The blanket of ice that covered Kingston this past weekend is a signal of larger forces at play.
Over the weekend of March 29 and 30, a freezing rainstorm left a trail of destruction, coating trees and power lines with heavy ice, triggering widespread power outages, and creating dangerous driving conditions. The weight of the ice also caused branches and utility lines to break. While the storm encouraged the community to stay indoors, it serves as a reminder that climate change is intensifying extreme weather.
Though Kingston’s geography makes it especially vulnerable to storms like these, experts have also been warning that 2023 recipient of the Vega Medal, says action must be taken now to mitigate future damage.
Smol says that ice storms occur under very specific conditions, a fact which makes them difficult for experts to predict, and nature to produce.
“A few degrees colder and it’s snow, a few degrees warmer and it’s rain,” Smol wrote in a statement to The Journal.
Low-lying areas such as the St. Lawrence Valley—in which Kingston is situated—are more susceptible to ice storms because they’re a meeting ground for cold air from the Arctic, and warm air from the Atlantic. In conjunction, the confluence of air creates near perfect conditions for ice storms to breed.
ice storm in Kingston is evidence against greenhouse warming, but Smol says this is a common misconception.
“I still often hear in Kingston, after a major snowstorm ‘what happened to so-called greenhouse warming?’ People tend to associate snow with cold […] but in fact you only need the winter temperature to be -1 or -2°C to get snow,” Smol said.
Smol said Kingston’s climate is changing—a claim which is backed up by mountains of scientific evidence.
“It’s getting warmer and to some extent less wind. We’re seeing more episodic events, like major summer storms, with important consequences,” Smol said.
Beyond ice storms, climate change poses other environmental risks. With most of the data focused on rain and snow events, there is ample evidence for an increased risk of flooding. If cities like Kingston don’t act fast enough, Smol indicates increased flooding could become an exponentially larger issue.
“We don’t have the infrastructure in cities to remove water fast enough when, for example, in a few hours you get the amount of rain you normally would expect to get in a month,” Smol said.
The city’s Climate Change Adaptation Plan aims to address these ever-growing concerns. According to the City, this proposed plan will focus on how climate change impacts Kingston’s infrastructure, society, economy, and environment.
Smol says the problem of climate change is “here and now.” Students can contribute to climate adaptation efforts in Kingston, both on campus and in the wider community.
“Be aware and informed and act […] and progressive initiatives,” Smol advised. “Climate change is the biggest issue we face today—it’ll affect everything and everyone, not just the environment, but the economy, health, international affairs, everything […] We have waited far too long to act and are sleepwalking to disaster.”
Tags
All final editorial decisions are made by the Editor(s) in Chief and/or the Managing Editor. Authors should not be ed, targeted, or harassed under any circumstances. If you have any grievances with this article, please direct your comments to [email protected].