(NaturalNews) The Obama administration's report on the anticipated effects of global warming has been released, predicting widespread and devastating consequences if no action is taken to halt the emission of greenhouse gases.
If greenhouse gas emissions continue to increase at their current rates, the report predicts serious health consequences, from a general decrease in well being due to worsened air quality to an increase in deaths from heat waves and a higher prevalence of water- and insect-borne disease. Increases in heat will lengthen growing seasons, but stronger and more frequent storms may destroy many
crops. The changes in climate will make agricultural pests more abundant, likely leading to an increase in herbicide, fungicide and insecticide use. Among the crops especially threatened are berries the Northeast and dairy herds across the East.
The effects on non-agricultural sectors of the economy and daily life will also be severe. Rising sea levels and more powerful
hurricanes are likely to devastate the oil infrastructure in the Gulf Coast, at the same time that falling
rainfall causes hydroelectric reservoirs to dry up. The rising heat will place a greater burden on an increasingly strained electric system. Six of the 10 most important freight gateways in the country are at risk from rising sea levels, which along with storms may also block the use of other ports, roads, airports and railways.
Ecologically, the report predicts collapse of a number of wildlife populations, including salmon, polar bears and trout. Poison ivy, however, is likely to become not only more common but also more toxic.
The report also details specific predictions for different regions of the country. In the Midwest, for example, heat waves in cities are likely to be longer and more severe, while the
water levels in the Great Lakes are expected to plunge up to two feet by 2100. The Southeast can expect hotter temperatures -- up to 10.5 degrees Fahrenheit hotter during the Florida summer -- and lessened rainfall even with an increase in hurricanes. Rising sea levels are likely to devastate wetlands and coastal areas.
Sources for this story include:
www.guardian.co.uk.
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