Traditional territory of the Wabanaki Peoples/Fredericton – After another scorching summer in New Brunswick, with wildfires devastating communities across the country, climate change should be front and center during the provincial election. So why aren’t most candidates talking about it on the campaign trail?
Despite voters’ concerns about affordability and health care, the majority of political leaders are burying their heads in the sand and ignoring how climate change affects these issues. It’s driving up costs, making people sick and putting our future at risk. We can’t afford to ignore it any longer, and neither can our politicians.
“Climate change isn’t just an environmental issue — it’s a public health and economic crisis,” says Danielle Smith, the Conservation Council’s director of climate engagement and campaigns. “Ignoring climate change while talking about affordability and health care is like ignoring the elephant in the room. This is all one crisis, and it’s all connected.”
The cost of doing nothing
Climate change matters to New Brunswick voters. The Yale Program on Climate Change Communication found that 86 per cent of New Brunswickers believe the earth is getting warmer with 64 per cent saying this is partly or mostly from human activity. So why aren’t politicians stepping up?
This past summer broke heat records. Rising energy costs, higher food prices and more expensive insurance are all linked to the climate crisis. For seniors on fixed incomes or renters who can’t make their homes more energy-efficient, extreme heat and cold mean higher power bills and more health risks.
Meanwhile, extreme weather events like hurricanes, floods and wildfires cause billions of dollars in damages, and those costs are passed on to all of us. From 1983 to 2008, Canadian insurance companies only spent an average of $400 million annually on catastrophic claims. However, a recent study from Statistics Canada found that since 2009, that number has risen to almost $2 billion. Recent hurricanes, floods and historical wildfires saw that figure balloon to $3.4 billion in 2022 and $3.1 billion last year—50 per cent more than the yearly average.
The climate crisis is a health crisis
The health impacts of climate change are happening right here at home. More people are getting sick from heatwaves, poor air quality from wildfires and tick-borne diseases like Lyme disease.
Seniors are particularly vulnerable to the effects of climate change, like hotter summers. With nearly a quarter of New Brunswick’s population 65 or older, the stress on health care will only get worse if climate change isn’t addressed.
With nearly 60 per cent of New Brunswick’s population living near the coast, rising sea levels and extreme weather are not distant threats—they’re happening now. In fact, the New Brunswick government’s own 2021 report warns that climate change will have a dramatic effect on our health and well-being.
“You can’t care about affordability and not care about climate. You can’t care about health care and ignore the impacts of climate change,” says Smith. “This is one crisis, and it demands one unified response.”
Moving forward
We know that moving to clean energy—like wind and solar—could help lower energy costs and create more good jobs here in New Brunswick. So why hasn’t this been a bigger part of the election discussion?
The longer we delay action on climate change, the harder—and more expensive—it will be to fix. New Brunswickers deserve leaders who recognize the urgency of this crisis and who dare to act.
“The time for action is now,” says Smith. “As New Brunswick heads to the polls, it’s time for all political leaders to show real solutions that address the climate crisis head-on. Voters deserve to know their plans.”
For more information, or to arrange an interview, please contact:
Corey Robichaud, Director of Communications, Conservation Council of New Brunswick | corey.robichaud@conservationcouncil.ca | 506.458.8747
Danielle Smith, Director of Climate Engagement and Campaigns, Conservation Council of New Brunswick | danielle.smith@conservationcouncil.ca | 506.458.8747