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5 Myths About Climate Change
Few topics of the last decade have been as messy and confusing as the debate surrounding climate change. This confusion has been fueled by misleading news reports, as well as public statements from politicians who have no idea what they are talking about. The good news is, that while the public may still be confused on this issue, scientists are not. Let’s take a look at some of the most common myths and legends surrounding climate change, and the well-documented scientific responses surfacing to redefine our understanding of climate change.
Actually, climate change has been a contributing factor to heavier rainfall, intense drought, and flooding across the United States. While subtle enough in some regions to go unnoticed, climate change is still a present and ever-growing problem for rural and urban communities across the nation. Not sure what’s happening near you? Take a look at these climate change highlights for major regions of the U.S.:
Southwest Region
Climate change issues:
- Heat waves
- Drought
- Pest/insect outbreaks
Example of recent problem: Extreme drought across California.
Southeast & Caribbean Region
Climate change issues:
- Widespread sea level rise
- Extreme heat waves
- Decreased freshwater supply
Example of recent problem: The fierce hurricane season remains a huge issue in this region. A recent study revealed that Alabama, Texas, Louisiana, and Mississippi lose an annual average of $14 billion due to intense winds from hurricanes.
Northwest Region
Climate change issues:
- High-levels of ocean acidity
- Insect outbreak
- Tree diseases
- Increased Wildfire
Example of recent problem: In 2015, the Northwest has experienced record warm/dry temperatures, resulting in an early wildfire season. In Washington alone there have been over 300 small- and large-scale fires this year, compared to last year’s 224 wildfires.
Northeast
Climate change issues:
- Heat waves
- Downpours
- Sea level rise
Example of recent problem: Strong thunderstorms and rainfall continue to hit the Northeast this summer.
Midwest
Climate change issues:
- Extreme heat
- Higher than average flooding
- Heavy downpours
- Increased humidity
Example of recent problem: Longer seasons in recent years, with the Midwest exhibiting longer than average winters. Currently, Midwest is also experiencing heavy rainfall, uncommon for the summer season.
Great Plains
Climate change issues:
- Shortage of freshwater supply
- Increased need for energy
- Rising temperatures
- Severe winds
Example of recent problem: In early May of 2015, a tornado swept across the Great Plains, causing excessive damage to rural communities and injuring multiple people. Statistics show that as of May 11, 2015, there were a total of 144 tornadoes for the year—47 percent higher than the average of 98 tornado touchdowns in the past 20 years.
From rural towns to highly populated cities, climate change disturbs the natural and human-made resources and has been become an increasingly difficult problem for regions to adapt to.
By tracking historic weather patterns, scientists reveal a different story. In recent years, it has become clear that human activity can increase the risk of extreme weather conditions. Some examples of human-induced climate change that relates to intense weather include:
- Drought: Burning of fossil fuels produces more C02, causing the planet to warm. When warm and dry air mingle, these weather patterns create a higher possibility of harsh droughts. According to history, California’s worst droughts were detected alongside a warmer than normal atmosphere during the dry season.
- Heavy downpour: Records of human-induced warming can increase heavy downpour, which in turn causes flooding.
- Floods: Human factors that increased flooding are improper drainage systems, poorly built dams and levees, and pavement. When water can’t be contained and absorbed properly into the soil, it’s more likely for high-volumes of water to accumulate.
From studying the West Antarctic Peninsula, scientists recorded drastic melt flow from this sector, which has been constant since the late 90’s. And a 2009-2012 data evaluation revealed melting glaciers were flowing straight into the ocean because the area lacked any terrain to block them from the sea—this causes the sea level to rise at a dramatic rate.
Carbon dioxide (CO2) is a greenhouse gas naturally present in the atmosphere, so increased emission of this gas has been touted as a benefit. However, man-made CO2 is throwing off the balance of natural CO2 in the atmosphere, thus, over half of it ends up being absorbed by the ocean. And this CO2 emission is starting to disturb the marine life and its ecosystem.
Why? Once this greenhouse gas dissolves into the ocean, it creates carbonic acid—this elevates ocean acidity. Now sea creatures who live near the surface are at a higher risk of exposure.
“It is snowing today. I guess global warming is over!” Unfortunately, this is not the case. Unseasonably cool days do not mean that the effects of climate change are not occurring. This highlights the difference between weather and climate: weather consists of short-term changes in the atmosphere, while climate is the average weather over long periods of time. Just because we experience a few colder-than-average days over the summer, or a freak snow storm in December, does not mean that climate change is not happening. As it is often said, climate is what you expect, while weather is what you get. We can expect that it is going to be sunny and rainy on the gulf coast of Florida, just as we can expect it is going to be hot and dry in the Mojave Desert in Nevada. However, one of the effects of climate change is that these extreme fluctuations in temperature are becoming more difficult to predict, leading to potential disasters that are harder to manage. We have already seen this with the extreme drought that California has been experiencing for the last few summers, and the flooding and damage caused by Hurricane Sandy as far north as New York, Maine and Canada.
If you are curious to learn more about climate change, we encourage you to explore the wealth of information available online regarding this topic. NASA is a good resource for information, graphics and satellite images. Below are some links to recent reports and articles that provide in-depth research and comprehensible overviews regarding climate change:
