December 12, 2018: Trump Administration Offers Bold Plan to Address Climate Change!

 

12/12/18: The nations of the world gather in Poland for a United Nations summit on climate change. 

Nearly two hundred nations agree we face a growing threat to the planet. 

The U.S. shows up and basically calls for burning more coal. Wells Griffith, sent by the Trump administration, announces: “The United States has an abundance of natural resources and is not going to keep them in the ground. We strongly believe that no country should have to sacrifice their economic prosperity or energy security in pursuit of environmental sustainability.”

Burn more coal and the hell with future generations.

 

The feedback loops will continue to accelerate. 

Meanwhile, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration releases the “Arctic Report Card” for 2018. Scientists warn that temperatures at the top of the world are rising twice as fast as temperatures at lower latitudes. This year readings in the region were 3° Fahrenheit above normal. 

Thomas Mote, who contributed to the report, explains: “The changes we are witnessing in the Arctic are sufficiently rapid that they cannot be explained without considering our impacts on the chemistry of the atmosphere.” 

CNN explains: 

The rapid warming of the Arctic is known as “Arctic amplification,” which is due to multiple feedback loops that the report describes. Warmer temperatures lead to less ice and snow, which means less sunlight is reflected and more is absorbed by the darker oceans. This warms the ocean further, which in turn decreases the sea ice even more. The lack of sea ice and more ocean surface leads to additional cloudiness later in the fall season, which keeps the Arctic region warmer even later into the winter.

 

The feedback loops will continue to accelerate. Only 1% of Artic ice is now what scientists refer to as “old ice,” more than four years old (some scientists use five years as the standard.) Old ice tends to be thicker and much less likely to disappear. 

Since scientists began measuring the age of the ice in the mid-1980s, multi-year ice in the Arctic has decreased in size from 2.54 million square kilometers (roughly the size of Mexico and all of Central America combined) to 0.13 million square kilometers (roughly the size of Nicaragua in Central America) – a 95% reduction in a little over 30 years [emphasis added.]

 

Sea life and animals on land have been dramatically affected. Polar bears hunt from thick ice and their survival is threatened. Algae spreads in waters once too frigid for it to survive. Algal toxins are released, killing walrus and seals. Reindeer and caribou populations have declined by 50%. 

As for humans, melting permafrost in higher latitudes causes roads to buckle and, as permafrost thaws, carbon dioxide from ancient, decayed vegetation is released. This adds to the climate threat. Ocean levels round the world will rise as the Greenland Ice Sheet gradually retreats. Low-lying coastal areas, including Mar-a-Lago in Florida, may face lapping waves. 

Anyway, let’s all burn coal! 

Screw the next two or ten generations, or more.