OTTAWA,
June 5, 2006 – The Honourable Rona Ambrose, Minister
of the Environment, is calling on all Canadians
to participate in Canadian Environment Week. This
year marks the 35th celebration of Canadian Environment
Week which takes place from June 4-10, 2006. The
week gives Canadians an opportunity to encourage
and celebrate grassroots action to make our environment
cleaner and healthier.
"Canadian Environment Week
is an opportunity for each and every Canadian
to celebrate the choices they are making to improve
the environment", said Minister Ambrose.
"I encourage all Canadians to inform themselves
and to participate in the numerous activities
occurring during this week. This will help ensure
that our communities and families thrive in a
healthy environment."
Canadian Environment Week was
established through a Private Member's Bill introduced
by British Columbia MP Tom Goode and given Royal
Assent in March of 1971. To draw attention to
all aspects of a healthy environment, the name
"Canadian Environment Week" was chosen.
Events are taking place across
the country throughout Canadian Environment Week.
"A clean and healthy environment is central
to our quality of life," added the Minister.
"Together, we can all take concrete actions
to ensure that we benefit from the highest level
of environmental quality to enhance our health
and well-being, to protect our natural environment,
and to advance Canada's long-term competitiveness.
I encourage Canadians to think about their impact
on the environment and to act all year round to
protect it. Let's take this week to celebrate
our accomplishments."
To find out more information
on Canadian Environment Week and a listing of
this year's events, please visit: www.ec.gc.ca/e-week.
Canadian Hurricane Centre Poised
for Another Busy Atlantic Hurricane Season
HALIFAX, June 5, 2006 – Environment
Canada's Canadian Hurricane Centre (CHC) is again
alerting Canadians that the Atlantic Ocean is
set up for another very active year for hurricanes.
"Pre-season indications
are that this year will fall right in line with
what's been happening for more than a decade…
although we don't anticipate a repeat of last
year," says Peter Bowyer, Manager of the
Canadian Hurricane Centre. Bowyer is referring
to the record-smashing 2005 Atlantic hurricane
season which produced 28 tropical storms (normal
is 10), 15 hurricanes (normal is six), and seven
intense hurricanes (normal is two to three).
The official forecast from the
U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
(NOAA) predicts that the Atlantic Ocean will generate
13-16 named storms, 8-10 hurricanes, and four
to six intense hurricanes this year. NOAA's seasonal
forecasts have demonstrated skill over the last
few years, as have the forecasts from Colorado
State University's Tropical Cyclone Lab and the
Tropical Storm Risk Initiative in the United Kingdom,
both of whom are predicting similar numbers for
this year.
"The average over the last
10 years is substantially higher than the 50-year
average," says Bowyer, "and many people
are wondering if we are witnessing a new normal."
Terms like 'normal' and 'average' are useful terms
for talking about long-term trends in climatology,
but are less useful for use on a daily or yearly
basis. "What is important to understand is
that we've been telling people for a long time
that the Atlantic Ocean is going through a period
of heightened hurricane activity and that we should
expect this to last for at least another ten years."
Most experts regard tropical
sea surface temperatures as one of the primary
indicators of the level of activity expected during
hurricane season. "Right now it's running
a bit warmer in the tropical oceans than the long-term
average," says Bowyer, "but it's nowhere
as warm as it was this time last year."
That is good news to hurricane-weary
Americans who weathered an onslaught of intense
catastrophic hurricanes last year. But Bowyer
reminds Canadians that in any given year, it only
takes one hurricane to inflict great damage to
an area and change our perceptions about our vulnerabilities
to hurricanes.
For many Maritime residents,
their perceptions changed in 2003 when Category
2 Hurricane Juan struck Nova Scotia and Prince
Edward Island. Ocean temperatures played an important
role in Juan when the coastal waters south of
Nova Scotia were running 3-4°C above normal,
keeping Juan from weakening as hurricanes typically
do when they hit cold water.
"Although the overall season
doesn't appear as if it will be as busy as last
year, it only takes one storm, so we are encouraging
people to adopt the mindset now of getting storm-ready
for hurricane season and watching for our hurricane
bulletins," says Bowyer. Last year, four
storms travelled into Atlantic Canadian waters.
The CHC is watching the water
temperatures around eastern Canada as well as
the entire Atlantic Ocean for any tropical cyclones
that may form and threaten Canada or its waters.
The hurricane season officially runs from June
through November when the waters of the Atlantic
are warm enough to produce tropical cyclones.
Hurricanes typically start to really affect Canadian
waters a bit later in the season, however, the
Centre maintains a year-round vigil.
Environment Canada is responsible
for issuing severe weather watches and warnings
in Canada for conditions like torrential rain,
strong winds, storm surges and high waves that
tropical systems like hurricanes can bring.
