Climate change is something that the world has had to deal with for decades now. Although most people just ignore the fact, climate change has become a big issue. Scientists predict that climate change will have a great impact on the future of the Earth. An example of this is Hurricane Matthew, which occurred in the fall of 2016. Hurricane Matthew caused devastating damage in the Caribbean, and along the coast of Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina, and has left many homeless. According to scientists, Hurricane Matthew might have been a glimpse of the future. At the current rate at which global warming is progressing, tropical storms and hurricanes in the future might be worse than Matthew.
Hurricane Matthew ravaged the Atlantic for more than two weeks, and damaged millions of structures in the Caribbean and along the coasts of Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina. It killed more than 260 in the Caribbean, and caused floods in the affected places. As people realized how bad the impact of the hurricane was, they were forced to face a scary truth. Warming oceans and climates, or global warming is a direct cause of worsening storms. If nothing is done to try to stop global warming and climate change, future storms may be just as bad or worse than Hurricane Matthew. According to UN data, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) says that by 2100, tropical storms and hurricanes will be 2-11% worse than today’s storms. This means that there will be more storm surges, more rain near the eye of a tropical hurricane, more flooding, and more damage.
To make matters worse, global warming causes ice sheets to melt, which causes a rise in sea levels. Rising sea levels means higher storm surges, which will increase the cost of the damage. “We expect to see more high-intensity events, Category 4 and 5 events, that are around 13% of total hurricanes but do a disproportionate amount of damage,” says Kerry Emanuel, an atmospheric science professor at MIT. He says that even though there is a strong link between
climate change and tropical storms, it isn’t known for sure that hurricanes are caused by climate change. All that is known is that when coal, natural gas, and oil are burned, the atmosphere is heated up, and as a result of this, hurricanes are expected to grow stronger in the future.
To combat climate change, a worldwide effort needs to be made. Before anything is done, people must know what will happen if nothing is done against climate change. If people are educated on climate change, the issue will not be ignored. One way to help is to start small. People can help by being energy efficient in their homes. For example, regular light bulbs should be replaced with LED or fluorescent light bulbs, because LED and fluorescent bulbs are more energy efficient than regular bulbs. Clothes should be hand-dried as much as possible to avoid losing efficiency when using a dryer. Houses should use renewable power, and people should consider riding a bike, or carpooling when possible to reduce carbon emissions. Currently, scientists are trying to find alternatives to replace fossil fuels. If an alternative can be found, and if people try to make a difference, the fight against climate change may be easier.
Climate change is a big issue on Earth. Scientists have related it to hurricanes and tropical storms growing stronger, but people do not realize this, and do not try to take action against climate change. Future storms may start to be worse than Hurricane Matthew, and the world will see rising sea levels, higher storm surges and more flooding and damage during tropical storms. In order to stop this from happening people need to be educated on this, and people need to try to be more energy efficient. The world needs to fight against climate change, or its future storms will become more damage-inflicting.
Works Cited
Sutter, John D. “Hurricane Matthew Looks like Climate Change.” CNN. Cable News Network,
07 Oct. 2016. Web. 11 Oct. 2016. <http://www.cnn.com/2016/10/07/opinions/sutter-hurr icane-matthew-climate-change/index.html>.
Dolce, Chris. “Where Hurricane Matthew Came From and How Long We’ve Been Tracking the
Monster Storm.” The Weather Channel. The Weather Channel, 07 Oct. 2016. Web. 12
Oct. 2016. <https://weather.com/storms/hurricane/news/hurricane-matthew-track-history >.
“Top 10 Ways You Can Stop Climate Change.” David Suzuki Foundation. David Suzuki
Foundation, 2014. Web. 13 Oct. 2016. <http://www.davidsuzuki.org/what-you-can-do/top -10-ways-you-can-stop-climate-change/>.