There’s no denying it, the opinion piece by Ryan Katz-Rosene, titled “Skate the Rideau Canal… while you still can” is poignant. In it he chronicles how Ottawa’s Rideau Canal, a UNESCO World Heritage Site on which Canadians have skated once winter takes hold and the ice is thick enough for generations, may be “on life support” due to climate change.
Although the decrease in the average length of the skating season is to be expected due to climate change, what is shocking is that “the pace and scale of the skateway’s decline has come much faster than expected. The signs of later average skateway opening dates was certainly perceptible by the mid 1990s, yet by the late 2010s, visitors still had many weeks available to visit the rink most winters.” In the 2022-2023 “season something remarkable happened — the skateway did not open for a single day! Things recovered slightly the following year, with 10 days of open skating in winter 2023-2024 (the second-shortest season — by a long shot).”
In the figure included with the article you can see the shortening skating seasons and the rising average daily temperature during the winter. It’s not a pretty picture. But rather than grieving prematurely perhaps we should use this as a rallying point. Katharine Hayhoe talks frequently about the best way to connect with people who might not believe in climate change or share your concerns about its negative effects is by talking about something that you both love that’s in danger of disappearing. For many people in Canada winter sports – whether skiing or skating or outdoor hockey – fit the bill.
So let’s strap on our skates (whether metaphorically or literally) and get out there and talk about not just enjoying what we have before it’s gone but working together to perhaps stop it from going away altogether.
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