It’s been balmy on Bay Street so far this year. Literally. In fact, weird weather has beset the country, from damaging winter storms in some regions to prolonged unseasonable warmth in others. This weirdness heralds climate change — and that demands real attention from policymakers.

The only real line you can draw from overall warming trends to daily weather patterns is that a climate in flux is likely to produce more anomalies — more extreme hurricane seasons, surprise snowstorms in spring and strangely warm days in winter. In short, we can expect greater uncertainty in the weather.

Financial markets famously detest uncertainty, yet climate change promises more of it. Businesses such as ski lodge operators that depend on the cold and snow for their seasons have been thumped by the weather this year. Retailers and clothing manufacturers often see their sales influenced by the weather. Oil and gas inventories are directly affected by the climate, as are crops and numerous other businesses.

Unpredictable weather probably injects greater volatility into both stock prices and futures markets, and the effects cascade throughout the economy.

Although it may not be scientifically sound to draw a direct line from greenhouse gas emissions to unemployed chairlift operators, it is nevertheless an expedient illustration of the genuine impact of human activity on the climate and, therefore, on business. It’s the sort of useful metaphor that can galvanize politicians to take determined action.

The federal government appears to have recognized that it is not taking the global warming challenge seriously enough, as a recent cabinet shuffle was meant to convey. But we need more than a shuffling of the deck. The government must come up with a serious plan for reducing GHG emissions, and it would be smart to get markets to do much of the work. The Montreal Climate Exchange is just waiting for a legislative framework to enable it to implement a cap-and-trade system.

Moreover, many corporations can expect more concerted shareholder pressure to address the issue in their own operations. If only for the sake of the share price, every business needs to start considering its environmental impact.

Both government and industry need to take this wacky weather seriously.