Toronto Island Is Sinking And Here’s What People Think Of Climate Change

Climate change is a controversial topic, yet for #woke indiviuals it’s a conversation most are willing to have and an issue Toronto needs to work on. 

8 out of 10 people see climate change as a catastrophic risk, according to the Global Catastrophic Risks 2017 survey which sampled more than 8,000 people in eight countries. Canada was not one of those countries but Toronto Islanders would probably fall into the majority if they took part.

Right now the island is flooding – sinking even – though this isn’t anything new. The amount of flooding is beyond what we’ve seen before and it’s looking to get worse every year, according to a 2011 report. Fish are swimming on top of a baseball park and most residents could probably swim to work. What’s more is the Don Valley gets yearly floods due to storm weather too.  

Climate change is already a threat to Toronto, and it’s bigger than the crazy weather patterns people are complaining about.

Mayor John Tory pushed to have a stormwater management report shelved last Tuesday when the island was slowly being submerged by stormwater. Earlier in February during the 2017 budget debate, the council shut down a motion to start funding climate change reduction programs.

Now, it isn’t just up to our politicians – they haven’t been doing much anyways. The survey also shows 8 of 10 people saying they would make significant changes to their lifestyle to reduce climate risks.

According to the survey on global risks, climate change is now more of a threat to people than weapons of mass destruction, epidemics, and population growth. It’s also just behind the risk of political violence escalating into war – something pretty prominent considering growing global tensions, consistent foreign attacks, and intelligence controversies happening daily around the world.

The fact of the matter is climate change effects people globally. The conditions and imminence changes depend on location but for the most part if we continue the way we are climate will become a problem for all of us. If Toronto doesn’t want to see the island evacuated indefinitely within the next couple of decades it’s going to take cooperation on all fronts.

Whether it’s what municipal, provincial and national politicians are legislating, or simply citizens changing the way they consume and discard things, small actions on a large scale could curtail catastrophe.

Climate Change 101 with Bill Nye | National Geographic