Earth In Crisis: Hot And Bothered
2023 Shattered All Kinds Of Records. We Must Push Back Against Those Who Are Still In Climate Change Denial
By Tracey MacDermott
For the GPHN
Last year Mother Earth reminded us just how out of control our climate has become.
Records were shattered. It was the hottest year recorded. Ocean surface temperatures soared. Wildfires in Canada were horrific. The European Union experienced its largest wildfire ever. Maui’s deadly wildfire killed scores of people and destroyed historic Lahaina. Flooding in China and Pakistan was massive and widespread.
The list goes on. Last month the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) reported that levels of carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide have climbed to uncharted levels. It has been at least 4.3 million years since Earth has experienced levels this high.
The devastating climate disasters are not a coincidence when atmospheric CO2 is now more than 50 percent higher than pre-industrial levels. This is the twelfth straight year that CO2 has increased by more than two parts-per-million.
Our planet is careening toward a disaster of our own making. What will it take for us to change?
First, we must push back against those who are in denial. Nearly 15 percent of Americans still do not accept that climate change is real. Although this number may seem small, climate denial obstructs climate action. Like the COVID 19 pandemic, this can lead to a purposeful action to subvert policy.
In a report titled “Understanding and Overcoming Climate Obstruction” in the journal Nature Climate Change, the authors note that a combination of obstruction, vested interests and the encouragement to live life as always has led to the same outcome — the “lack of taking urgently needed steps.”
When we look at the vested interests in denial and delaying action on climate change, we can make a correlation right back to the almighty dollar. The wealth of a few is impacting the entire planet and global population. Fossil fuel companies have taken to “greenwashing” — spreading misinformation, which prevents action to address the crisis.
Here’s but one example: This year in Colorado state Sens. Sonya Jaquez Lewis and Kevin Priola introduced legislation that would ban new gas wells starting in 2030 as well as any permitting to redrill existing wells. Dan Haley, head of the Colorado Oil and Gas Association, was quick with a tired old response. That plan, he claimed, would “crush the economy.”
If we continue to succumb to these fear-based tactics, what will really sink our economy and way of life will be the expanding climate crisis.
Just as we push back on climate deniers, we simply cannot give up and resign ourselves to the thought that the crisis can’t be fixed. The climate needs our sustained attention so we can bring Earth back into balance.
We cannot allow our legislators to take their eyes off the globe. It is critical that we continue to push them to sponsor and support stringent climate legislation — and no longer accept fear-based reactions from industries like oil and gas as an excuse. Nor should we accept corporations and companies doing the bare minimum to meet new state requirements. Pay attention to our major employers in Colorado. Are they doing more than is required? Let them know you expect them to set higher standards.
We can all do something. In addition to pushing for more legislation and pushing back on climate denial, act in your everyday activities. Reducing your car travel, lowering your energy use and planting a garden are all acts of hope.
We need more than a little of that right now.
Tracey MacDermott is an at-large member of the board of Greater Park Hill Community, Inc. She was trained as a Climate Reality Leader in 2017, and is currently the Statewide Co-Chair of the Climate Reality Project for the 100% Committed Campaign. Email her at traceymacdermott@gmail.com.