You Can't Say Canada Isn't Trying

With the clock ticking down on climate catastrophe, word is the global energy industry's emissions are rising at the fastest rate in a decade. Burn baby, burn. The main cause - why, it's getting hot - and cold - out there.

Carbon emissions from the global energy industry rose by the fastest rate in almost a decade in 2018 after surprise swings in global temperatures stoked extra demand for fossil fuels. 

BP’s annual global energy report revealed for the first time that fluctuating temperatures are increasing the world’s use of fossil fuels in spite of efforts to tackle the climate crisis. 

The recorded temperature swings – days which are much hotter or colder than normal – helped drive the world’s biggest jump in gas consumption for more than 30 years. 

They also stoked a second consecutive annual increase for coal use, reversing three years of decline earlier this decade.

Spencer Dale, BP’s chief economist, warned that the report reveals “a growing mismatch” between society’s rising demand for climate action and the actual pace of progress.

“At a time when society is increasingly concerned about climate change and the need for action energy demand and emissions are growing at their fastest rate for years,” he said.

Carbon emissions climbed by 2% last year, faster than any year since 2011, because the demand for energy easily oustripped the rapid rollout of renewable energy. 

Two-thirds of the world’s energy demand increase was due to higher demand in China, India and the US which was in part due to stronger industry as well as the “weather effect”. 

This was spurred by an “outsized” energy appetite in the US which recorded the highest number of days with hotter or colder than average days since the 1950s.

So, our rapacious use of fossil fuels since the advent of the Industrial Revolution has brought us to a climate abyss complete with massive temperature swings that increase our demand for fossil fuels for heating and cooling at the very moment we urgently need to slash our greenhouse gas emissions or risk ending human civilization - and worse.

Oh dear.

Well at least Canada is doing its bit to contribute to this mess by working unrelentingly to flood world markets with high carbon, high cost, low value bitumen. Canada, when the world's in a jam, we always come through.