Text explains Canada’s growing climate-related health risks: in 2024, people experienced 10.7 heatwave days on average, 60% attributable to climate change. Notes extreme drought affecting 56% of land annually and wildfire smoke exposure 172% higher than previous decades. Highlights closures of emergency departments during 2023 wildfires. Emphasizes fragmented health adaptation and underfunding, especially for First Nations, Inuit, and Métis communities. Calls for long-term funding to implement the National Adaptation Strategy (NAS), integrate equity, upgrade health infrastructure, and improve preparedness. Includes headline: “Fund and implement the National Adaptation Strategy to strengthen Canada’s health system resilience.”
Focuses on housing and methane priorities:
Housing risks from heat, wildfire smoke, and flooding; tree cover loss (8.6 million hectares in 2023) worsens heat exposure.
Affordable Housing Fund should mandate climate-resilient, low-carbon standards: passive cooling, smoke-resistant ventilation, flood/fire resilience, and electrification.
Methane regulations: methane is 80 times more potent than CO₂ over 20 years; reducing emissions improves air quality and health. Oil and gas sector is Canada’s largest methane source. Calls for strong enforcement and monitoring.
Details regulatory measures for methane: quarterly leak detection, bans on venting/flaring, mandatory gas capture, public reporting, and independent verification. Notes electrification of transport and household energy to reduce methane leakage and ozone formation. Emphasizes health benefits: fewer respiratory illnesses and premature deaths. Ends with summary: integrating health into climate policy can deliver rapid health gains and equity.
Contributor list: Canadian Medical Association, Canadian Nurses Association, Canadian Public Health Association, and Lancet Countdown team. Names authors and reviewers. Includes QR code for country data sheets and references to NAS, wildfire reports, methane regulations, and Lancet Countdown 2025 Global Report.
Canada’s 2025 policy priorities—developed with national partners & based on 2025 Lancet Countdown data—call for:
✅ Funding the National Adaptation Strategy
✅ Strong methane regulations
✅ Climate-resilient affordable housing
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