'Hardest' hit in BC: Activist warns Kelowna will get 'warmer and warmer' due to climate change

A climate change activist has warned Kelownians that the city is going to get “warmer and warmer” in the coming years.

Dr. Tom Warshawski, from the Kelowna Climate Coalition, insisted the world “can’t afford not to” fight against climate change, which he described as “a reality” that is “happening.”

He also urged Kelowna City Council – whose Climate Resilient Kelowna Strategy he praised as “very comprehensive” – to be “more assertive and more aggressive” in its approach to the environment.

“Kelowna is tackling this with seriousness,” he said, during a chat with KelownaNow video host Jim Csek. “But we can do better.”

It’s especially important for Kelowna to follow through with an ambitious climate plan, he said, because the city is one of the “hardest” hit by global warming, even compared to the rest of British Columbia.

He said the city is “one of the warmest spots aside from Lytton.”

“One of the reasons why I like living here is because it's so warm,” he explained. “But, in fact, it's going to get warmer and warmer.”

Dr. Warshawski, however, said the City of Kelowna is not doing enough to achieve its primary aim of a 40 per cent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2040.

The municipal government has done “very little to facilitate” the transition to electric cars, he said.

Two other areas that the City ought to improve in, he claimed, are making homes “solar-ready” and equipping them with heat pumps.

“I think when it comes to a vote, let the mayor or council know that you support the Climate Resilient Kelowna Strategy, but also demand more,” he urged.

He added: “The city can and must do more because this isn't a can that we can keep kicking down the road.”