News Release

Summer 2007 Was Warmer Than Normal
Climate Trends and Variations Bulletin for Summer 2007

 Ottawa, September 14, 2007 - The summer of 2007 in Canada was not the warmest  on record but temperatures were still higher than the norm.   Information on the summer weather-that-was is from Environment Canada's Climate Trends and Variations Bulletin.  It provides a cross-country look at temperatures and precipitation for the summer 2007 season and compares it to climate data from the past 60 years.

Highlights from The Climate Trends and Variations Bulletin for Canada include:

•  Summer 2007 in Canada was the 7^th warmest on record, with temperatures 0.9° C above normal (based on preliminary data). Most of the country experienced temperatures less than 1° C above normal, with northern parts of Nunavut having temperatures more than 1° C above normal. The warmest summer in Canada was recorded in 1998, with temperatures at 1.8° C above normal. The coolest summer was recorded in 1968, with temperatures 0.8° C below normal.
• The climate region in Canada with the highest above-normal temperature this summer was recorded in the region covering most of Nunavut (+1.4° C). The southern Ontario and southern Quebec region experienced the lowest above-normal temperature, this summer (+0.4° C).
• Nationally averaged seasonal temperatures have been at or above normal during the last 10 years, with only the springs of 2002 and 2004 experiencing below normal temperatures (from summer 1997 to summer 2007).
• Overall, this summer was the 28^th wettest on record in Canada, with precipitation at 2.9% above normal. The wettest summer was in 2005, with precipitation 21.2% above normal. The driest summer was in 1958 with precipitation 14.3% below average.
• The climate region covering most of Nunavut experienced its second wettest summer (28% above normal), whereas the region covering the southern half of the Prairie Provinces had their 7^th driest summer (26.6% below normal).

Because weather conditions can vary greatly from one year to the next due to natural variability, it is difficult to attribute this past season's weather to a specific cause. However, in many respects, these conditions and associated impacts are consistent with what scientists predict will happen more frequently as the world becomes warmer as a result of climate change.

Please visit: http://www.msc-smc.ec.gc.ca/ccrm/bulletin/national_e.cfm

For more information, please contact:

Environment Canada Media Relations
(819) 934-8008
1-888-908-8008