We in Kawartha Lakes may be happy to say ‘so long’ to 2025, our year of extreme weather. The record-shattering snowfall. Then the Ice Storm (yes, with capitals), with massive destruction, lengthy power outages, and flooding. Then one heat wave after another, often over-layered with deadly wildfire smoke. And then extreme drought, which is still ongoing. Then, wildfires, no longer restricted to the north or other provinces.
Climate disasters come with a huge cost. The ice storm alone, which stretched from Grey Bruce to the Quebec border, cost more than $340 million in insured damages. But it’s generally acknowledged that for every dollar’s worth of damage covered by insurance, $3 to $4 dollars-worth is not covered. In spite of generous help from neighbours, emergency services, and the city, we all lost something. And that loss came with a cost.
Whether it was beloved trees that shielded us from sun and wind. Or damaged property and household goods, damage to business, lost work. From this will come hikes to insurance premiums, and higher utility fees and taxes to pay for climate impacts. And that’s just from the ice storm. What about the impact of heat, smoke and drought? How many ended up in hospital with heatstroke, heart issues, or asthma? Local farmers, no strangers to unpredictable weather, sweated to cut their losses from crisped crops and evaporated ponds. What household didn’t struggle to salvage kitchen gardens as wells dried up?
Perhaps the biggest thing that we lost was any confidence that life could be predictable, that we are safe. That we could trust that our governments are working to rein in climate pollution and building protections from climate impacts. We are experiencing what NATO characterizes as “climate breakdown,” an existential challenge that demands urgent attention and proactive strategies.
Seven years ago, Premier Doug Ford’s environment minister announced the ‘Made-in-Ontario Climate Plan.’
“Preserving and protecting our environment begins with a new vision for Ontario. One where hardworking taxpayers are protected and respected and where environmental stewardship connects with the people of this province. I am pleased to present the following made-in-Ontario plan to keep our province beautiful, by protecting our air, land and water…and supporting Ontarians to continue to do their share to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and helping communities and families prepare for climate change.”
What came to pass was much less. And now, after a third searing investigation of Ontario’s climate plan by the provincial Auditor General, the Ford government has pressed the delete button. It rammed through Bill 68, the cynically named Plan to Protect Ontario Act. Amongst other things, this eliminated the requirement to set emission reduction targets, have a climate plan, and publicly report on progress. This also had the effect of derailing the re-opening of the climate court case being brought against the government by seven young people.
Ford’s office claims the government will continue to lower emissions, but evidence shows otherwise. According to the National Inventory of Greenhouse Gas Emissions, apart from the COVID-caused reduction, Ontario’s emissions rose steadily throughout this government’s tenure.
The Ford government has launched us on a dangerous trajectory, counter to all scientific evidence and in denial of what we experienced in 2025, a year likely to be harbinger of what is to come. Its actions stand offside to the landmark opinion recently issued by the International Court of Justice, which stressed the responsibility of governments to take all measures within their power to prevent significant harm to the climate system and the environment. It characterized the climate crisis as “an existential problem of planetary proportions that imperils all forms of life and the very health of our planet.” It went on to say that there is a rapidly closing window of opportunity to secure a livable future for all”. The Ford government’s actions can only be seen as an utter dereliction of its duty of due diligence.
We need a genuine climate plan. One that works to reduce greenhouse gas pollution, and with adaptation measures that build community resilience. Our lives and the lives of generations to come require this.
For more information on this topic, please see these Ford Climate Crimes:
Doug Ford’s carbon pollution failure
Ford is Making us More Vulnerable to Climate Hazards
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Moya Beall is a member of SCAN! Kawartha and SCAN!’s Ontario Project and its working groups on Adaptation and Ford’s Bad Energy Choices. This article was originally published in the Lindsay Advocate and is republished by permission.
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