Human influence on the 2021 British Columbia floods

Gillett, Nathan P.; Cannon, Alex J.; Malinina, Elizaveta; Schnorbus, M.; Anslow, F. S.; Sun, Qing; Kirchmeier‐Young, Megan C.; Zwiers, Francis W.; Seiler, Christian; Zhang, Xuebin; Flato, Greg; Wan, Hui; Li, Guilong; Castellan, Armel

doi:10.1016/j.wace.2022.100441

Cited by 41 publications

(23 citation statements)

References 50 publications

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“…Harm reduction services must remain open, operational, and scaled up in times of emergency [27], alongside additional low-barrier approaches, such as spotting [47] or other remote methods of supervision and overdose response [56][57][58]. Our findings are relevant to postpandemic circumstances given the high likelihood of future service disruptions and displacement of people who use substances in the context of major climate or environmental disasters, such as wildfires and flooding, which are occurring at increasing rates throughout BC [59].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 83%

“It’s just a perfect storm”: Exploring the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic on overdose risk in British Columbia from the perspectives of people who use substances

et al. 2023

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Background Despite the implementation and expansion of public health and harm reduction strategies aimed at preventing and reversing overdoses, rates of overdose-related events and fatalities continue to rise in British Columbia. The COVID-19 pandemic created a second, concurrent public health emergency that further exacerbated the illicit drug toxicity crisis, reinforced existing social inequities and vulnerabilities, and highlighted the precariousness of systems in place that are meant to protect the health of communities. By exploring the perspectives of people with recent experience of illicit substance use, this study sought to characterize how the COVID-19 pandemic and associated public health measures influenced risk and protective factors related to unintentional overdose by altering the environment in which people live and use substances, influencing the ability of people who use substances to be safe and well. Methods One-on-one semi-structured interviews were conducted by phone or in-person with people who use illicit substances (n = 62) across the province. Thematic analysis was performed to identify factors shaping the overdose risk environment. Results Participants pointed to factors that increased risk of overdose, including: [1] physical distancing measures that created social and physical isolation and led to more substance use alone without bystanders nearby able to respond in the event of an emergency; [2] early drug price spikes and supply chain issues that created inconsistencies in drug availability; [3] increasing toxicity and impurities in unregulated substances; [4] restriction of harm reduction services and supply distribution sites; and [5] additional burden placed on peer workers on the frontlines of the illicit drug toxicity crisis. Despite these challenges, participants highlighted factors that protected against overdose and substance-related harm, including the emergence of new programs, the resiliency of communities of people who use substances who expanded their outreach efforts, the existence of established social relationships, and the ways that individuals consistently prioritized overdose response over concerns about COVID-19 transmission to care for one another. Conclusions The findings from this study illustrate the complex contextual factors that shape overdose risk and highlight the importance of ensuring that the needs of people who use substances are addressed in future public health emergency responses.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 83%

“It’s just a perfect storm”: Exploring the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic on overdose risk in British Columbia from the perspectives of people who use substances

et al. 2023

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“…Recent climate change may increase precipitation in the Pacific Northwest (Jakob and Friele 2010). There appears to be a steady increase in the frequency and intensity of rainfall events in western Canada, most recently in November 2021 (Gillett et al 2022). Increasing soil pore-water pressures reduce slope shearing resistance, thereby increasing the frequency of rock-slope failures (Jakob and Friele 2010).…”

Section: Debris Flow Hazardsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mount Garibaldi: hazard potential from a long-dormant volcanic system in the Pacific Northwest

Morison

Hickson²

2023

Can. J. Earth Sci.

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Mount Garibaldi Volcanic System (MGVS) is the southernmost member of Garibaldi Volcanic Belt (GVB), the northern (Canadian) segment of the Cascade Volcanic Arc. Temporally episodic explosive to effusive eruptions may be associated with peak ice unloading after glacial maxima. Rapid and widespread deglaciation of the overlying ice sheet, and glacial rebound, have altered the physical characteristics of the landscape whilst the system is thought to have been in long repose for over 10 000 years. Over the last 60 years, the region has become heavily populated due to increased tourism and all-season recreation opportunities. MGVS poses the greatest volcanic threat to the human population and built infrastructure between Vancouver and the resort municipality of Whistler. We believe that this system is a priority for further scientific research, given that its already “very high” overall threat score would likely increase if there was a better understanding of its eruptive history and hazards. Using published and field evidence, we show that potential hazards, related to the volcanic environment of this system, to the settlement of Squamish include voluminous lava flows, pyroclastic density currents triggered by lava dome collapse, tephra fallout, debris flows, and lahars. As relatively few exposures in the system have been dated using modern geochronological techniques, we take this opportunity to (re)calibrate published radiocarbon ages of relatively recent eruptions in GVB.

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“…This combined with snow melt led to severe flooding and damage making this the costliest disaster on record for the province. A substantial human influence on this event has been identified (Gillett et al ., 2022).…”

Section: Regional and Seasonal Climatementioning

confidence: 99%

Global and regional climate in 2021

Kennedy

Christidis

Dunn

et al. 2022

Weather

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Concentrations of greenhouse gases reached record levels in 2021, and energy continued to accumulate in the climate system with the ocean heat content reaching a new record high. La Niña events at the start and end of 2021, however, meant that the global mean temperature in 2021 was only between 5th and 7th warmest year on record. We give a summary of the global climate with a focus on the UK and Europre.

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Human influence on the 2021 British Columbia floods

Cited by 41 publications

References 50 publications

“It’s just a perfect storm”: Exploring the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic on overdose risk in British Columbia from the perspectives of people who use substances

“It’s just a perfect storm”: Exploring the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic on overdose risk in British Columbia from the perspectives of people who use substances

Mount Garibaldi: hazard potential from a long-dormant volcanic system in the Pacific Northwest

Global and regional climate in 2021

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