The length of the Rideau Canal skating season could be jeopardized within a decade, says a new report that warns about the probable effects of global warming on winter sports in Canada.
The report, released March 30 by the David Suzuki Foundation, details how Canada’s ski and skating seasons stand to be shortened if the release of heat-trapping carbon dioxide emissions is not drastically reduced.
On Thin Ice: Winter Sports and Climate Change, was presented at the eighth World Conference on Sport and the Environment. The Rideau Canal, which is the world’s most famous skateway, is typically open for a 61-day stretch with a varying number of days when skating is possible.
By 2020, the skating season is expected to be reduced to 44 days, and to 20 days by 2050, says the report.
“Near the end of this century, the high-emission scenario would eliminate 87 per cent of the skating season, reducing it to just one week,” says the report.
Per capita, Canadians emit the highest amount of carbon dioxide, says Dr. Chris Burn, a professor of environmental studies at Carleton University.
“Canada is an industrial country that has colder winters, therefore we burn lots of oil and coal in order to stay warm,” says Burn.
These high emissions act as a blanket around the earth that increase warm temperatures and threaten the longevity of ski slopes and outdoor ice skating rinks, says Burn.
The Rideau Canal skateway was the focus of the most extensive research regarding the impact of global warming on ice skating venues.
Scientists predict that a two- or three-degree increase in spring temperatures in the coming decades could reduce the Rideau Canal skating season to just 10 or 15 days, says the report
Ian Bruce, the author of the report and a climate change specialist with the David Suzuki Foundation, says climate change could also affect Ottawa’s economy. Winter sports tourism in Ottawa has, over the years, generated approximately $5 billion and provided 110,000 people with jobs, says Bruce.
“Ottawa is one of the largest tourist attractions in the world, because of Winterlude and the crowds it attracts,” says Bruce.
The National Capital Commission also released a report in 2005 entitled Climate Change: A Long-Term Strategic Issue for the NCC.
The NCC report recognizes that after 39 years of operation for the Rideau Canal skateway, programs such as Winterlude have been subject to adjustments due to weather conditions. Changes have included moving ice activities onto land, removing weeds from the canal to strengthen the ice, and condensing the 10-day event into a three-weekend festival to increase the chances of good skating weather at some point.
“Winter is unpredictable,” says Jean Wolff, NCC spokesman. “We have adapted in order to make the most of cold weather, while reducing our carbon footprint.”
This past Rideau Canal skating season, however, lasted a record 58 days, says Wolff, noting that over the past 20 years, trends in ice skating seasons have shown seasons lasting up to 55 days.
“We are honing an operation that in the future will make the best out of any short skating season we will have,” says Wolff.