#14. Hot Enough for You?
In which the E@L ponders how to be part of the solution to Climate Change
To Hell in a Hand-Basket
The world is on fire. Wildfires are consuming thousands of acres of Canadian forest. Smoke is blanketing the northern tier and the east coast of the US. Parts of the ocean are now at hot tub temperatures, causing massive coral bleaching and killing off their reefs. July has been the hottest month on record and possibly in the last 100,000 years. Freshwater from melting glaciers is contributing to flooding and sea level rise, and causing some islands to submerge. A crucial system of ocean circulation, the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC), part of the ocean’s global conveyor belt, is in danger of collapsing due to the influx of too much fresh water from melting glaciers. Europe, the Middle East, and Asia are experiencing heatwaves beyond historic limits.
And the cause of all this is climate change associated with humans burning fossil fuels. Some of the changes are occurring much faster than predicted by climate models, and suggest that we are near a tipping point, beyond which change will be sudden, extreme, and irreversible.
None of this should be news to anyone who is not hiding in a cave. I have spent the last three days sheltering in my air-conditioned house to avoid outside temperatures exceeding 95 F. And I live on the East Coast, not in the southwest, where others are experiencing triple digit temperatures. Clearly we are in the beginning stages, if not the midst, of a human-induced climate disaster. How should we respond?
Anxiety of the Ecological Mind
As an ecologist I am of two minds about this. One is ambivalence. Whatever changes are happening are within the realm of my endurance, and probably will remain tolerable for the rest of my lifetime. As a recent retiree, I just want to enjoy my free time, tend my garden, enjoy biking, kayaking, and sailing for as long as I am able to do so.
The other is panic. I know we need to do something now. But I also know that the United States is the largest contributor of greenhouse gases in the world, and we are doing very little about it. That scares me. I worry about how climate change will impact my children and grandchildren. Will they experience major climate disasters? Floods, fires, or hurricanes? Food shortages? Wars over access to resources? I used to worry about work, but now, this is the kind of stuff that keeps me awake at night.
How should we feel about these events, and what can we do about it? On the one hand, I am trying to do my share. I installed solar panels on my roof that generate 50% more power than I need, and I sell the excess. I recently replaced my outmoded HVAC system with a highly efficient heat pump system. And despite the fact that I’m using my air conditioner more than ever these days, I can at least console myself with the fact that I’m generating the power to run it without increasing my carbon footprint. I haven’t bought a hybrid or electric car yet, but I’m seriously considering it.
On the other hand, do any of these actions really make any difference? Maybe if everybody in the world did these things, it would help reduce our dependence on fossil fuels. But in reality, these little steps are only achievable for a small part of the world’s population that are rich enough to afford them. So, while it may help me to feel good about myself (I’m not the problem!), it may not contribute much to the overall solution.
The Longest Journey Consists of Small Steps
Which leaves us in a conundrum. Do we carry on with our lives as if we are contributing to the problem, or to the solution? Wringing our hands over the possibilities (as I am literally doing with this column) probably doesn’t help. So, yes, the little steps do help. But big problems require big solutions. Climate change is bigger than any of us. Our individual and incremental choices can help but won’t add up to much.
After those initial steps are taken, though, what else can we do? The next biggest step we can take is to limit our travel, especially on airplanes. This is difficult for most of us, and especially for my family, because our daughter and her family live in Europe, so visiting requires transcontinental flights, contributing ever more greenhouse gas emissions.
Beyond those personal changes, we all have to commit to societal change. Recent trips to Switzerland have reinforced my appreciation for public transit. In most Swiss cities, people live in higher density housing, and more space on roadways is available for buses, trams, and bikes than for cars. And everybody uses public transport, unlike the US, where housing is spread out and most people travel in private cars.
And don’t get me started on alternative energy. Developing more wind and solar power are the keys to dampening climate change. It galls me that we have to spend so much time fighting the dark forces of resistance to these technologies, most of which is funded by fossil fuel companies.
Ballots not Bollix
Ultimately, the way to assuage my guilty feelings about not contributing enough to the solution is to kick it down the road to someone else. The most effective way to achieve social change is through the ballot box. In the long run, the only way to prevent further climate change is to elect legislators who are serious about finding and implementing solutions.
It doesn't help that our local Congressman is one of the most conservative, MAGA-hugging, tea-partying, anti-renewable energy, climate-change denying Republican obstructionists in Congress. And the only one in the State of Maryland, where all other congressional seats are held by Democrats.
I normally try to keep politics out of my E@L columns, but in the face of Climate Change disasters, it’s just not possible. So, every two years I vote against him. I haven’t won yet, but it’s just a matter of time. Eventually, we’ll elect someone with enough intelligence to know what needs to be done to solve climate change, and enough gumption to do it. And electing them to office will be the biggest contribution I can make for the future of the planet. That will be my legacy to my children’s future. I just hope I live long enough to see it happen.
You are absolutely right that we need to take our fight for our planet to the ballot box. That’s one major reason I’ve been GOTV (getting out the vote) by canvassing and phonebanking for years now. And it helps me to sleep better too. It can be non-partisan, check out the Environmental Voter Project: www.environmental voter.org
The best hope for getting away from fossil fuels is nuclear. Its problems can be solved, given the will and the money, and its energy density is orders of magnitude greater than wind and solar. Other countries have more or less solved nuclear's problems. As for renewable energy (wind, solar), we don't see much discussion about when the "renewable" machines/devices have to be renewed. They have a lifespan, after all, and it will take a lot of energy and material to replace them. Politics killed nuclear in the US, and politics could possibly resurrect it. It could be another target for your vote.