Tag Archives: Climate Change

Climate Science Special Report

21 Sunday Jan 2018

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Thomas Fire - Santa Barbara County - Southern California - 12 December 2017

Thomas Fire – Santa Barbara County – Southern California – December 12, 2017
Photo Credit: Mike Eliason/Santa Barbara County Fire Department

 

Here in California, after years of drought, ferocious wildfires have consumed the tinder and everything in their path. Ignited on December 4, 2017, the Thomas Fire was not fully contained until January 12, 2018. Now ranked as the largest fire in California’s modern history, it burned about 281,900 acres, equivalent to the size of Dallas and Miami combined. It destroyed 1,063 structures and damaged another 280.

Torrential rainfall on January 9, a welcome respite for firefighters, brought more distress to residents in the area. Mudslides roared down fire scarred slopes, destroying and damaging hundreds of homes, as well as commercial property. Twenty people lost their lives; three are still missing.

A home on Glen Oaks Road damaged by mudslides in Montecito

Home damaged by mudslides – Montecido – Santa Barbara County – Southern California
January 10, 2018
Photo Credit: Kenneth Song/Santa Barbara News

 

Meanwhile, extreme winter weather on America’s East Coast provides vindication for climate change deniers. But, as world-renowned climate scientist Dr. Michael Mann explains, this is “an example of precisely the sort of extreme winter weather we expect because of climate change.” What’s happening is the collision of increasingly warm Atlantic Ocean waters with cold Arctic air masses. To make matters worse, the warmer oceans also mean more moisture in the atmosphere to fuel the storm and produce larger snowfalls.

Woman walks down street in East Boston - Massachusetts - 4 January 2018

Woman walks down street in East Boston – Massachusetts – January 4, 2018
Photo Credit: Michael Dwyer/AP

 

In November 2017, the U.S. Global Change Research Program released its 477-page Climate Science Special Report (CSSR), in compliance with regulations issued by the Department of Commerce/National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The CSSR is “designed to be an authoritative assessment of the science of climate change, with a focus on the United States, to serve as the foundation for efforts to assess climate-related risks and inform decision making about responses.”

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Climate Change & the Water Cycle

11 Sunday Jun 2017

Posted by in Anthropogenic Climate Disruption

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The Water Cycle

As a geographer and former high school geography teacher, I must confess that I take some scientific facts for granted, such as climate and the water cycle. A recent post “Climate Science Meets a Stubborn Obstacle: Students” by fellow blogger Robert Vella brought to my attention the challenges some of our high school science teachers face in regions of America where climate change denial creates havoc in the minds of our youth.

When your father has raised you to believe that the coal they once mined, or still mine, can in no way affect our climate, it’s difficult to have an open mind to scientific consensus on the issue.

Geography lessons in high school expanded my curious mind to our relationship with our world: land, oceans, atmosphere, and all the in-between. When taking a climatology course at university, I found myself at a disadvantage for having chosen to study art instead of physics in high school. I had lots of catching up to do. Our course in biogeography alerted me to the ways that we humans are degrading our ecosystems. Those were the days before the Internet and Wikipedia. Continue reading →

‘New Era of Climate Change Reality,’ WMO Warns

24 Monday Oct 2016

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With atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations having reached a “symbolic and significant milestone” in 2015—and with no signs of them abating this year—the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said Monday that “a new era of climate change reality” is upon us.

Source: ‘New Era of Climate Change Reality,’ WMO Warns

Paris Climate Change Agreement enters into force 4 November 2016

05 Wednesday Oct 2016

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Secretary-General at Paris Agreement Ratification Ceremony.
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon at Paris Agreement Ratification Ceremony. From Paris to Hangzhou – Climate Response in Action. H.E. Mr. XI Jinping, President of the People’s Republic of China and H.E. Mr. Barack Obama, President of the United States of America present the instrument for the Paris Agreement to the Secretary-General.
Photo Credit: United Nations /Eskinder Debebe

 

On October 5, 2016, the U.N. Secretary-General Ban K-moon announced that the Paris Climate Change Agreement will enter into force on November 4, 2016.

Read his full statement.

Climate Disruption: Latest News on ExxonMobil

21 Wednesday Sep 2016

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exxon-breaking-news-20-september-2016

The campaign to hold Exxon accountable for their climate cover-up just took a big step forward.

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced on September 20, 2016, that they’re opening an investigation into whether Exxon has failed to account for the risk climate change and climate regulations could pose to their business model.

Learn more at 350.org.

2016 US Presidential Elections: Candidates on Climate Change

14 Sunday Aug 2016

Posted by in Anthropogenic Climate Disruption, United States

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2016-US-Presidential-Elections

Photo Credit: Maps of World

Here’s how our top four presidential candidates propose to address climate change.

Hillary Clinton – Democratic Party

I won’t let anyone take us backward, deny our economy the benefits of harnessing a clean energy future, or force our children to endure the catastrophe that would result from unchecked climate change.
~ Hillary Clinton, November 29, 2015

On day one, Hillary Clinton will set bold, national goals that will be achieved within 10 years of taking office. Learn more at https://www.hillaryclinton.com/issues/climate/

 

Jill Stein – Green Party

A Green New Deal: Create millions of jobs by transitioning to 100% clean renewable energy by 2030, and investing in public transit, sustainable agriculture, and conservation.

Protect Mother Earth: Lead on a global treaty to halt climate change. End destructive energy extraction: fracking, tar sands, offshore drilling, oil trains, mountaintop removal, and uranium mines. Protect our public lands, water supplies, biological diversity, parks, and pollinators. Label GMOs, and put a moratorium on GMOs and pesticides until they are proven safe. Protect the rights of future generations.

Learn more at http://www.jill2016.com/plan

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State of the Climate in 2015

03 Wednesday Aug 2016

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State of the Climate 2015

Photo Credit: American Meteorological Society

The year 2015 saw the toppling of several symbolic mileposts: notably, it was 1.0°C warmer than preindustrial times, and the Mauna Loa observatory recorded its first annual mean carbon dioxide concentration greater than 400 ppm. Beyond these more recognizable markers, trends seen in recent decades continued.
~ American Meteorological Society, State of the Climate 2015, August 2016.

DOWNLOAD STATE OF THE CLIMATE 2015
The report, compiled by NOAA’s Center for Weather and Climate at the National Centers for Environmental Information is based on contributions from scientists from around the world. It provides a detailed update on global climate indicators, notable weather events, and other data collected by environmental monitoring stations and instruments located on land, water, ice, and in space.

Climate Action is Needed Whether Exxon Likes it or Not.

26 Thursday May 2016

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Last week, we were among a handful of organizations who received a letter signed by 13 members of Congress claiming that we may be violating Exxon’s right to free speech. They’re requesting that we divulge any communication we may have had with state officials and many private organizations with regard to looking into what Exxon knew about climate change and when. At face value this request is a threat to constitutional rights.

Source: Climate Action is Needed Whether Exxon Likes it or Not.

Disobedience: The Courage to Break Free

30 Saturday Apr 2016

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Disobedience - The Courage to Break Free

The new film Disobedience about the global movement to break free from fossil fuels is now available for free download and streaming at watchdisobedience.com!

The film is a powerful journey, featuring Break Free organizers in Canada, Germany, Turkey and the Philippines as they prepare to mobilize for major actions this May. It shows that the global movement to keep fossil fuels in the ground is growing in size and courage.

Disobedience features author and activist Naomi Klein, 350.org co-founder Bill McKibben, as well as board member Lidy Nacpil and dozens of inspiring voices from front-line fights around the world.

It’s about 40 minutes long, and I think it makes for inspiring watching ahead of the Break Free wave of action starting a few days from now.

If you’re inspired by what you see — and I think you will be — then I hope you will both share the film, and join thousands of people across the planet in Break Free actions next month. Across the United States, people are standing up to the power and pollution of the fossil fuel industry — from the frack fields of California, to the tar sands networks of the Midwest, to the oil train rail lines in the Northeast. This is where you can go to join Break Free.

Onwards, to a future beyond fossil fuels,
Duncan Meisel
350.org

Earth Day 2016: Trees for the Earth

20 Wednesday Apr 2016

Posted by in Nature and the Environment, United States

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Earth-Day-2016-Poster-Earth-Day-Network

Earth Day 2016: Trees for the Earth
Image Credit: Earth Day Network

Friday, April 22nd, is Earth Day 2016. The theme is: Trees for the Earth. In the five-year countdown to their 50th anniversary, the Earth Day network has initiated an ambitious goal of planting 7.8 billion trees by 2020. In planting a tree for every person on our planet, we will contribute to:
~ mitigating climate change and pollution;
~ protecting our planet’s biodiversity; and
~ supporting communities and their livelihoods.

With our superior technological tools and weapons, we humans continue to kill trees and entire forests in the name of human progress and economic growth. Rooted to the ground, trees are helpless against our onslaught.

Like so much in our lives, we take trees for granted. We forget or ignore their vital role in storing the carbon dioxide we produce and releasing the oxygen we breathe. Earth without trees will not sustain human life.

I like to think of trees as quiet, reliable heroes. Do you have a relative or friend that’s always there when you need a shoulder to cry on, a lending hand, an attentive ear, a generous heart? Trees are like that. When they see us coming, they don’t run away or hide. They are well grounded and face whatever adversity comes their way. They provide shade, shelter, and security to all creatures seeking refuge.

Avenue in Georgetown - Guyana

Tree-lined Avenue – Georgetown – Guyana

Plant a tree today and it will outlive you and your grandchildren. The trees that line the avenues in the main streets of Georgetown, Guyana, where I was born and grew up, existed before I was born. If not destroyed to build parking lots, they will still be providing beauty and shade long after I’m gone.

Methuselah - California - Oldest Living Tree in the World

Methuselah – California – USA

The world’s oldest living tree is a bristle-cone pine, named Methuselah, in California’s White Mountains. Over 4800 years old, it was around when the Egyptians were busy building pyramids. To think we consider ourselves the crown of creation!

Hyperion - California Redwood Forest - World Tallest Tree

Hyperion – California Redwood Forest – USA

When it comes to height and built, trees also outdo us. Rooted in California’s Redwood Forest, the giant sequoia named Hyperion towers over us at 379.1 feet. That’s nearly six times taller than the Statue of Liberty! Next to such trees, we humans are puny.

We need trees for our survival on Earth. Lots of trees. Plant a tree. It’s easier than you think.