The North American country, Canada, is boiling from catastrophic heatwaves. The escalating mercury level and soaring temperatures have breached the mark of 40 to 45 degree celsius in mid-July. This has caused severe adverse impact on the lives of the people. The climate-change induced heatwaves coupled with suspended wind movement, air pollution and reduced rainfall are further causing a toll on the people. Farms and crops are threatened, the risks of workplace injuries are anticipated to escalate, as people suffer from exhaustion and heat strokes. This further impacts the productivity and Canadian economy.
Scorching temperatures breach sustainable mark & the heat dome effect
Unseasonable hot conditions are set to engulf Canada throughout July and beyond. In regions such as Armstrong, Ontario temperatures have hit 40.8 degree celsius. Also, Sioux Lookout, Pickle Lake and Geraldton recorded massive & unsustainable levels of temperature. Meteorologists determine the cause for heatwaves & soaring temperatures as the “heat dome effect”. It is a phenomenon, where a high atmospheric pressure zone gets formed and settles in a region for a prolonged duration.
This remains stationary and the high-pressure zone acts as a liquid pot that makes wind movement slow and disables the escape of air. It traps hot air in the same region for a long time, thus causing heat waves. The trapped air leads to minimal cloud cover, thus the direct sunlight further warms up the ground and also limits the cooling effect at night. This phenomenon of a high-pressure zone, coupled with low winds, suspended air, increased sunlight and warm nights, escalates the catastrophe of heatwaves, every passing day.
Wildfire, smoke deteriorates air quality, increases health risks in Canada
It is also said that the heatwaves in Canada will cause wildfire, thus causing eruption of smoke, air pollution and other catastrophic effects, which severely impacts the health and well-being of the people. Smoke from active fires in Ontario, Manitoba and other Canadian provinces have led to air quality alerts, thus disrupting the lives of millions of people.
Health officials in Canada warned that the fine particles in wildfire smoke can irritate the lungs and cause respiratory disorders. It can also lead to heart disease and other problems, especially among children, older adults and people with existing health problems, who are most vulnerable to heatwaves due to less immunity. Weather forecasters expect the heat dome to persist over parts of North America for several more days and the temperatures are expected to rise above normal.
Life and livelihood disrupted as workers suffer from exhaustion & heat strokes
In mid-July, as an impact of scorching heat, commuter trains were delayed in parts of Canada. In many parts of Atlantic Canada, Southern British Columbia, Prairies, Central Canada and in the Northwestern territories, severe heat warnings have disrupted the life of many workers from farms to factories. People working in construction sites, farmlands, loading docks, factories, restaurant kitchens and warehouses are bearing the brunt of steep increase in temperatures, thus affecting work, productivity and the earnings.
The most common impact of climate change & heatwaves in workplaces of Canada are, people are suffering from exhaustion and heat strokes. The risk of workplace injuries are also spiking in Canada as people are suffering from dehydration, fatigue, attention deficit, heat-induced stress and other physical and mental health impairments, as an impact of heatwaves.
For example, a study conducted by a Canadian institute found that for every 1 degree celsius increase in the daily temperature, the workplace injury rate will increase by 0.2 per cent. This number might seem as meagre or negligible. However, the adverse impact of climate change and heatwaves, multiplied at the population scale, will massively hit the lives of people and the overall economic productivity.
Experts assert Canada to impose measures to protect people from heatwaves
Weather forecasters and climate experts have called on the Canadian government to come up with consolidated & uniform measures to protect people from the heatwaves and other climate change-induced adverse impacts. Every province should evolve a region-specific policy to protect its employees and workers from heat-induced health hazards & injuries.
Heatwaves are thus emerging as a recurring phenomenon in Canada, the United States and Europe. The western world is grappling with intense heatwaves, wildfires and other climate catastrophes. Workplace injuries, health hazards, disrupted mobility, impact on livelihood are emerging as common impacts associated with the heatwaves, which are set to stay and further escalate, with every passing year. Heatwaves are thus a climate reality and the western world are under the compulsion to develop human-centric, sustainable models of growth, away from consumerism and capital intensive growth.
