The American public has been slow to appreciate the slowly unfolding disaster known as global warming.  Until recently, it was hard to see the impacts of climate change. Not anymore.  In the last couple of years, pictures of melting glaciers, swimming polar bears and storm damage have become common.  It may be that the appearance of these pictures is what has finally shifted public opinion, with large majorities of people in nearly all countries appreciating that climate change is a serious problem.

CNN has a slide show tour of global melting narrated by the renowned photographer Gary Braasch. Braasch’s dramatic photographs, accompanied by a narrative by Bill McKibben, appear in a new book, What Matters, created by David Elliott Cohen.  The book is available as a free download.

Millions of words have been written about global warming, but it is the work of photographers like Braasch and Cohen that shows us the immediacy of the crisis.

Meltdown: A global warming travelogue – CNN.com

Meltdown:  Chapter from What Matters (PDF)

What happens when global warming makes parts of the US uninhabitable, or less attractive as a place to live. It is likely that the southwestern US will become so dry and water so expensive that people will choose to live elsewhere. People currently living along coasts that become inundated by sea level rise and increasingly battered by tropical storms may choose to live further inland. 

Until now, nobody seems to have been seriously addressing the issue of migration in response to climate change, perhaps because it seems so far in the future.  But in fact, migration is already happening: many families displaced by Hurricane Katrina chose not to return to New Orleans, and the same may be true after Hurricane Ike.

In Portland, Oregon, which often seems to think about the future before everyone else, people are now beginning to seriously consider the population impacts of climate change.  Although nobody can make predictions about the potential for migration, it is worth incorporating into planning. Lorna Strickel, a Portland water planner, originally brought the potential for climate-related migration to the attention of planners, mayors and others at a conference. Strickel is particularly concerned about the potential for population growth to stress the city’s water supply.  Since Portland water supply depends heavily on mountain snow pack, a double impact of climate change could be felt – reduced water availability as snow pack is reduced, and increased population.

Regional predictions for Kentucky suggest something similar. In a warmer climate, Kentucky will continue to have good water supplies, with increased precipitation increasing stream flow. However, severe droughts will probably be more frequent.  Kentucky could become more attractive as a place to live because of abundant water, but with increased drought frequency stressing the water supply.  Kentucky needs to begin planning for better water management and storage.

Look out, Oregon, for a global warming land rush – Oregon Environment News, Photos & Videos ­ OregonLive.com

A very important article from Joe Romm at Climate Progress this morning. Evidence is growing that methane in the atmosphere is increasing, and methane is a powerful greenhouse gas (20 times the heat absorption of CO₂ One source of methane may be deep sea-bed deposits that are released as the Arctic Ocean warms.   Joe points out that the evidence is preliminary until the research is published in a peer-reviewed journal, which is planned.

As a general recommendation, if you are interested in the science and politics of climate change, Joe’s Climate Progress blog is the most reliable source of information available.

Climate Progress » Blog Archive » Has runaway climate change begun?

Cross posted at Sustainable Kentucky and Tree Trends.

The Meteorological Office, Britain’s equivalent of our Weather Service, has a great short article that refutes the notion that global warming has slowed down.  The key paragraph is the first one:

"Anyone who thinks global warming has stopped has their head in the sand. The evidence is clear – the long-term trend in global temperatures is rising, and humans are largely responsible for this rise. Global warming does not mean that each year will be warmer than the last, natural phenomena will mean that some years will be much warmer and others cooler. You only need to look at 1998 to see a record-breaking warm year caused by a very strong El Niño. In the last couple of years, the underlying warming is partially masked caused by a strong La Niña. Despite this, 11 of the last 13 years are the warmest ever recorded."

This figure is also quite helpful

Global average temperature anomaly 1975-2007

Global average temperature anomaly from 1975 to 2007, relative to the 1961-1990 average.
The black line shows the annual figure. The red line shows the trend over the full 33 years.
The blue lines show the varying rate of the trend over 10-year periods.

Links:

Met Office: Global warming goes on

Cross posted at Sustainable Kentucky and Tree Trends.

Blogging about the Energizing Kentucky conference at Sustainable Kentucky.

Andrew Revkin, New York Times reporter and the proprietor of Dot Earth, the Times’ climate change blog, has received the prestigious John Chancellor Award for Excellence in Journalism. The award recognizes Andy’s sustained examination of global warming, including science, politics and economics.

Revkin shares this year’s award with Jane Mayer, a staff writer for the New Yorker. The award, named for the distinguished NBC correspondent, is given to journalists who have a sustained commitment to a subject or story.

Dot Earth has quickly become a must-read resource for anyone interested in the broad implications of global warming.  Revkin has a real talent for interpreting often complex science stories for a lay audience. This talent is very rare in the journalism community today.

Revkin and Mayer will discuss their work at Columbia University on November 18 2008.

Links:

Some Gratifying News – Dot Earth Blog – NYTimes.com

Press Release from Columbia University (pdf)

Cross posted at Sustainable Kentucky/Green Kentucky and Tree Trends.

Jordan, one of the driest countries in the world, has long produced valuable olive trees irrigated by spring and well water. Prolonged drought in southern Jordan now threatens to kill up to 30,000 trees around the southern city of Karak. Farmers have no access to irrigation water as springs and wells dry up.

Jordan is one of the 10 most water-poor nations. The only major river, the Jordan, has turned to a small stream after tributaries were diverted by Israel for agriculture. Rainfall, and rain-fed springs and wells, are the only water source for the nation.

It appears likely that climate change, reducing rainfall in this already-dry region,  is interacting with political disputes over water to cause the death of these valuable trees.

Links:

• JORDAN: Drought may claim thousands of olive trees
• Jordan River Dispute. ICE Case Study 6

Spain wil plant 45 million trees from 2009-2012 to slow desertification and combat climate change. The project will cost $127 million and employ nearly 3,000 people. Nearly 1/3 of Spain is in prolonged severe drought and at risk of desertification due to climate change. Spain is also establishing a new research center to fight desertification and climate change.

Spain to plant 45 million trees before 2012 – International Herald Tribune

Spain to set up climate change research institute – Ynetnews