An Optimist’s View of Climate Change

 

So, here is the big picture. The developed nations will not do enough, fast enough. Carbon emissions will continue to increase. Global temperatures will continue to increase. The environmental impacts will become more severe, but will vary widely by location.

 

As sea temperatures warm, coral will die and their habitat will disappear. Many fish species will be affected. Global fisheries will decline and shift location. Warm weather fish diseases will increase, affecting fish farms. Food from the ocean will be reduced.

 

On land, agriculture will shift, as temperature, droughts and water supplies change. Pests may become more wide-spread, affecting food supplies. We may see global food shortages.

 

Sea level rise will flood low lying islands and coasts. The greatest impacts will be in Asia, where millions will have to retreat from the coasts and islands. We will see the greatest human migration ever, with little agreement on how to manage it. We may see coastal migration conflicts.

 

Rain patterns will shift, increasing in some areas, decreasing in others. Africa, for example, may see more drought. With the decline of snow packs and glaciers, fresh water will become scarce. More migrations. We may see extensive water shortages.

 

Tropical diseases will move north. Resistant super-bugs also will expand their reach. We may see epidemics not easily controlled.

 

The developed nations will not want to accept the climate migrants. Less developed nations will be under pressure, too . There will be conflict.

 

Overall, hundreds of millions of people may die.

 

But wait, you say. Wasn’t this to be an optimist’s view? It is. It is the likely scenario. The down side of climate change is that it could happen faster and be more severe than we project. It could be worse...

 

Think about it.

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1 October 2019