The second warmest year was 1997, and seven of the 10 warmest years occurred in the 1990s. Warming has not been globally uniform. Some areas, such as parts of the southeastern US and northern Europe have cooled. Coastal British Columbia has warmed at about the same rate as the global average about 0.6 C over the past century. The interior of British Columbia has warmed at twice the rate of the global average over 1 C over the past century.
Climate change is a complicated phenomenon, involving more than temperature changes.
For example, associated with temperature increases has been an observed increase in sea levels, at an average rate of one to two mm per year over the past 100 years. The impacts of climate change may be far ranging and include rising temperatures and sea levels, changing precipitation patterns andthe disruption of major weather and ocean systems. In response to the 1997 Kyoto Protocol, Canadian ministers of energy and environment have established the National Climate Change Process. This process, in which BC has been fully engaged, is developing options on how Canada can meet its reduction targets. It has involved over 450 experts from various sectors across Canada.