Ecuador

It takes only 53 days for the average Canadian to produce as much greenhouse gases as the average Ecuadorian will produce over the course of the entire year.  Therefore, February 22nd (53 days into the year) is "Climate Change Impacts in Ecuador Day."

Ecuador is experiencing numerous impacts as a result of climate change including: melting glaciers; desertification; decreasing biodiversity and drought.

The loss of glaciers “is linked to the growth of arid areas and soil loss and desertification, as well as native ecosystem loss, the disappearance of species, and loss of agricultural land.”

In addition, “A warming climate forces people to farm at higher altitudes to grow their staple crops, adding to deforestation. This in turn undermines water sources and leads to soil erosion.”

To learn more about the impacts of climate change in Ecuador, see page 17 of the report “Up in smoke? Latin America and the Caribbean: The threat from climate change to the environment and human development.”