The wealthiest households in Canada create a 66 per cent higher ecological footprint than the average Canadian family, according to new research by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA).
The study, "Size Matters: Canada's Ecological Footprint, By Income," found the richest 10 per cent of Canadian households create an ecological footprint of 12.4 hectares per capita -- nearly two-and-a-half times that of the poorest 10 per cent.
"When we look at where the environmental impact of human activity comes from, we see that size really does matter," Hugh Mackenzie, CCPA research associate, said in a press release Tuesday.
"Higher-income Canadians create a much bigger footprint than poorer Canadians."
The study showed the size of an individual's ecological footprint jumps as household income increases, with the most significant rise occurring among the top 10 per cent income earners.
The findings indicate wealthy people generally burn more fossil fuels driving and flying, and have bigger homes that require more energy.
The bottom 60 per cent of Canadian households had an ecological footprint below the national average of 7.5 hectares per capita.
However, even the lowest-income Canadians create an ecological footprint that is several times the average for those in poorer nations.
"All Canadians share responsibility for global warming," co-author Rick Smith, executive director of Environmental Defence, said Tuesday.
"But wealthier Canadians are leaving behind a disproportionately larger footprint -- and should be expected to make a disproportionate contribution to its reduction."
Meanwhile, Mackenzie said the study should help influence policy makers.
"Clearly ecological impact is strongly related to income," he said. "Greenhouse gas emissions policies should reflect that reality or risk being less effective and unfair to low- and middle-class Canadians."
The study defines ecological footprint as the "biologically productive space in per capita global hectares needed to provide the resources for a nation's total consumption and to absorb the waste that it generates."
It is the first Canadian study to link national income and consumption patterns with global warming.
