Natural Disasters

In a quiet moment, as you consider the impact of the major issues that fill the news cycle, do you ever wonder how things will turn out? The hotly contested subject of climate change dominates the news and is on the political agenda of countries around the world. In the spirit of contemplation, fast forward in your thoughts to an evening in 2035 AD and consider the consequences to you, personally, if proposed remedies to climate changes are implemented (cue the blurry, wavy lines and spooky harp music as the scene changes):

Extreme drought in Chile over the last 14 years has resulted in half the nation of 19 million people being in a state of “extreme water scarcity” (The Guardian, June 1, 2022). Hundreds of communities now rely on emergency tankers to bring in water from other locations. A Chilean hydrologist recently identified water shortages as a national security risk: “It’s the biggest problem facing the country economically, socially and environmentally.

Officials in Australia issued evacuation orders for 50,000 residents of Sydney this week in response to severe flooding (BBC, July 5, 2022). Parts of Australia’s largest city received eight months’ worth of rain—nearly a meter—in four days! People in 50 other areas around the city have been warned to prepare for evacuation.

According to the National Interagency Fire Center, more than a million acres of land in the U.S. have burned so far in 2022—more than double the acreage that saw fires by this time in 2021. “The agency’s accounting also shows that more fires have ignited this year than any other in the last decade and burn totals are more than 71% higher than the ten-year average” (The Guardian, May 1, 2022).