The Threat of Climate Change                      #169

By Hank Silverberg  

Every day we hear something on the news that could foretell a political disaster for the United States. China is going to rule the world economy, Russia is going to rebuild its eastern European empire. Iran or North Korea will soon have nuclear weapons (if they don't already). 

While all those are worrisome, they are not the biggest threat to the United States or the world. 

The biggest long term threat is climate change!

Yes, I know,  nuclear war could destroy the planet in a few hours. The nuclear bomb has been around since 1945. Dropping two of them on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in Japan at the end of World War Two killed as many as 226,000 people, and that has scared us ever since. 

But over those 76 years there may have been more damage to the air we breath and the water we drink in the long term from something other than those two bombs. It has killed many more people, and could kill us all.  

(Earth Day pin from first one in 1970)

We celebrated the Earth again last week for the 51st time. For years  "Earth Day" has centered around cleaning up litter along river beds, encouraging recycling and planting trees. Back in 1970 when I first participated as a high school student, we were worried mostly about air and water pollution, but we were assured there was plenty of time to clean it all up. We have been recycling plastic and aluminum and cutting carbon emissions from power plants and automobiles ever since. But it is not enough! Global warming continues and climate change remains a major threat to our planet.  

The Center for Science Education used computer models to predict that global temperatures will rise about 7.2 degrees Fahrenheit over the next century. That doesn't sound like  much Predictions of Future Global Climate | UCAR Center for Science Education    especially on a cold morning in Hell, Minnesota, where it averages 13 degrees in the winter months. But it's enough to raise the precipitation level worldwide, increasing storms and flooding. A warmer climate would melt glaciers and raise sea levels worldwide as much as 12 to 39 inches. That  would mean more coastal flooding and disaster for some low lying cities like Venice, Italy, or Boston or New York. Some sea level islands around the globe could simply disappear, forcing their populations to leave.  

Climate migration is already having an impact around the globe, and it is likely to get worse. It is partially responsible for the illegal immigration increases along our southern border, though many politicians refuse to recognize it. Climate change driving increased migration from Central America - CBS News  . An increase in hurricanes and other climate disasters like raging wildfires in Central America have displaced 600,000 people in Honduras, Guatemala and Nicaragua. That is already putting climate change migration stress on Mexico and it's bigger neighbor, the United States.  Similar problems have developed in Africa and in the South Pacific, where many of the island population is threatened by higher sea levels. The climate crisis, migration, and refugees (brookings.edu)

Tuvalu, one of the smallest countries in the world at just 26 square miles, is 

(Courtesy World Atlas)

likely among the first victims of a rising sea levels. The country is a series of small islands in a remote part of the Pacific Ocean and is home to 11,000 people who may be forced to go elsewhere. The islands are just 4.2 meters above sea level and threatened by rising water. Tuvalu may symbolize the mass migrations that could come in the near future as a result of climate change.  

There are no easy solutions. Fifty years ago, we had some time to solve many of them. Now we have about a decade before we pass a point of no return. 

 So, what is the solution? Here are a few humble suggestions. 

1) Top on the list is limiting power plant pollution with more use of renewable energy and less use of fossil fuels. 

2) Changing laws to allow more flexibility in electricity production through new technology like wind and solar power. It means taking the monopoly out of power production and away from the big companies. That also means tax incentives and other initiatives for entrepreneurs seeking to find alternate sources of power that do not produce carbon emissions. 

3) Curb industrial tree clearing in places like the Amazon. Growth in such rainforests help clean up the air, but the forests are being destroyed at a alarming rate.  

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Factoid:

Between 15 million to 18 million hectares of forest are destroyed every year; on average, 2,400 trees are cut down each minute. One hectare is 2.4 acres.

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4) Stop methane leaks in the oil and gas industry. Methane contributes to global warming. 

5) Cut soot pollution in third world countries where cookfires are a major source of air pollution. Dirty air is not limited to national borders. It crosses artificial lines drawn on a map. It also harms the climate by absorbing light and reducing the reflectivity of snow and ice. 

6) Completely phase out Hydrofluorocarbons (HFC's) in air conditioners and refrigeration. They trap heat and are super polluters. Science has already found climate-friendly alternatives. 

7) Reducing fertilizer pollution. Fertilizers can still be used as a nutrition source for farmland, but over use is still a major carbon pollutant.    

There are many more, but these are some basics. You as an individual can continue to minimize your use of plastic and recycle what you must use along with paper, cardboard and metal. Those plastic bags from the supermarket are a menace by themselves.  Industry must place emphasis on producing products that can be recycled, and using more recycled material in manufacturing their products.  

We have moved in the right direction. But continued progress has to be a major international effort along with countries like China, and that requires engaged diplomacy. That has been missing completely over the last four years. Things have to move faster.  

Sharks!

Sharks have been swimming in Earth's oceans for more than 450 million years, even surviving the mass extinction event that killed off the dinosaurs.

But they have always gotten a bad rap, maybe even more so since the movie Jaws and its two sequels that came out starting in 1975.  But they, too, are now falling victim to Earth's biggest menace-- human beings. Science Magazine is reporting the shark population has fallen 71% since 1970. In a new study, experts took a look at 31 species of  

Most high-seas shark species now threatened with extinction | Science | AAAS (sciencemag.org)

sharks and found three quarters of them are in danger of extinction. Why? This is not a joke. Someone got a bigger boat!  Sharks are a major food source for people and are used in traditional Chinese medicine. Larger shark fishing operations with better equipment have been decimating the shark population. That has increased the call for a limit on shark fishing to help the species recover. Our food chain may depend on it. 

Coffee may be saved-- for now:

So, you're not too worried about those sharks?

How about the threat to your morning cup of joe? 

The type most widely consumed comes from the Arabica, or the rubusta, plant. There are actually 124 known coffee species, but Arabica and robusta make up 99% of the consumption. Those two species are threatened by higher temperatures partially created by the deforestation needed to grow them, and the erosion and water pollution the crop creates. Now scientists have rediscovered a coffee species not seen in the wild for decades. Reuters is reporting Coffea stenophylla, a third species, has been found in the dense tropical forests in Sierra Leone in Africa. It has a better tolerance for higher temperatures. That  makes it a valuable commodity because it can survive better as the world's surface warms.              A rediscovered forgotten species brews promise for coffee's future (trust.org)

 Now growers may use Coffea stenophylla. It supposedly tastes better. Let's hope they don't have to cut millions more acres of rainforest to produce it. 

A Breath of Fresh Air: 

We only have one planet to live on right now. But that could change because of a big success for NASA this past week. The Perseverance Mars Rover contains a small instrument called the Mars Oxygen In-Situ Resource Utilization Experiment.

It has now used the Martian atmosphere to produce

(Perseverance-NASA)

five grams of human breathable oxygen. That's enough to sustain an astronaut on Mars for about 10 minutes. That is success out of thin air, so to speak. It's a modest amount of oxygen, but doing it in larger quantities in the future would be a major jump forward to sustaining human life on the Martian surface. It is the first time anyone from Earth has extracted any natural resource from another planet. 

How NASA's Perseverance is making oxygen on Mars (msn.com)

The amount of oxygen and fuel needed to explore Mars has been a major hurdle to overcome for future manned missions. Oxygen in abundant supply would be necessary to explore much of the red planet's surface. But more importantly, it is necessary for the production of rocket fuel on Mars needed to return home.  

NASA extracts breathable oxygen from thin Martian air (nypost.com)

The "Dumbest Quote of the Week" this time comes again from a member of Congress.  It's no surprise,  because Senator Ron Johnson (R-Wis) is a repeat offender in this category.  In a radio interview about the pandemic, the vaccine distribution and the possible need  for "vaccine passports,"  Johnson, who has been a skeptic of the highly effective vaccines, said he sees  "no reason to be pushing vaccines on people". But that's not the dumbest thing he said. 

Apparently, he is unaware of the staggering death toll from Covid-19 (577,224 in USA as of 4/24).  He went on to say about the need for those "vaccine passports":

 "If you have the vaccine quite honestly what do you care if your neighbor has one or not?"  

So, if you live in Oshkosh with Senator Johnson, you might want to move out. The man who is supposed to represent you in the U.S. Senate doesn't care about you or any of his neighbors.   

(Your comments and suggests on this blog are welcome)

Copies of my latest book "The Campaign" can be purchased at the links below. Or you can buy a copy by emailing me at: 

HankSilverberg@gmail.com  

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