Why all climate misinformation should be seen as disinformation (www.nationalobserver.com)

submitted 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago) by streetfestival@lemmy.ca to c/canada@lemmy.ca

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This isn’t just a problem for environmentalists or scientists — it’s a direct threat to democratic decision-making. Disinformation erodes our ability to have honest, fact-based debates about the future of the country. It undermines trust not only in science and journalism but in government itself. When voters are manipulated by falsehoods, democracy doesn’t function as it should.

During the election, we saw the consequences play out in real time. From misleading ads claiming that climate policies will "bankrupt the middle class," to talking points that dismiss renewable energy as unreliable, Canadians are being bombarded with claims designed to erode support for meaningful climate action. These messages often use emotional appeals and cherry-picked data, wrapped in populist rhetoric, to create the illusion that fighting climate change is at odds with economic prosperity or national sovereignty.

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[-] Dearche@lemmy.ca 5 points 4 days ago

I'm hesitant on solar in the first place. It's marginally economical in Southern Ontario, but far worse so anywhere else and will require quite a lot of land clearing to make work even before considering the usual issues with it. Wind is good, but I'm with you on nuclear. That's the way to go, and Canada is making good progress on new nuclear projects. We're one of the tops in the world for nuclear technology and have one of the world's largest uranium reserves.

That said, I think it's only the prairies that even have coal plants anymore? Ontario hasn't had coal in two decades, and Quebec is virtually a hydro superpower. If I remember right, for electricity generation, 70% is already non-carbon emitting. The real problems I believe are the vehicles and heating homes with natural gas. Oh, and apparently resource extraction is the second greatest source of CO2 in Canada.

But really, 20% comes from cars and trucks and is the single greatest source of CO2 in Canada by a massive margin apparently. And we just scrapped the only effective way to fight that source.