Okanagan climate change results in drought, wildfires
Published 12:30 pm Sunday, August 16, 2026
Our Earth’s atmosphere is heating up mostly from burning fossil fuels and methane from livestock and garbage decomposing, plus nitrous oxide from fossil fertilizers.
Together these “greenhouse gases” trap heat causing global warming.
Remember the science experiment with a smouldering stick in a beaker? As it’s heated, the smoke moves quickly and erratically demonstrating that air molecules move faster as heat increases.
This explains why extreme weather events will become more frequent, more intense and longer lasting.
Plus we’ve been destroying natural environments and their functioning ecosystems by removing too many trees, destroying wetlands, polluting water, air and soil microbes and wasting food and resources.
Therefore Earth’s climates are warming.
Natural ecosystems that have evolved over thousands of years can’t change as quickly or adapt to the changes.
Growing drought conditions and heat create massive, frequent, intense wildfires, while in some areas extreme rain downpours create floods.
A warmer climate affects the Okanagan’s water cycle with less snow and rain, earlier snowmelt and longer, warmer, drier summers.
We can’t use more water than is replenished annually or we draw down the lakes creating severe drought and eventually desertification.
We’re now experiencing very low water levels causing warmer water temperatures which threaten our aquatic habitats including our struggling salmon population.
There simply is not enough water entering the system.
We’ve got to live more lightly on this Earth.
If we destroy the natural resources — air, soil, water, plants and wildlife — are we next?
Remember: We’re a part of nature, not apart from it. What we do to the Earth’s environments, we do to ourselves.
I’ve heard people say, “I can’t I do anything to make a difference.” Or, “they’re not changing in China or India, so why should we?”
Everyone, no matter where you live, needs to do their part.
And the reality is that it’s generally the richer, developed countries like ours that pollute and waste the most.
Waste to us usually means trash to throw out. Whereas waste in some other places means not reusing things for other purposes, people or things. If you follow me on Facebook you’ll get lots of good ideas on reducing waste.
Most of us have moved onto cities, and as David Suzuki says, “The most important thing for city dwellers is jobs to make money.”
That’s why children go to school; to be educated for careers.
The more money you make and the more expensive stuff you acquire, the higher your esteem and place in our society.
But we can modify and change these attitudes; it’s all in the will of the people.
Otherwise we’ll suffer the consequences of an affluent society. Why wait for that to happen when we can start the change now?
Here’s two excellent resources now available to help us locally:
• Vernon’s Climate Action Plan – Vernon.ca/climate-action – Basics about climate change and its impacts on cities, what the City is doing about it, and what residents anywhere can do to help maintain a healthy environment.
• okanaganclimate.ca – In-depth information on climate change and how it’s affecting the Okanagan.
One of the best things that we can do is get outside. Get out of the house, schools, buildings, cars, boats, etc., and experience the natural environment.
Seek shade or cool water if it’s hot, and dress up and move when it’s cold.
Walk and cycle to get around whenever you can.
Always be CAREful of our environment!
Why wait when we can do it now.