While James Ault’s April 27 letter (“Climate change is overblown”) makes some valid points about compromised climate scientists and select data, he’s letting the few tarnish and dismiss the many. Serious researchers use “actual evidence” in constructing models, and evidence shows that use of fossil fuels have accelerated a cyclical warming trend. Unlike Ault’s “essentially meaningless” hundredths-of-a-degree temperature rise, materials I’ve read suggest a range between 2 and 3.5 degrees Celsius.
A comprehensive history of climate studies is available online, but, to anyone interested in practical assessment, I recommend three publications. Sea Power magazine’s July/August 2015 issue featured a Special Report by the U.S. Coast Guard concerning the difficult conditions facing naval facilities at Norfolk, Va. In its May/June 2014 issue, Sea Power featured an interview with Rear Admiral Jonathan W. White concerning the impact that global warming-induced climate extremes will have on investment strategies. Thirdly, on July 14, 2016, the website for the industry magazine Insurance Journal featured this column: “Climate change exposes infrastructure to natural hazards, Rand Corp. says.”
Apparently, the administrators of both military naval facilities and the property insurance business, as well as a seasoned investment advisor, do not find the reality of accelerating climate change to be “essentially meaningless” to their interests.
