Dear editor,
This is in response to the letter claiming that climate change is nothing but a scam. According to the writer, climate scientists have been lying to us for the past 30 years because they’re only in it for the money, the climate is always changing, and there’s no evidence climate change is being caused by human activities.
Well this is great news. I can stop worrying about rising seas, droughts, floods, extreme heat, pine beetles, disappearing islands, melting permafrost, dead polar bears, and all that other disturbing stuff I keep seeing in the news, because it’s not really happening. I can just sit back and enjoy the long, hot summers (conveniently ignoring the brown lawns and forest fire smoke).
But then I thought maybe I should do some research before getting too complacent. So I went to the NASA website where the writer claimed to have found proof that the climate isn’t warming. I saw the article about the increase in Antarctic ice, but that wasn’t the whole story. I also read about big pieces of the Antarctic ice shelf falling into the sea, a sharp decline in Arctic ice, and massive melting of Greenland’s glaciers. This is contributing to rising sea levels, which of course will have grave consequences for coastal areas. Another NASA webpage states: “The current warming trend is of particular significance because most of it is very likely human-induced and proceeding at a rate that is unprecedented in the past 1,300 years.” See NASA’s Global Climate Change website at climate.nasa.gov/evidence for more details.
So I’ll go with the facts, and not listen to those who deny that the climate is changing. And I’ll keep asking our governments to take meaningful action because I want there to be a livable planet for future generations.
Ellen Rainwalker
Cumberland