[MCN] One way or another, climate change is coming to get you : We've coasted comfortably nto a self-made trap of climbing heat

[Lance Olsen]

Columbia University DECEMBER 27, 2019
News from the Earth Institute <https://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/>
10 Climate Change Impacts That Will Affect Us All

BY RENEE CHO <https://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/author/renee-cho/> 
https://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2019/12/27/climate-change-impacts-everyone/ <https://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2019/12/27/climate-change-impacts-everyone/>

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“As global temperatures continue to rise, climate change will affect our wallets, our health, our safety, and our lives. … And while there are ways to adapt on a personal level, some of these changes are going to become more severe and unavoidable over time.”

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As global greenhouse gases are projected to hit a new high for 2019, Petteri Taalas of the World Meteorological Organization recently declared, “Things are getting worse.”

 A 2019 poll  <https://today.yougov.com/topics/science/articles-reports/2019/09/16/global-climate-change-poll>found that only 24 percent of U.S. respondents believed climate change would have a great deal of impact on their lives; 31 percent believed it would have a fair amount of impact.

Different regions of the country will be affected in different ways, some more than others. But there are certain impacts that will probably affect every American’s way of life. Here are 10 of them.

Excerpts

2. More expensive home insurance

In high-risk areas, premiums and deductibles may rise, coverage may be more limited, and insurance could ultimately become unaffordable or unavailable for some, especially in climate-vulnerable areas. 

3. Outdoor work could become unbearable

People who work outdoors, such as construction workers, miners, firefighters and agricultural workers, will be most affected by increasing temperatures.

4. Higher electric bills and more blackouts

As temperatures rise, people will need to stay cool for health and comfort reasons. Climate Central analyzed 244 cities in the U.S. and determined that 93 percent experienced an increase in the number of days that required extra cooling to remain comfortable. As we rely more heavily on air conditioners and fans, electricity bills will get higher.

5. Rising taxes   

Municipalities are recognizing the need to make their communities more resilient in the face of climate change impacts. ... Paying for mitigation and adaptation measures, however, will likely have to be funded through higher property taxes or “resilience fees.”

7. Food will be more expensive and variety may suffer

While there are several reasons for higher food prices, climate change  <https://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2018/07/25/climate-change-food-agriculture>is a major factor. Extreme weather affects livestock and crops, and droughts can have impacts on the stability and price of food. 

9. Outdoor exercise and recreational sports will become more difficult

Reduced snowfall and early snowmelt in the spring will have an impact on skiing, snowmobiling and other winter sports. Less water in lakes and rivers could also affect boating and fishing during summer.

Hotter temperatures, especially in the South and Southwest, will make summer activities like running, biking, hiking and fishing less comfortable and potentially dangerous to your health.

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“A new area of study is the field that some of us are beginning to call social traps. 

"The term refers to situations in society that contain traps formally like a fish trap, where men or whole societies get themselves started in some direction or some set of relationships that later prove to be unpleasant or lethal and that they see no easy way to back out of or to avoid."

John Platt. Social Traps. American Psychologist, August 1973

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“Our results indicate that terrestrial ecosystems are highly sensitive to temperature change and suggest that, without major reductions in greenhouse gas emissions to the atmosphere, terrestrial ecosystems worldwide are at risk of major transformation.”

Nolan et al. Past and future global transformation of terrestrial ecosystems under climate change. 
Science 31 August 2018 



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