One-quarter of young Canadian adults said they are thinking about relocating because of the wildfires and smoke in their area over the past five years, according to a poll conducted by the Angus Reid Institute (ARI). .One-eighth of Canadians said they would consider relocating to a place which feels safe, according to the Tuesday poll. ARI said climate migration in Canada might be a new concept, but this poll suggests it is on the minds of many people. .More than half of Canadians expect worse fire conditions in the future, while one-quarter said this year will be the new normal. Few have any hope for calmer summers to come. .ARI found Canadians were close to twice as likely to say climate change is contributing to worsening fire seasons than not. It found three-fifths hold this view and one-third disagree. .While the elements of daily life and how to cope with these environmental challenges hum along, existential questions arise for many Canadians. Three-fifths said climate change represents a crisis which society must address to overcome. .One-tenth responded by saying the opportunity to act has passed. One-ninth said no change needs to be made and the situation is fine as it is. .ARI said nine-tenths believe climate change is happening and not up for debate. That said, this group is divided into those who feel it is human caused (67%) or a natural cycle (22%). .One-fifth in British Columbia and one-sixth in Alberta who have been affected by smoke or fire in recent years said they are thinking about moving elsewhere to be less affected by wildfire seasons to come. .The wildfires have threatened many regions of Canada, while the resulting smoke has had widespread impacts. One-fifth who have been touched by smoke this fire season say their health problems have worsened because of poor air quality. .A special air quality statement was issued by Environment Canada for the majority of Saskatchewan and Manitoba, Alberta and most of British Columbia in May. .READ MORE: Smoke from wildfires spreads across Western Canada.The statement is due to the southward movement of wildfire smoke with a cold front. Environment Canada meteorologist Terri Lang said smoke from the northern wildfires rises high into the atmosphere before descending in southern areas due to a high-pressure area..“We just don’t know how much smoke will make it down to the surface,” said Lang..The ARI poll was conducted with two studies — one which was conducted online from August 8 to 11 among a representative randomized sample of 1,606 Canadian adults who are members of the Angus Reid Forum and the other conducted online from July 26 to 31 among a representative randomized sample of 3,016 Canadian adults who belong to this group. The margin of errors were +/- two percentage points, 19 times out of 20 and 1.5 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.
One-quarter of young Canadian adults said they are thinking about relocating because of the wildfires and smoke in their area over the past five years, according to a poll conducted by the Angus Reid Institute (ARI). .One-eighth of Canadians said they would consider relocating to a place which feels safe, according to the Tuesday poll. ARI said climate migration in Canada might be a new concept, but this poll suggests it is on the minds of many people. .More than half of Canadians expect worse fire conditions in the future, while one-quarter said this year will be the new normal. Few have any hope for calmer summers to come. .ARI found Canadians were close to twice as likely to say climate change is contributing to worsening fire seasons than not. It found three-fifths hold this view and one-third disagree. .While the elements of daily life and how to cope with these environmental challenges hum along, existential questions arise for many Canadians. Three-fifths said climate change represents a crisis which society must address to overcome. .One-tenth responded by saying the opportunity to act has passed. One-ninth said no change needs to be made and the situation is fine as it is. .ARI said nine-tenths believe climate change is happening and not up for debate. That said, this group is divided into those who feel it is human caused (67%) or a natural cycle (22%). .One-fifth in British Columbia and one-sixth in Alberta who have been affected by smoke or fire in recent years said they are thinking about moving elsewhere to be less affected by wildfire seasons to come. .The wildfires have threatened many regions of Canada, while the resulting smoke has had widespread impacts. One-fifth who have been touched by smoke this fire season say their health problems have worsened because of poor air quality. .A special air quality statement was issued by Environment Canada for the majority of Saskatchewan and Manitoba, Alberta and most of British Columbia in May. .READ MORE: Smoke from wildfires spreads across Western Canada.The statement is due to the southward movement of wildfire smoke with a cold front. Environment Canada meteorologist Terri Lang said smoke from the northern wildfires rises high into the atmosphere before descending in southern areas due to a high-pressure area..“We just don’t know how much smoke will make it down to the surface,” said Lang..The ARI poll was conducted with two studies — one which was conducted online from August 8 to 11 among a representative randomized sample of 1,606 Canadian adults who are members of the Angus Reid Forum and the other conducted online from July 26 to 31 among a representative randomized sample of 3,016 Canadian adults who belong to this group. The margin of errors were +/- two percentage points, 19 times out of 20 and 1.5 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.
