How Climate Change is changing Washington

Fall as we know it may cease to exist due to climate change.

Climate change is changing the weather in Washington, especially during the fall and winter seasons. The temperature has risen over two degrees (F) in the past century in Washington State. This may not seem like that much, but 2 degrees is a lot for one species to change in such a short time span. 

The air inside our atmosphere is significantly tainted from the amount of people living on Earth right now. In fact, since the late 1700s, the amount of carbon dioxide in the air has increased by 40 percent. In fact, Washington is about on par with the rest of the world, which since the Industrial Revolution in 1750, has increased by 1.9 degrees Fahrenheit. 

This is a problem. The effects this could cause on society could be huge. Not only will it affect the weather but also other things such as glaciers melting, water availability, increase in drought and wildfires, effects on agriculture, and even health risks to vulnerable people. 

Another problem of climate change is that it affects marine ecosystems in Washington, which is very important to this planet, to Washington, and to a variety of cultures in Washington as the Puget Sound has always been a big part of Washington. Sea levels also are rising which negatively impacts on marshlands which will be submerged and also homes and roads that are on the ocean. 

Something needs to be done about this,  climate change is affecting the environment, the planet, and especially humans. The problems are numerous and will keep multiplying until a solution is reached. 

How this problem directly relates to the weather in the fall and winter, as well as the temperature changes, can appear in the snowfall, or lack thereof. In Washington, snowfall has done nothing but decrease, as from 419 weather stations in the country, 57% of them have reported a decline in snowfall.

Temperatures are expected to stay pretty high as of right now and though we are getting some rain, it is expected to be a pretty dry fall. I hope that winter proves me wrong but based on the statistics there will probably not be that much snow this coming winter, fueled by climate change and its change of temperature.

Though snow days may no longer mean missing school, seeing some snow every once in a while would be beneficial to everyone. It is seeming less and less likely however that we are going to see a consistent amount of snow during the winter time at all, much less enough to cancel school. 

Do your part. Do what you can to prevent climate change from destroying our planet by using public transportation, saving energy at home or even switching to an electric vehicle. If you want to stop the weather from getting even weirder, and most importantly, try to stop all the other side effects and outcomes that are caused by climate change, l would recommend doing some of these things or looking into more ways you can help our environment.