Officials enlist amateur radio operators as critical backup for extreme weather planning: 'When the lights go out, we can keep going'

As the world adjusts to a new era of rising temperatures and more severe weather-related disasters, governments across Canada have been turning to a decidedly old-school form of communication: the ham radio. 

While the use of ham radios has long been left mostly to amateur radio enthusiasts, officials increasingly have seen the relatively low-tech devices as an important means of communication during emergency situations, the Globe and Mail reported.

In July, Ontario's government approved CA$545,000 (US$396,000) in funding for the Radio Amateurs of Canada to train its members to operate their ham radios during an emergency, according to the Globe and Mail.

Allan Boyd, the association's president, said the group had roughly 5,000 members, most of whom were skilled enough to operate during an emergency, according to the Globe and Mail. 

Many ham radios do not require a lot of big, heavy equipment to operate and can be powered using a 12-volt car battery, making them ideal during power outages and disruptions to more modern forms of communications like internet and cell phone service.

"When the lights go out, we can keep going," said Mike Kelly, a retired electronics technologist and ham radio enthusiast, according to the Globe and Mail.

Some ham radios are portable, making it possible to transport radio operators and their equipment into disaster-stricken areas to provide immediate emergency communication. 

Beyond Ontario, other Canadian territories and provinces, including British Columbia, Nova Scotia, and Yukon, have also been integrating ham radios into emergency-response plans, according to the outlet.

Unlike cell phones and other modern forms of communication, ham radios do not require space-based satellites or massive communications towers to operate. This infrastructure can easily be taken out by a natural disaster, making it more difficult to communicate during emergencies. 

By contrast, most ham radios work by bouncing their signals off of the stratosphere, making them far more resilient while still allowing their signals to cover vast distances.

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Plus, advancements in ham-radio technology have made it possible to send text-based messages over radio waves, rather than having to resort to more specialized forms of communication such as Morse code, according to Boyd, the Radio Amateurs of Canada president, as noted by the outlet. 

"Having continuous access to strong telecommunications is key to emergency coordination and response efforts," said Jill Dunlop, Ontario's Minister of Emergency Preparedness and Response, according to the Globe and Mail.

"By investing in a growing network of Ontario Corps partners like Radio Amateurs of Canada, our government is providing GPS services, satellite phones, ham radios, and other critical communication supports across the province, including our remote regions to support emergency responders when disaster strikes," Dunlop continued. 

The renewed focus on ham radios highlighted the important role that resilient, mobile, decentralized technologies have to play in a world increasingly besieged by extreme weather events. 

One way to make your home more resilient in the event of a weather-related power outage is to combine solar panels with a home battery system. A home battery system helps ensure that your family will have access to vital power when you need it most. 

EnergySage offers free online tools that make it easy to find solar installers in your area, while also ensuring that customers take maximum advantage of tax credits and other incentives, saving up to $10,000. 

With residential solar tax credits in the U.S. expiring Dec. 31, it is important to act quickly to take advantage.  

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