Warmer winters new normal

February brings us Valentine’s Day with its over-indulgence in all things romantic. It also brings us one month closer to spring when we can again go outside without dressing in multiple layers.

This February has also presented us with the spectacle of the Winter Olympic Games. As of the day I am writing it, Canadian athletes have 12 medals (way to go, Meryeta O’Dine!) and likely many more to come. We can rally behind our hockey and curling teams, oooh and aaah at the daredevils antics of snowboarders and skiers, and for a brief period every four years, pretend we know something about luge, skeleton, and bobsleigh!

Actually, that last comment is perhaps a little unfair as Canadians know a great deal about sliding on ice.

Just ask anyone who has been driving over the past week because this February has brought us some unseasonably warm weather.

We aren’t breaking any records but we have been several degrees above average.

Typically, at this time of year, our daily highs are still below freezing but progressing towards the beginning of March when temperatures start hitting positive numbers. This year, we are well above freezing.

However, like so many things we are learning to tolerate, this appears to be the new normal. The global impact of increased levels greenhouse gases is changing weather patterns and resulting in warmer winters.

This past week, scientists sounded a new alarm. The global methane concentrations in the atmosphere have nearly tripled relative to pre-industrial times.

Data released by the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration tell us methane has now climbed to over 1,900 parts per billion or, put differently, to 1.9 parts per million.

Not a lot but consider the fluoride in drinking water so many people were concerned about was less than 1.0 part per million.

Methane is a much more powerful greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide. A spike in levels beginning around 2007 has scientists worried we have passed a tipping point. Warmer climates are releasing more methane from permafrost and other sources which is resulting in warmer climates and more methane released.

Positive feedback loops quickly spiral out of control. Perhaps we really should be doing something about climate change. Or learning to live with warmer Februarys.