OTTAWA, May 26, 2004 -- Environment Canada today introduced an updated UV Index, which incorporates new standards, new science and better health information. The introduction comes one day before the 12th anniversary of the creation of the UV Index, which was developed by Environment Canada scientists working with Health Canada, and in close cooperation with health partners such as the Canadian Dermatology Association and the Canadian Cancer Society. In the years since its creation in 1992, the UV Index has been adopted in 26 countries. The UV Index uses a simple numerical scale to inform people about the strength of the sun's UV rays. The higher the number, the stronger the sun, and the greater the need to take precautions. The World Health Organization (WHO) and the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) adopted Canada’s UV Index in 1994 as an international standard to be used by weather services around world. In the fall of 2002, the WHO and the WMO published Global Solar UV Index: A Practical Guide to provide guidelines for the use of the Index around the world. Environment Canada has revised its UV Index based on these guidelines. Changes to the Index will include: Scientific enhancements: the UV Index will now take into consideration altitude as UV rays are stronger in the mountains than at sea level, and the reflection of UV rays off the snow, as it increases UV levels. Updated sun protection messages: sun protection actions for each UV Index category have been developed and updated by health partners including Health Canada, the Canadian Cancer Society, the Canadian Dermatology Association, and the Canadian Association of Optometrists. Year-round forecasting: in previous years, the UV Index was included in the public weather forecast every day during the peak UV season, from April to September. The UV Index will now be included year-round, whenever UV levels register 3 or above. Revised categories: in the past, the UV Index values were grouped into four categories -- low, moderate, high, extreme. The thresholds of the categories have been changed and a new category -- “very high” -- was added before the “extreme” category. UV Index numbers: UV Index forecasts will now be uniformly rounded to the nearest whole number. Decimal fractions will no longer be used The changes to the Canadian UV Index are being introduced in conjunction with the United States who are also making changes to their UV program. Many other countries around the world have adopted the new guidelines, including several countries in Europe, New Zealand and Australia. Canadian travellers can expect the UV Index and its categories to be the same in other countries and will be better able to protect themselves against the sun’s harmful UV rays abroad. More information on the changes can be found at: www.msc-smc.ec.gc.ca/topics/uv/. For more information, please contact: Pierre Tourigny Meteorological Service of Canada (416) 739-4973
