At this moment (June 2024) the U. S. is undergoing a heat wave spreading across the southwest into the midwestern and northeastern United States, hitting western Pennsylvania, upstate New York, Iowa, Maine, Ohio, the Great Lakes, and Ohio Valley. Some 76 million will sustain temperatures soaring into three digits. Atlanta and El Paso are opening cooling shelters to prevent heat related deaths while one Texas town, Rio Grande Village, reached 114 degrees. For now, our commonwealth hopefully will not suffer extremes but will sustain hotter than normal temperatures.
On the other hand, abnormally cold temperatures will hit the Northwest with up to 12 inches of snow expected within the Rocky Mountains of western Montana and central Idaho with temperatures dropping to a high of 40 degrees. In parts of northern California and southern Oregon thermometers will drop to a low of 19 degrees. Furthermore, tropical storms are likely to hit the Gulf of Mexico with likely flooding. With the water situation in Mexico at a crisis, it is hoped that heavy rainfall will alleviate this drought.
Scientists worldwide and in the United Staes are in virtually total concurrence that anthropogenic climate change is here and impacting destructive and deadly weather events. In Britain, a study led by Oxford University Climate physicists Drs. Myles Allen, Nicholas Leach, and Shirin Ermis found that not only does the human imprint worsen harsh weather occurrences but make them 8 times more likely to occur. They discovered that climate change was a key cause of the 2021 deadly heatwave in the U S Pacific northwest which was responsible for 800 deaths. The team also discovered that climate change exacerbated the 2022 storm Eunice, which produced 122 mile per hour winds and led to the deaths of 17 people.
Locally, Dr. Bill Haneberg is a research professor of geology at the University of Kentucky, State Geologist of Kentucky, and Director of Kentucky Geological Survey. He has had some 100 studies published in peer reviewed journals about geology and climate science. One area of his expertise centers on the flooding throughout eastern Kentucky. He has warned us that such disasters as the 2022 flooding in the Cumberland Mountain communities are likely to occur more often than in the past. While this location has always been susceptible to flooding, anthropogenic climate change will increase the frequency and severity of such floods. He stated: “The way it is defined now, statistically, there is essentially a 1% chance in any given year that the area will flood. That might double or triple. So, the 100-year flood plain might become the 50-year flood plain or the 30-year flood plain.”
On May 12, 2022, the Kentucky Geological Survey held its Annual Seminar, which focused on climate change and geoscience research. Speakers presented six technical developments which could help alleviate the climate crisis. In addition to the findings of Dr. Haneberg, scientists such as Steve Greb, Jason Dortch, Marty Parris, and Gina Lukoczk described projects and proposals relevant to Kentucky. A central message of the seminar centered on hope, that mankind can alleviate this danger to life as we know it.
The participants posited possible solutions such as Dr. Lukoczk’s plan for Kentucky to contribute minerals needed to transition energy sources and for construction of three electric auto plants. This would help defray greenhouse gases and provide jobs. Another University of Kentucky (U K) geologist, Dr. Marty Parris, elaborated upon an innovation in the Daniel Boone National Forest which could serve as a paradigm for reducing methane gas emissions by plugging abandoned gas & oil wells. Steve Garb and Wei Ren’s sessions added additional proficiency to the seminar. Dr. Garb focused upon sealing greenhouse gas emissions (as was undertaken in Norway) in deep underground rocks.
Dr. Ren, an agricultural specialist with the U K Plant and Soil Science Department briefed the audience about climate smart agriculture and crop resistance to extreme weather. She has researched the impact of climate challenges upon farming in the fertile Mississippi River Valley. The rivers of our state empty into the Ohio River, which in turn feeds the Mississippi. Planting cover and no tillage crops are among the techniques that she leads at the U of K Spindletop Research farm in Lexington.
Dr. Haneberg summed up the climate change threat to our state, nation and world: “Climate change is here, and the impacts reach far beyond geology. It’s an economic, human health, and policy issue.” He accentuated the need to utilize scientific data to help control the damage to our economy and health.
Much validation exists for this conclusion. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National centers for Environmental Information data, the U. S. monetary losses since 1980 from extreme weather events reached some $2.7 trillion. There were 387 extreme weather events, each totaling at least a billion dollars. During the last two decades these losses have multiplied. Even more disturbing is the fact that the number of deaths has escalated during this time. Yale University’s Climate Connections report that within the U.S. and Canada, the figures have reached tens of thousands. Even more sobering, the World Health Organization fears that after 2030, if we continue “business as usual” deaths will reach 250,000 annually.
In sum, climate experts from 99% of the accredited national and worldwide institutions agree that anthropogenic climate change is here and presents a threat to humanity’s ability to subsist on the planet. Therefore, it is inexcusable for political, industrial, business, and religious leaders to continue to spread misinformation and undermine national and state efforts to mitigate the crisis. Ostensibly, they are either ignorant of scientific findings or simply do not care about the suffering, death, and destruction they inflict upon humanity. We must not accept this.
