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Devastating Rain Spells Are on Their Way

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Truth Dig: Devastating Rain Spells Are on Their Way

Canadian scientists have examined an exhaustive collection of rain records for the past 50 years to confirm the fears of climate scientists: bouts of very heavy rain are on the increase.

They have measured this increase in parts of Canada, most of Europe, the U.S. Midwest and Northeast, northern Australia, Western Russia and parts of China.

From 2004 to 2013, worldwide, bouts of extreme rainfall rain increased by 7%. In Europe and Asia, the same decade registered a rise of 8.6% in cascades of heavy rain.

I think excessive rain is going to be the biggest impact of climate change over the next decade in New York as high PWAT become more and more common. Ten inches of rain in an hour or two from time to time in various parts of the state will become common leading to severe flash flooding in patterns that seem random.

The Book Show #1606 – Bill McKibben | WAMC

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The Book Show #1606 – Bill McKibben | WAMC

Bill McKibben, often referred to as “America’s most important environmentalist,” thirty years ago offered one of the earliest warnings about climate change in his book, “The End of Nature.” Now he broadens the warning: the entire human game, he suggests, has begun to play itself out. The new book is “Falter.”

This is a very interesting podcast, I was listening to it a few hours ago.

Canada Declares Climate Emergency, Then Approves Massive Oil Pipeline Expansion

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Canada Declares Climate Emergency, Then Approves Massive Oil Pipeline Expansion

Only one day after declaring a climate emergency, Canada has approved the expansion of a massive pipeline that will increase oil production in Alberta and release more greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.

On Monday night, Canada’s parliament passed a motion brought forward by Environment and Climate Change Minister Catherine McKenna calling climate change a “real and urgent crisis, driven by human activity,” and requiring the government to make deep emissions reductions to meet its Paris commitments.

 

New York to Approve One of the World’s Most Ambitious Climate Plans – The New York Times

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New York to Approve One of the World’s Most Ambitious Climate Plans – The New York Times

New York lawmakers have agreed to pass a sweeping climate plan that calls for the state to all but eliminate its greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, envisioning an era when gas-guzzling cars, oil-burning heaters and furnaces would be phased out, and all of the state’s electricity would come from carbon-free sources.

It certainly sounds like an ambitious plan, and setting goals are important. Goals are great, but will there be a sustained commitment towards the goal? Or will the economic pain in out years lead the goal being ignored. Certainly it's a good statement of principles, and long overdue, and it will be interesting how it plays out.