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NeilBlanchard · 02-07-2013, 09:58 AM

Sandy was a wake up call. Insurance companies and people in Norfolk VA, the Solomon Islands, the Maldives, Bangladesh, Thailand, Pakistan, Venice, Holland, the US military, East Africa, Texas and the Midwest, Eskimos, etc. - already knew that climate change is a big problem.

But now, people in New York and New Jersey know. And people in Boston know that they only missed a major disaster by about 5 hours - if it had coincided with high tide, Boston would have been a multi-billion dollar event. So, they are now starting the hard work of deciding how to prepare for more sea level rise - do we abandon certain areas? Do we build barriers? Do we supplement and enhance existing natural barriers? Do we have a government-back insurance plan? Do we pay people for lost property value? Do we spend a fraction of what we will pay for damage in the future, on mitigating carbon output now?

The massive drought in the breadbasket of the US (and the world?) is continuing. The Ogallala aquifer is dropping at an alarming rate, and so is Lake Meade and the Great Lakes. How many more rivers will run dry? Will shipping on the Mississippi come to a halt? What happens when we produce less grain and soybeans than we consume? Do we continue to have factory farms for cows, pigs and chickens? Fracking operations have been halted in several areas already - due to a lack of water.

Will the number of billion dollar plus events continue to increase? Will the Arctic ice be gone in August/September of 2016? 2018? 2020? Will Greenland's ice pack melt faster and faster? Will we get 2 more feet of sea level rise in this century? We have "only" had about 8" rise so far in the last 100 years? Or will we get 4 feet, or even 6 feet? Will rainfall rates top 6 inches in an hour, or 8 inches in an hour? Will a storm drop more that 30" in three days, like what happened in Pakistan? Vermont and the Connecticut River valley almost got washed away by 7" of rain in about 10-12 hours.

When will we all realize that we are all in this together?

02-07-2013, 09:58 AM	#470 (permalink)
NeilBlanchard Master EcoModder Join Date: May 2008 Location: Maynard, MA Eaarth Posts: 7,907 Mica Blue - '05 Scion xA RS 2.0 Team Toyota 90 day: 42.48 mpg (US) Forest - '15 Nissan Leaf S Team Nissan 90 day: 156.46 mpg (US) Number 7 - '15 VW e-Golf SEL TEAM VW AUDI Group 90 day: 155.81 mpg (US) Thanks: 3,475 Thanked 2,950 Times in 1,844 Posts	Sandy was a wake up call. Insurance companies and people in Norfolk VA, the Solomon Islands, the Maldives, Bangladesh, Thailand, Pakistan, Venice, Holland, the US military, East Africa, Texas and the Midwest, Eskimos, etc. - already knew that climate change is a big problem. But now, people in New York and New Jersey know. And people in Boston know that they only missed a major disaster by about 5 hours - if it had coincided with high tide, Boston would have been a multi-billion dollar event. So, they are now starting the hard work of deciding how to prepare for more sea level rise - do we abandon certain areas? Do we build barriers? Do we supplement and enhance existing natural barriers? Do we have a government-back insurance plan? Do we pay people for lost property value? Do we spend a fraction of what we will pay for damage in the future, on mitigating carbon output now? The massive drought in the breadbasket of the US (and the world?) is continuing. The Ogallala aquifer is dropping at an alarming rate, and so is Lake Meade and the Great Lakes. How many more rivers will run dry? Will shipping on the Mississippi come to a halt? What happens when we produce less grain and soybeans than we consume? Do we continue to have factory farms for cows, pigs and chickens? Fracking operations have been halted in several areas already - due to a lack of water. Will the number of billion dollar plus events continue to increase? Will the Arctic ice be gone in August/September of 2016? 2018? 2020? Will Greenland's ice pack melt faster and faster? Will we get 2 more feet of sea level rise in this century? We have "only" had about 8" rise so far in the last 100 years? Or will we get 4 feet, or even 6 feet? Will rainfall rates top 6 inches in an hour, or 8 inches in an hour? Will a storm drop more that 30" in three days, like what happened in Pakistan? Vermont and the Connecticut River valley almost got washed away by 7" of rain in about 10-12 hours. When will we all realize that we are all in this together? __________________ Sincerely, Neil http://neilblanchard.blogspot.com/ Last edited by NeilBlanchard; 02-07-2013 at 10:20 AM..