A standard argument from those who believe climate change is not new is that coastlines have risen and fallen in the past.
And the “consensus” was a rise of three feet was the most likely by 2100. "But now some of them are starting to say that six or seven feet may be possible. A rise that large over a span of decades would be an unparalleled national catastrophe, driving millions of people from their homes and likely to require the abandonment of entire cities,” the New York Times reports. “The inundation of the coast has begun. The sea has crept up to the point that a high tide and a brisk wind are all it takes to send water pouring into streets and homes. “Federal scientists have documented a sharp jump in this nuisance flooding — often called “sunny-day flooding” — along both the East Coast and the Gulf Coast in recent years. The sea is now so near the brim in many places that they believe the problem is likely to worsen quickly. Shifts in the Pacific Ocean mean that the West Coast, partly spared over the past two decades, may be hit hard, too.” While politicians like Donald Trump disdain global warming and climate change, the U.S. and China are in agreement that something must be done. It has taken three years. “U.S. President Barack Obama and Chinese President Xi Jinping on Saturday outlined new plans for expanding their joint efforts on climate change, showcasing one of the few areas of agreement in an otherwise tense relationship between the two leaders. “U.S. officials detailed the agreement reached by Messrs. Obama and Xi ahead of what is likely to be their final meeting before a new president enters the White House in January,” The Wall Street Journal reported. “The new steps include formal adoption by both the U.S. and China of the international climate-change agreement reached in Paris in December 2015, as well as a road map for achieving emissions reductions in commercial aircraft and for phasing out hydrofluorocarbons, or HFCs, a potent group of gases that are linked to climate change but aren’t covered by the Paris agreement,” the Journal said. If Trump is elected, and he is moving closer to Hillary Clinton in some polls, this agreement could go in the dustbin of history. This could advance the rise of oceans, and Houston could have a real problem. Consider a rerun of Hurricane Ike, says NASA. “Under Hurricane Ike, there was a 12-foot storm surge. Now add that on top of an extra 8 or 17 inches of projected sea level rise over the next few years from climate change,” says a NASA blog. The Johnson Space Center sits just 13 feet above sea level, according to the blog. NASA is already preparing a plan to protect buildings. Imagine regions without NASA’s resources in the U.S. and other richer countries, and the devastation in countries unable to present even a feeble defense. “Wealthy countries that have contributed the most to climate change tend to be most immune to its effects, according to new research, a finding that has implications for the question of who bears responsibility for addressing the crisis. “The study, published in the journal Nature Scientific Reports, shows that more than half of the highest-emitting countries rank among the least vulnerable to climate change and nearly two-thirds of the countries with low or moderate emissions are acutely vulnerable to the effects. “Researchers classified more than 10% of countries as “free riders,” ranking in the top fifth in terms of emissions and the bottom 20% in terms of vulnerability. These countries include the United States, much of Europe and Australia,” Time reported. Imagine a flood of refugees filling the seas connecting them with the wealthy world. It could be many times that of the Middle East wars.
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Robert Weller
2016 US election news and other news from the USA
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Worked in journalism, including on the Internet, for more than 40 years. Started as a news editor at the Colorado Daily at the University of Colorado, joined a small Montana newspaper, the Helena Independent-Record, and then United Press International. Archives
November 2016
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