False (Again), CBC, Climate Change Doesn’t Cause a Decline in Wine Production • Speeding up with that?
For the second time in two months CBC, Canada’s public broadcaster, has posted a story claiming climate change is harming wine production, especially in Canada. EQUAL Climate realism aired in March, when CBC first aired similar claims, this was false. Because of its northern location, Canada is not suitable for growing certain types of grapes or producing some of the popular wines that are common in warmer regions, but the data shows that the grapes and wines the country is well suited for production has increased significantly in recent times. modest warming period.
CBC’s Padraig Moran introduced his story, “Vintners warn of possible wine shortages as they try to adapt to climate change,” speak, “[s]Hot summers and cold winters have hampered wine production in BC, with one winemaker warning that climate change could cause a crisis in the industry.”
I did not know that the winemaker interviewed was an expert in climate science, and nowhere has he or the CBC himself shown that long-term weather trends, which are evidence of climate change , has impeded grape growth or wine production in Canada. That’s because no such evidence exists.
Indeed, incidents like end-of-season freezes harming British Columbia grape growers this year are expected to be less frequent as the climate warms. Additionally, the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change reports there is no evidence that prolonged heatwaves are becoming more common. Unusually but not uncommon extreme weather events can slow grape growth and thus wine production for a season or two, but the general long-term trend is for grape and wine production in the context of ongoing climate change is positive in Canada.
Clearly, Canada does not, and is unlikely to in the foreseeable future, a leading wine producing country. However, as reported on March 6 Climate realism post by my colleague Linnea Lueken,”False, CBC, Canadian Vineyards Not Threatened by Climate Change,” several varieties grow well in Canada. In addition, data from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations shows that both grape and wine production have increased significantly since 1990, amid moderate warming. (See picture below).
Indeed, grape production has increased by more than 86% and wine production by more than 97%.
Nor, as has been discussed in many other Climate realism post, This, This, ThisAnd Thisfor example, is there any evidence that climate change is hampering grape or wine production globally.
Simply put, there is no justification for linking the damage caused to British Columbia vineyards by short-term weather events to climate change. Such a story might help CBC oenophile listeners in favor of climate action, but it is false. The truth is that Canada’s small wine industry is growing, as the data clearly demonstrates. Why not publish this good news CBC?
H. Sterling Burnett, Ph.D., is Director of the Arthur B. Robinson Center for Climate and Environmental Policy and managing editor of Climate & Environment News. In addition to directing the Heartland Institute’s Arthur B. Robinson Center for Climate and Environmental Policy, Burett is associated with Environment & Climate News as editor of Heartland’s Climate Change Weekly Email and host of the Environment & Climate News Podcast.
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