How climate change is exacerbating America’s extreme weather

By Cally Salter
October 2020

Little has escaped the wrath of California’s raging wildfires. Since August, fires have burned through three million acres of land. Thousands of people have been evacuated from their homes and many more on standby. The death toll has hit thirty.[1] Amid all this destruction, California Governor Gavin Newsom offered one inescapable assessment: “this is a climate damn emergency”.[2]

“This is a climate damn emergency.”

On the surface, those words might seem uncontroversial. The world is slowly but surely waking up to the dangers of climate change. 175 countries have signed up to the Paris Agreement. David Attenborough has just broken the record the most Instagram followers in a single day. But despite the overwhelming evidence of climate change, there are always problems when the most powerful man in the United States is Donald Trump.

Following the governor’s remarks, the President was quick to put forward his theory. Poor forest management, rather than the warming climate, has caused the recent fires. Trump has previously gone on record saying countries like Austria and Finland had no fires for this very reason. To offer some balance to this piece, it’s worth looking at forest management actions in the golden state. Centuries back, native Americans would burn forests to actively encourage growth. The practice declined over time as fire suppression became law of the land. Occasional limited fires can create firebreaks.[3] Total suppression has had the reverse effect; helping create conditions that increase the risk of fire.

The problem is not so easily solved. On average, the world is warming every year. California is affected more than most. Five of the past ten years have been the hottest on record. Eight of the past ten biggest fires in California burned this decade.[4] Record-breaking temperatures and poor forest management have combined to deadly effect. The main observation of recent studies should not surprise anyone. Climate change is exacerbating the size and scale of western wildfires.[5]

But record-breaking fires are not the only freak weather conditions afflicting the nation. Without garnering as much media attention, storms have brought destruction upon Midwest Iowa. Fast inland windstorms – known as a Derecho – swept through Cedar Rapids and the surrounding towns. With winds of up to 140 miles an hour, it has created a hurricane-like effect throughout the state. Homes demolished. Trees uprooted. Whole towns going weeks without power.  

The biggest damage, however, is found in the fields. The New York Times reported that around 14 million acres of farmland – over a third of the entire state – was destroyed.[6] The magnitude of the storms extends beyond the surface level damage. Destruction to silos, grain bins and equipment means that what’s left of the crops will be tough to harvest. From trade disputes and decreased demand to the current coronavirus pandemic, Iowan farmers have already had their fair share of trouble. This latest setback has only added to their woes.

The extent that storm Derecho is linked to climate change is unclear. But there can be no doubt that freak weather patterns are causing mayhem across the nation.

Trump has spent the majority of his presidency undoing environmental policies of the previous administration. Dismantling the Clean Power Plan. Deregulating the fossil fuel industry. Pulling out of the Paris Agreement perhaps the ultimate coupe de grace. 2020 presidential opponent Joe Biden has meanwhile pledged a $5 trillion-dollar plan to save the environment. This might sound robust, even radical, amongst parts of the electorate. But without a radical change of policy, extreme weather will no longer be extreme. It will simply be the new normal.[7]


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