Extreme Weather to Continue At Huge Costs

What’s the Latest Development?

In a few weeks, the U.N.’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change will release a report suggesting that global warming will continue to provoke extreme weather events, costing the planet billions of dollars and possibly creating climate refugees. “Thailand is now coping with massive flooding from monsoonal rains that illustrate how climate is also interconnected with other manmade issues such as population and urban development, river management and sinking lands.” The Associated Press was given an advanced copy of the report.

What’s the Big Idea?

Climate change will exacerbate existing weather problems such as higher incidences of drought, flood and fire. The report says scientists are 99 percent certain that the world will begin experiencing more cases of heat spells and fewer of cold. Compounding the effects of climate change will be the increased number of poor people living in areas particularly vulnerable to slight environmental changes. But University of Victoria climate scientist Andrew Weaver says the report will be written blandly so as not to rattle world leaders.