The costs of adaptation
Second, this is what adaptation to climate change looks like. Contrary to how it is typically protrayed by climate dismissives, adaptation is not free. These people are paying $50 per month for the gym membership that is an inferior replacement for something they used to get for free: an environment cool enough to walk in.
So these people are worse off financially and not getting as good of an experience as they used to. And theyâre the lucky ones â they have the opportunity and resources to do this.
Thereâs also the non-monetary costs of adaptation. When itâs too hot to go outside during the day, you are a prisoner of air conditioning instead of going outside and getting fresh air and exercise. Weâve lost something valuable but difficult to quantify.
Multiply by 1,000,000
This is admittedly a small example; to get the full cost, you have to multiply this by the millions of ways that climate change is costing people. Theyâre not just spending money on the gym, theyâre also running their air conditioners more, watering the lawn more, spending more on insurance, and generally spending money on things they used to get for free from a livable climate. Economists have looked at this and the total of the impacts is significant.
One tiny impact
Let me give you an example of a tiny impact that I just heard about. My wife told me about a new group of members at her gym: active 70-ish-year-olds who used to go on walks around their neighborhood. Due to the unbearable heat in Texas, though, they joined a gym and now walk indoors on treadmills. This story embodies several aspects of climate impacts that everyone should understand.
First, this is an example of non-linear climate impacts. Although temperatures have been rising gradually over the last century, it was only recently that they crossed a critical threshold that made outdoor walks literally unbearable for these people. (...)
Much of the concern about climate change is around the idea of âthe big impact,â a single, colossal disaster that dramatically impacts everyone on the planet, much like the scenario depicted in the movie The Day After Tomorrow.
While such an event could happen, itâs not the most likely way we will be impacted by our changing climate. A more plausible scenario involves âdeath by a thousand cuts,â with numerous smaller impacts occurring simultaneously or in close succession. Each impact on its own might be manageable, but collectively they could sum up to a significant problem.
One tiny impact
Let me give you an example of a tiny impact that I just heard about. My wife told me about a new group of members at her gym: active 70-ish-year-olds who used to go on walks around their neighborhood. Due to the unbearable heat in Texas, though, they joined a gym and now walk indoors on treadmills. This story embodies several aspects of climate impacts that everyone should understand.
First, this is an example of non-linear climate impacts. Although temperatures have been rising gradually over the last century, it was only recently that they crossed a critical threshold that made outdoor walks literally unbearable for these people. (...)
Long Island beaches were in the high 70s this week...has to be at/near record for this or anytime of year.
Almost 100 in Florida water today. Unbelievable.
The weather man said starting next year
we'll be missing for the cooler weather (like today).
The hot, steamy shit is really going to hit the fan.
The biggest concern for coral isnât just the current sea surface temperatures in the Florida Keys, even though they are the hottest on record. The daily average surface temperature off the Keys on Monday was just over 90 degrees Fahrenheit, or 32.4 Celsius, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
The real worry, scientists say, is that itâs only July. Corals typically experience the most heat stress in August and September.
âWeâre entering uncharted territories,â Derek Manzello, an ecologist and the coordinator of NOAAâs Coral Reef Watch program, said.
Coral reefs are natural wonders that support myriad species and blunt damage from storms. In the United States, reefs generate economic benefits to the tune of $3.4 billion annually for fisheries, tourism and coastal protection, according to NOAA.
But oceans have absorbed some 90 percent of the additional heat caused by humans as we burn fossil fuels and destroy forests. When sea temperatures rise too high, corals bleach, expelling the algae they need for sustenance. If waters donât cool quickly enough, or if bleaching events happen in close succession, the corals die. For decades, scientists have been warning that climate change is an existential threat to coral reefs. Already, the world has lost a huge proportion of its coral reefs, perhaps half since 1950.
Usually, in science, facts are data from which tentative conclusions can be drawn (based on probabilities). Cf. scientific modelling.
Clear. - What I don't like as much are the media delivering modeled probabilities as hard facts to us all. - Much less through social media claims, not backed by any evidence. - Just as when I look at the (modeled) weather-forecast for the next couple days, it usually goes wrong. Granted, I live by the sea and the weather changes quickly there...
Does it mean you don't believe in a supreme intelligence (creator), but you do believe in science "soft" facts, such as we've just lived through the hottest days in 100,000+ years? - As science hard facts are beyond any argument, to which I wholeheartedly agree?
Usually, in science, facts are data from which tentative conclusions can be drawn (based on probabilities). Cf. scientific modelling.
Does it mean you don't believe in a supreme intelligence (creator), but you do believe in science "soft" facts, such as we've just lived through the hottest days in 100,000+ years? - As science hard facts are beyond any argument, to which I wholeheartedly agree?
Some scientists believe July 4 may have been one of the hottest days on Earth in about 125,000 years, due to a dangerous combination of climate change causing global temperatures to soar, the return of the El Niño pattern and the start of summer in the Northern Hemisphere. ...
Tuesdayâs global average temperature was calculated by a model that uses data from weather stations, ships, ocean buoys and satellites, Paulo Ceppi, a climate scientist at Londonâs Grantham Institute, explained in an email Wednesday. This modeling system has been used to estimate daily average temperatures starting in 1979.
Some scientists believe July 4 may have been one of the hottest days on Earth in about 125,000 years, due to a dangerous combination of climate change causing global temperatures to soar, the return of the El Niño pattern and the start of summer in the Northern Hemisphere. ...
Tuesdayâs global average temperature was calculated by a model that uses data from weather stations, ships, ocean buoys and satellites, Paulo Ceppi, a climate scientist at Londonâs Grantham Institute, explained in an email Wednesday. This modeling system has been used to estimate daily average temperatures starting in 1979.
I always thought you were a non-believer?
Again, let me state here, I do believe that much of our climate is man-made.
You're not seriously asking me to prove your claims here by researching the data? - I know. You once said on this forum that Americans are lazy. As I'm not American I can go and back up your claims, which I was challenging in the first place? - That seems awkward.
