Castle Creek glacier receded over the past ten years?
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4. The freezing and melting process each year leaves ridges in the ground called:
 a. Scars
 c. Marks
 b. Bridges
 d. Moraines
5. While the average distance between ridges has been 14-15 metres per year, how much have the
distances increased over the past two years?
6. What is happening out at sea that is contributing to glacier melting?
7. What is the “The Blob”?
8. What percentage of water flow do glaciers account for in western Canadian towns?
 a. 10 per cent
 c. 30 per cent
 b. 20 per cent
 d. 40 per cent
9. Why is cold glacier water so important to the ecosystem in Western Canada?
10. a) What happened to Rob Elliot’s Pemberton area home?
b) What role did warming temperatures play in what happened?
11. What do provincial projections predict will happen to most, if not all, of B.C.’s glaciers by the end of
the century?
12. If we burned all of the coal, oil and gas that is currently available over the next few decades, what do
scientist predict will happen to global sea levels?
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13. Besides changes in sea levels, what other ecological consequences would accompany unbridled fossil
fuel burning?
14. If the necessary steps are taken to address climate change, how much will sea levels rise over the next
100-200 years? Why is this considered “good news”?
15. At the Paris conference on climate change, why is it important for the global community to agree to
keep warming to less than 2º C?
After Viewing If humans burn all of the available coal, oil and gas currently available, the Antarctic ice sheet will
completely melt, causing sea levels to rise by 50 metres — the equivalent height of a 16-storey building.
Isolated oceanic islands, coastal cities, towns and villages would find themselves underwater. While the
process of melting would take thousands of years (10 000 by some estimates), the direct cause of the
melting would be the fossil fuels we burn today because carbon dioxide remains in the atmosphere for
hundreds (and, in some cases, thousands) of years after its initial release.
1. Should we worry about the fate of the planet 100 years from now? 1 000 or 10 000 years from now?
Why or why not?
2. Where does our responsibility for the planet start and stop?
Human‐initiated climate change is primarily caused by the burning of fossil fuels (mainly coal, oil and gas) which release carbon dioxide (CO2) into the air. This carbon dioxide absorbs heat from the earth and, in turn, warms up the planet.
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THE STORY Minds On 1. a) What comes to mind when you hear
the expression climate change?
b) How does the expression make you
feel?
c) What actions does the expression
encourage you to take?
2. Have you noticed any evidence of climate
change (i.e. more extreme weather, changes in
local wildlife, etc.)?
3. What would you be willing to sacrifice to slow
the global warming brought on by human
activities?
Melting ice There is no doubt that the planet is experiencing
an ecological crisis caused by climate change.
Unpredictable weather, devastating storms and
killer heatwaves are a few side effects of Earth’s
rising temperatures. Another glaring sign of the
crisis comes in the form of melting glaciers, with
some of these massive ice sheets shedding
metres of ice from year to year. It may not seem
like much, but scientists look to the long-term.
Since Earth was formed over billions of years,
the disappearance of a glacier inside of 200
years is actually quite alarming.
Doom and gloom Climate scientists have been warning the
governments of the world about global warming
for close to 60 years. Shortly after the alarm
bells were sounded, the scientific community
found their warnings and predictions virtually
ignored. Tales of doom and gloom were set
aside in favour of unprecedented economic and
technological growth. More recently, world
leaders have started to listen — at least a bit —
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to calls to address climate change in an effort to
slow down global warming. Here’s why: over
the past 130 years, the planet’s average
temperature has gone up 1.5º C with half of that
increase happening since 1980. In order to fight
runaway global warming, world leaders have
established an ambitious goal: to keep the
average temperature increase to less than 2º C by
2100.
The culprit How did we get to this point? Well, with the
dawn of the Industrial Revolution in the late
1800s, humanity turned to fossil-fuel-burning
machines to get things done. These machines
inspired a technological age that transformed the
world. Countries who embraced and led the
technological charge saw their status elevate and
their progress advance at an extraordinary pace.
No one really anticipated that the emissions
from the main engines of industry were polluting
the atmosphere with vast amounts of the heattrapping greenhouse gas, carbon dioxide (CO2).
While CO2 is a natural part of our environment,
humanity is producing so much extra CO2 that
the planet is becoming overwhelmed. Couple
this with the fact that certain concentrations of
CO2 can take thousands of years to dissipate and
you come to a fuller appreciation of the problem.
Earth is now moving from an epoch of concern
for the planet to an epoch demanding immediate
action on climate change.
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The glaciers It makes sense that rising global temperatures
will have an impact on glaciers. Warmer days
are certainly going to turn ice into water. The
problem that scientists are noticing is that the
melting is happening more quickly than
anticipated. According to the David Suzuki
foundation, B.C.’s Glacier National Park has lost
enough ice to fill a reservoir that is five
kilometres tall and five kilometres wide.
Meanwhile, melting in Banff National Park is
expected to worsen in the coming years, with the
effects of the melting being felt in river basins
up to 3 000 kilometres away from the Rocky
Mountains. The fate of the planet and, in turn,
the world’s glaciers rests on humanity’s choice
to work collectively to slow down global
warming.
The David Suzuki Foundation reports that global glacier melting accounts for the loss of 92 cubic kilometres of ice per year. This is the equivalent of the water Canadians consume collectively over a six year period. To consider 1. What evidence exists that the planet is experiencing an ecological crisis?
2. Have global leaders been foolish to ignore the warnings of climate scientists? Support your answer
with details from the article.
3. What role does CO2 play in global warming?
4. How much of an impact has climate change had on glaciers?
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WHAT TO DO ABOUT CLIMATE CHANGE Sometimes the climate change crisis makes people feel helpless. Take a look at the two lists below. One is
adapted from the Canadian government’s climate change action plan and the other is from the David
Suzuki Foundation. Both provide tips on how you can do your part in the fight against global warming.
Read both lists and answer the questions that follow.
The Government of Canada’s Top 10 Things You Can Do to Help (Canada’s Action on Climate Change) The David Suzuki Foundation’s Top 10 Ways You Can Stop Climate Change 1. Reduce energy use – Develop energy saving
habits: turn off the lights, use energy efficient
bulbs; turn off your computer; unplug unused
electronic devices.
1. Green your commute – Walk, ride your bike,
carpool or take transit. Transportation accounts
for 25 per cent of Canada’s greenhouse gas
emissions.
2. Change the way you think about
transportation – Walk, bike, carpool and use
public transportation.
2. Be energy efficient – Turn the lights off and
use energy efficient bulbs; unplug your
computer, TV and other electronic devices when
you aren’t using them (you probably didn’t
know that these devices are burning energy even
when they aren’t on!); hang dry your clothes
instead of using the dryer; ask your parents to
buy a programmable thermostat so that your
furnace and air conditioner aren’t running when
you are not home or asleep.
3. Insulate your home – Ask your parents about
the insulation in your home. Is your attic
properly insulated? Are your windows new or
do they have covering/caulking that keeps the
household temperature consistent? You should
also consider insulating yourself: instead of
adjusting the thermostat and turning the heating
up, wear indoor clothing that allows you to keep
the furnace turned down.
3. Choose renewable power – Ask your parents
to contact your utility company and switch your
house to a renewable plan that uses things like
wind and solar power. If that option isn’t
available, your parents should ask the company,
WHY NOT!?!
4. Make every drop count – Conserve water by
taking shorter showers. Report any dripping taps
or toilets to your parents so they can arrange to
have them repaired. Keep the water off when
you are brushing your teeth. Water is a precious
commodity and wasting it means that
unnecessary energy is being used to get the
water to your home.
4. Eat wisely – Eat organic and locally grown
foods; avoid meat (18 per cent of greenhouse
gas emissions come from meat and dairy
production); and don’t eat too much!
5. Cool wash and hang to dry – Wash your
clothes in cold water and hang them to dry.
5. Trim your waste – Compost kitchen and
garden waste; recycle to keep garbage out of the
landfills. Landfill garbage produces methane
gas, which is more potent than carbon dioxide.
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6. Use high-efficiency appliances – Ask your
parents if they have purchased high-efficiency
appliances. These appliances use about 20 per
cent less energy than older, less efficient
models.
6. Let polluters pay – Contact your local politician
and ask them if polluters are paying for the damage
they are doing to the environment. These payments
are often called carbon taxes. If you are doing your
part, why shouldn’t local businesses be held to the
same standard?
7. Switch to “green power” – Ask your parents to
find out where your power is coming from and, if it
is coming from a non-renewable source (coal, gas,
etc.), ask them to switch you to a renewable source
(wind, solar, etc.). If the utility company shows
resistance, encourage your parents to ask them
what they are going to do to address the situation.
7. Fly less – Airplanes are big polluters. Try to
travel by bus or train, or take fewer vacations.
8. Recycle – Make recycling a habit to keep items
away from landfills. Make an effort to recycle
things like batteries and electronics, even if it
means a special trip to a recycling depot.
8. Get informed – Learn as much as you can
about climate change.
9. Repurpose – Instead of throwing away clothing
and household items, donate them to someone
who needs them. There are plenty of non-profit
groups who are willing to take these items.
9. Get involved – Join a citizen action group that
focuses on the climate change issue. Encourage
your parents to vote for politicians whose
policies are aimed at fighting climate change.
10. Make plants your new best friend – Plant a
garden; be conscious of planting things that do
not require a lot of water. Plants and trees take
in carbon from the atmosphere.
10. Support and donate – Support organizations
who specialize in finding solutions to problems
associated with climate change. Encourage your
parents to donate to these organizations.
Source: Adapted from www.climatechange.gc.ca.
Source: Adapted from www.davidsuzuki.org.
To consider 1. Are there any suggestions that surprise you from these two lists? Do the lists change the way you
think about climate change?
2. Which list do you prefer? Explain why.
3. How are the lists similar? How are they different?
4. Take a look at the order of each list. Consider the lists as a kind of ranking of priorities. What are the
main priorities of the government of Canada’s list? What are the main priorities of the David Suzuki
Foundation?
5. Do you see yourself taking action in the fight against global warning? If so, what do you plan to do?
(You can use two or three suggestions from the lists or provide your own examples.) If not, explain
your reasoning.
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