Grist: Climate Change Is Here

Climate change and warming temperatures intensify wildfires in Greece and the American West, flooding in Northeast America, heavy rainfall and unbearable temperatures in Asia. In Greece, people tried to escape fires by running into the Aegean Sea and at least 80 died. Heavy rain in Laos caused a hydroelectric dam under construction to fail, forcing entire communities forced to evacuate with hundreds reported missing. Fires are reported in the Arctic Circle. Climate change contributes to unstable weather patterns and extreme events – too much rain in one area and not enough in others. The extreme weather patterns – attributed to human activity and failure to reduce greenhouse gas emissions – are rapidly contributing to changes in habitats, including desertification or rising sea levels that overwhelm freshwater sources. “We’ve known enough about meteorology to link extreme events to their increased likelihood as they are happening for years now,” writes meteorologist Eric Holthaus for Grist. “Recent advances in extreme weather attribution can often tell us exactly how much.” – YaleGlobal