From a distance we have been watching the weather in Fort Frances. To say the least, the past two weeks have been a trial for district residents with heavy wet snow loads, torrential rain and over the past weekend, flooding. We have missed those weather-related issues, but have experienced snow, wind, and rain in the Waterloo area. We have watched as residents have raked their lawns, put bags of garden waste and bundles of branches on boulevards to be picked up by city crews. Lawns are green. Crocuses are blooming. Daffodils are beginning to bloom, and trees have already begun to bud.
Last Friday was Earth Day 2022. At home it was the first day of Spring Fever Days in Emo, but most residents were more concerned about the anticipated snowfalls and expected rain. In 2021 boats were already in the water. Lake cabins were being opened, many fields in the west end of the district had been prepared and were already seeded. This year is different. Beginning in the fall of 2020, the district had already been experiencing drought conditions. The land was dry. The forests were dry. We were hoping for warm June rains, and historic average rainfalls through the summer. They did not arrive.
For comparison, I have looked back to the files from 2014 when the district became an island, because of late thawing, greater than normal rainfalls in April, May, and June. It was considered a once in a lifetime phenomenon. But it had happened twice within the century. And if weather conditions continue, it may strike twice within a decade. On both the 1950 and the 2014 flooding, there was a later than normal ice-out on the lakes and rivers.
Scientists were telling us that the variable weather was a clear sign of climate change. One year later after one of the coldest winters on record, with above normal snowfalls and now above normal April showers, we are seeing a new Mother Nature.
This year’s Earth Day Theme is “Invest in our Planet.” (“Saving Lives and Protecting the Earth – One Home at a Time …”) It is focused on having over one billion people, governments, businesses, accelerate programs to fight the world’s biggest issue of climate change. The theme strives to create a more equitable environment for all. It involves eliminating historical fossil fuel technology and replacing those with a 21st century system that is healthier for people, protects species providing opportunities for all.
The weather extremes we have been experiencing will not disappear. We must anticipate these new weather systems and prepare to mitigate their impact on our lives and those of our children and grand children.
Former Publisher
Fort Frances Times
