July 12, 2019
Hieu Le & Thang Do, PIVOT members
This article was originally published in Viet Tide
None among us can afford to be indifferent about the future of our children and grandchildren. We invest much time, effort and money in order for them to enjoy the best life possible. At the same time, many don’t pay enough attention to the environment that future generations will inherit from us. What legacy are we leaving for them? Money and possession can’t buy clean air, safe water, or a climate that remains within a reasonable range to support human life.
We have but one earth to live on, maintain and protect, and climate change is the existential threat for humanity.
The environment and climate are never partisan issues. Mega-storms, severe droughts, the rising sea level causing massive flooding, these events don’t differentiate whether we are left or right, Democrat or Republican, rich or poor, yellow, brown, black or white. They neither stop at national borders, nor care about territorial or trade disputes among countries. They will destroy everything within their reach.
This past September, the IPCC – Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Chang of the United Nations, issued an exhaustive 900-page long report that is a culmination of over 9,200 scientific reports, to illustrate the conditions of the oceans and ice throughout the globe. Over 800 scientists, selected from 3,000 top world experts who were nominated, co-authored the report.
According to them, climate danger is no longer a theoretical matter. Rather, there are clear signs that the earth has been warmed by human activities, from the highest mountains to the deepest sea beds. The systems that human life depends on are under serious threat.
To understand the issue, we need to set aside partisan politics, assumptions that are not backed up by scientific evidence and above all, propaganda by some politicians or businesses with a self-serving motive.
The sea level is rising faster than we previously thought
Climate Central published in Nature Communications magazine this past October their latest report, with a more accurate update on the level of anticipated sea level rise. According to this authoritative research, land areas where 150 million people are residing will be underwater at high tide.
Of particular interest is that the entire Southern Vietnam with a population of 20 million people, stretching from the Ca Mau peninsula to and including the metropolis of Saigon, is one of these affected areas. For people who live there, this is not news because they have witnessed first-hand this condition that has increasingly gotten more severe. Many large cities and highly populated areas near the coast, such as Bangkok, Shanghai, Miami, all have a similar future. Combating this phenomenon is a challenging and expensive endeavor, especially for poorer countries like Vietnam.
Temperature will rise beyond the level humans can withstand
Global average temperature has historically gone up and down, which had been considered normal. But since the 1980’s, average temperature has surged noticeably and abnormally. The years from 1988 forward have been the hottest years since temperature records have been kept, and 2016 was the hottest year ever. In 1995, a severe heat wave raised Chicago’s temperature to 106 degrees Fahrenheit and wet-bulb temperature to 85 degrees Fahrenheit, killing 700 people.
According to a research by MIT, the human body loses its ability to self-cool and collapses when wet-bulb temperature reaches 95 degrees Fahrenheit (35 degrees Celsius). Scientists predict that in the coming decades, wet-bulb temperature at many locations will reach this level on a regular basis. Temperature at other parts of the world such as the Middle East and the tropics will reach a disastrous level, turning these areas uninhabitable for humans.
Other climate disasters
Climate change leads to other natural disasters that we have and will continue to experience. Mega-storms such as Katrina will occur at greater frequency and severity, creating increasing challenges for coastal areas affected by rising sea level. High temperatures will change our climate model, turning dry areas into more humid and vice versa. Droughts and floods will be more severe and longer lasting. Countries with less resource and ability to find creative solutions will be devastated, causing “climate refugees”.
The refugee crises that have been caused by war in the 20th and early 21th centuries will be like child play in comparison to what will happen in the future. Africa, with a fast-rising population, has experienced the worst droughts that devastated their crops. This condition can only worsen and when people face famine, they have no choice but to emigrate to other countries or regions, and their most natural destination is Europe.
The climate deniers
While leading world scientists have provided convincing research, coupled with clear proof such as the continuing reduction of ice mass at both the North and South poles, some continue to refuse to believe that climate change is real. They argue that the climate has always changed, due to natural rather than man-made reasons.
Who are loudest in attacking climate warnings? Among them are Republican politicians, although not all Republicans support that stance (Christine Todd Whitman, former governor of New Jersey and former Administrator of the EPA under G. W. Bush’s administration, has criticized President Trump’s environmental policies repeatedly). They stake their claim on questionable “research” denying that human activities have caused climate change, but hide the fact that these “studies” have been financed by oil companies.
One of President Trump’s first actions upon becoming President was to withdraw the United States from the Paris Climate Agreement that President Obama had signed. Trump argued that this agreement hindered the economic growth of the US, although the facts are that Northern European countries and states like California have succeeded in advancing a clean energy industry that has produced high-wage jobs, and made these locations much more prosperous.
President Trump openly supported maintaining coal mines, although this is one of the main causes of air pollution, and the more advanced countries have all been shutting down their coal mines. He supported the practice of “fracking”, in spite of clear proof that this manner of extracting oil produces harmful environmental waste. Most recently, he directed the reduction in fuel efficiency standards in the automobile industry, although several major car companies have defied this order.
When a house is on fire, who is responsible for putting out the fire?
Even while some believe that climate change is real, they argue that we don’t need to “sacrifice” to prevent this danger. According to them, developing countries with huge population and great potential to produce environmental pollution such as China and India, must take the lead. This way of argument makes one think of the analogy of a neighborhood on fire. Instead of all jumping in to put out the fire, they point fingers at each other. Until it is too late.
When houses are on fire, everyone must roll up their sleeves and jointly put out the fire! This is the situation we find ourselves in the world today.
As American voters, what should we do?
There are many things, such as consuming less fossil fuel and reducing activities that produce pollution, as well as avoiding the use of plastic, that we should and must do. But changes that are on a personal or even community level are not enough to reverse climate change. We must push for systematic reforms, at a national and international level. This requires governments that are willing to pursue a sensible climate and environmental policy.
Fortunately, we live in a democracy and have the power to change our government at the ballot box.
In this election season of 2020, we must vote for candidates who understand and have the courage to pursue a sensible climate and environmental policy, from the Presidency to the Senate, the House, and elected offices at State and local levels. We must do this, because we must maintain a reasonably healthy earth for future generations.
The 2020 elections may be our last chance to save this planet. Those who represent us in government must pursue decisive reform before it’s too late.
Photo by Francesco Gallarotti on Unsplash