Time to talk climate

After the disastrous storms in Texas and Florida, Donald Trump’s EPA administrator Scott Pruitt cautioned this is “not the time” to talk about the unusual storms’ causes. But he was corrected by Miami’s Mayor Tomas Regalado, a Republican, who told the Miami Herald, “This is a truly, truly poster child for what is to come.”

Closer to home, the S-R editorial reminded that a 2014 National Climate Assessment had predicted “extreme weather and more wildfires” and that “future climate change is projected to increase wildfire risks and associated emissions, with harmful impacts on health.”

While Houston was being battered by Hurricane Harvey and millions were bracing for Hurricane Irma, President Trump stood by an oil refinery in North Dakota and boasted of his administration’s role in slashing environmental protections and promoting the fossil fuel industry. According to syndicated columnists Amy Goodman and Denis Moynihan, “the man who called climate change a ‘Chinese hoax’ was doing all he could to ensure future catastrophes.”

Four-term California Governor Jerry Brown said: “There are turning points where the earth goes into irreversible change. This is not about a politician, it’s about the world.”

Jim Ramsey

Sandpoint