WHAT YOU CAN DO TO SLOW THE RATE OF CLIMATE CHANGE
Although San Diego County escaped the worst of California’s recent torrential rainstorms, it was not unscathed, experiencing heavy rain, strong winds, street f looding and high surf. These storms were due to nine atmospheric rivers, huge amounts of moisture from the tropics, that walloped the state over the last few weeks. California and the entire North American southwest are several years into a severe drought with 2000-2021 the driest 22-year period in 1,200 years. The rain has helped, but we’re not out of the woods yet. This deluge — reminiscent of the Great Flood of 1862, a 45-day period of torrential rain in the Central Valley — has caused widespread severe f looding in hardest hit Northern and Central California. Property damage and loss in California is estimated to cost upwards of $1 billion.
So is this weather or climate change? The difference is that while weather refers to short-term changes (minutes, hours, days and weeks) in the atmosphere, climate refers to widespread atmospheric changes averaged over longer periods (decades and centuries). Climate is defined not only by average temperature and precipitation but also by the type, frequency, duration and intensity of weather events such as heat waves, cold spells, storms, floods and droughts.
Contrary to those who do not believe human activity causes climate change, science is not divided on it. Scientists agree that overwhelming evidence points to humans as largely responsible for climate change. That is to say, natural changes in the sun and the Earth in the past cannot explain today’s global warming. Whether the recent California storms are due to a historic cycle of drought-to-deluge or climate change will take further study. But what is clear is that climate modelers predict more frequent heavy rainstorms, heat waves and wildfires around the world, intensified by global warming.
Climate warming is real. Scientists at NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration agree that the Earth is warming at a faster rate than it warmed since the last Ice Age more than 7,000 years ago. The last eight years were the hottest on record. Continued warming this century will result in higher temperatures by 2 or 3 degrees. With more action as I’ll outline below, it is possible to decrease temperatures. Slower action will increase warming. The choice is ours.
Global warming is making some extreme weather events worse. The extreme heat and accompanying dryness contributed to extensive wildfires in the Western U.S. and more intense hurricanes in the Southeastern U.S. The San Diego County coastline is especially vulnerable and scientists predict that sea level in outur region is expected to rise nearly three times faster between now and 2050 than it did in the last half-century. Sea level rise results in fewer beaches and more erosion that — when coupled with severe storms and flooding — threatens our coastal communities.
The effects of warming temperatures have been felt around the world. For example, Europe, China, Pakistan and India all experienced lengthy and extreme heat waves in 2022. Monsoon floods left more than one-third of Pakistan under water for weeks, displacing 33 million people and killing 1,700.
After decades of minimal action, serious political action is needed by world leaders. In November, a historic new climate agreement at the United Nations COP27 conference in Egypt was reached by world leaders that included a historic step by richer nations to help developing countries who say they are not doing enough to combat climate change. But even if the world follows through on current commitments and reduces emissions by 10 percent in 2030, that won’t be enough. Emissions need to fall by nearly 45 percent by then if countries want to avoid more catastrophic damage from global warming.
Climate warming can be largely traced to humancaused greenhouse gas emissions. The largest source of greenhouse gas emissions is transportation, as a U.S. government report pointed out, responsible for one-third of all emissions. Carbon dioxide accounts for more than 75 percent of total greenhouse gas emissions, with the greatest portion associated with human activities such as the burning of coal, oil and gas. China and the U.S. are the top greenhouse gas emitters. The U.S. has pledged to get to net zero by 2050, which will mean that virtually every car, bus, truck, train, plane and boat in the country will need to operate emissions-free.
Climate change is happening now, and its effects are threatening our health, our economy and our children’s future. Fortunately, there are things that we can do, and there are reasons for optimism. You can:
Voice your concern directly to elected officials. Congress has the power to enact climate policies and laws that limit carbon emissions and require polluters to pay for their emissions.
Take public transportation or walk/ride your bike to work, if possible, or switch to driving an electric vehicle. This will reduce cars on our roadways that burn gasoline or diesel.
Power your home with renewable energy and invest in energy-efficient appliances. This will reduce energy use in your household. Our investment in green energy is increasing, and switching to green energy has become cheaper. The International Energy Agency recently predicted that solar power would become “the cheapest source of electricity in history.” Another report by Carbon Tracker, an independent organization that researches the impact of climate change on financial markets, found that 90 percent of the global population lives in places where renewable power would be cheaper than exhaustible, dirty power.
Eat the food you buy and compost what you can’t. Wasting less food reduces energy consumption, and recycling food provides environmental benefits, including improving the soil by recycling nutrients.
Reduce water waste since doing so reduces carbon pollution.
Spread awareness about renewable energy.
Educate others about the dangers of climate change and fight misinformation on social media platforms and elsewhere.
Although we can’t prevent climate change, we can make changes to slow its pace.