I post this here, because ultimately, our water sources on the Olympic Peninsula are tied to snowpack. If we lose our snowpack due to global warming, we are going to be in a very hard place. As the CO2 level rises, these gases tend to contain heat from the sun and our industrial activity. This creates something much like a greenhouse. What are the possible outcomes in the short term? Scientists say hotter record temperatures, stronger storms (i.e. tornadoes, hurricanes, drought). We are already experiencing these outcomes throughout North America and the rest of the world, and have for a decade. Some areas will be affected more than others. We seem to be seeing very little climate change here on the Peninsula, for example, as opposed to having a “Hurricane Sandy” hit us. However our average temperatures continue to rise incrementally year over year.
Latest news from the people monitoring the CO2 levels in our atmosphere is that nothing we are doing is slowing the rise in these levels. No one really knows at what point life on earth will become untenable, and impossible to retrieve. What the ‘tipping point’ to all this may be will likely come quickly, and probably catastrophically, as in widespread crop failure. In the meantime, eskimo villages in Alaska are already needing to be moved or abandoned due to rising sea levels, and as we know, most of our cities here on the Peninsula are at or just above sea level. Inaction is really not a good idea, but our politicians are paralyzed on this issue, due to economic consequences in doing anything at all. However, insurance companies, who stand to lose the most, are continuing to drive proper behaviors, but no where near fast enough.
The Guardian from London.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2013/may/10/carbon-dioxide-highest-level-greenhouse-gas
And an interactive slide show on the data behind the headlines
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/interactive/2013/may/10/climate-warming-gas-carbon-dioxide-levels-interactive