Environmental risk analysis process

¶ … climate change is having a dramatic impact on the environment and on society. The paper also addresses the difficulties associated with politicians (and in particular, the U.S. Congress) vis-a-vis any meaningful action to slow the warming of the planet.

How does global warming affect daily life for society?

The National Geographic explains that over the past fifty years the average temperature in the United States has risen by 2 degrees and "…extreme weather events have become more frequent and intense" (Didier, 2013). One example of more intense storms -- that have devastating effects on society -- is the recent hurricane (Sandy), which left thousands homeless and destroyed thousands of homes along the New Jersey coastline. But there are other problems associated with global climate change, including rising food prices. Global wheat production was down by 5.5% last year due to "unstable climate" activities; and global corn production was reduced by 4%, Didier continues (p. 1).

The reduction of wheat and corn crops means higher prices for consumers, Didier explains. Moreover, fresh water is becoming "scarcer in some regions" as the snowpack in mountains declines, and rising ocean levels (due to the melting of Arctic sea ice) will negatively impact low-lying places like Miami, New York, New Orleans and other regions (Didier, p. 1). An estimated 56 million people around the world will be displaced as ocean levels continue to rise (Didier, p. 1). Societies are going to have to make arrangements for that displacement.

Environmental aspects of global climate change: A peer-reviewed article (Gosling, et al., 2011) in the journal Progress in Physical Geography explains that because of an expected 2°C rise in world temperatures, up to 20% of coastal wetlands "would be lost" because of sea levels rising. Because of a rise in CO2, ocean acidification (pH) is decreasing, which negatively impacts fisheries around the world. Ocean acidification negatively impacts fish because it impairs "fish hearing and balance, sense of smell, and [ability to] sense predators" (Gosling, 447). Developing nations rely on fish and oysters and mussels for their economies and their protein intake, Gosling continues. Forests (including the Amazon rainforest) are facing "mortality worldwide due to climatic water and heat stress" and polar bears are projected to lose 68% of their "summer habitat by the 2090s" unless greenhouse gases are reduced (Gosling, 449).

What are politicians doing about climate change in the U.S. Very little is being done in the Congress mainly due to the recalcitrance of House Republicans. The most recent bill addressing climate change -- that was passed by the conservative-dominated House in September, 2012 -- omitted the "sense of Congress" clause (Geman, 2012). That clause asserted that "There is established scientific concern over warming of the climate system…" but the Republican-led House has not accepted that as fact. What Republicans are doing is packaging a bill to "block EPA rules" that seek to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and the GOP has worked to block or delay federal policies that affect the coal industry (burning fossil fuels contributes mightily to global warming). The House Republicans call attempts to regulate coal emissions "The White House 'war' on coal" (Geman, p. 1). In other words, there is no political will in the Congress at this time to do anything about reducing the greenhouse gas emissions that cause global warming.