Raleigh, NC—This year’s unprecedented heat wave is part of a
broader trend of rising temperatures in North Carolina, according to a new report
released today by Environment North Carolina.
In the
continental United States, the first seven months of 2006
were the warmest January-July of any year on record, according to the National Climatic Data Center.
In Raleigh, the average temperature was more than 2° F above average.
“Global
warming is happening, and North Carolinians are feeling the heat,” said
Environment North Carolina Field Associate Margaret Hartzell. “Temperatures will continue to rise unless we
quickly and significantly reduce global warming pollution from power plants,
cars, and SUVs,” continued Hartzell.
To
examine how these recent temperature patterns compare with temperatures over
the last 30 years, Environment North Carolina researchers analyzed temperature
data from 255 major weather stations in all 50 states and Washington, DC for the years 2000-2005 and the
first six months of 2006. This recent
data was compared to “normal” temperatures for the three decades spanning
1971-2000. Key findings include:
•
Nationally, between 2000 and 2005, the average temperature was above normal at
95% of the locations, indicating widespread warming. In addition, nights are getting warmer; the
average minimum (nighttime low) temperature was above normal at 92% of the
locations examined.
·
During
the first six months of 2006, the average maximum temperature in Asheville and Greensboro/Winston-Salem was
almost 3° above normal.
“Two or
three degrees may not seem like much, but just like in people, a small,
relatively rapid temperature rise can have serious consequences,” continued
Hartzell. Hartzell pointed to numerous
studies showing that sea levels are already on the rise, ice and snow cover are
declining, and hurricanes are becoming more powerful. In North Carolina, unchecked global warming
threatens to cause a massive rise in sea levels inundating the Outer Banks and North Carolina’s coast.
This
year, the North Carolina General Assembly created the
North Carolina Global Warming Commission to examine ways North Carolina can address global warming. Environment North Carolina is calling for the commission to
recommend reducing global warming pollution 10% by 2020, through measures that
include renewable energy standards, reduced energy use through conservation and
efficiency, and a clean cars standard, requiring that cars produce less carbon
dioxide emissions.
“The good
news is that we already have the tools to substantially reduce global warming
pollution. We just have to put the
solutions to work,” said Hartzell.
This
summer Rep. Henry Waxman of California introduced legislation, called
the Safe Climate Act (H.R. 5642), to harness clean energy solutions and reduce U.S. global warming emissions by 15%
by 2020 and by 80% by 2050.
“To
protect future generations, Environment North Carolina strongly urges all of North Carolina’s Congressional delegation to
cosponsor the Safe Climate Act, the long-term solution to global warming,”
concluded Hartzell.
