An Iowa State University professor and meteorologist predicts continuing global warming will result in more extreme weather conditions. Gene Takle says the increase in temperatures is something that’s just inching along. He says it’s quite gradual, and many places might not notice a change. He says some will, like the heat wave in Europe last summer that saw some 15-thousand deaths in France. He says that was unprecedented in historical record, but could become more common. Takle says we’re going to see rougher storms too — with more rain. He says we’ve already seen the pattern in the last 25 years with more intense storms, more extreme events, more heavy rainfall events. He says these are likely to continue on into the future. Takle says there’s one reason for the problems. He says it’s due to a build up of greenhouse gases in our atmosphere, primarily carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide and c-f-c’s. Takle says even if we act now, we won’t slow the warming down right away. He says if we take actions it would be to protect the climate in the latter part of the century and beyond. He says we could take action with energy conservation practices at home and in driving. He says the government can also continue to adopt policies to increase the use of renewable energy. Takle admits his warnings aren’t easy to get across. He says it’s “a tough sell” as he says people are out of work and we have problems in the education and health systems and we have the war on terrorism. He says those are today’s problems, and global warming is tomorrow’s problem, and it’s easy to put it on the shelf. Takle says any action we take is a step in the right direction.
