Wildfires have been spreading throughout Southern California for the past five days and destroyed at least 500 structures. Firefighters have been battling six large wind stoked fires and several smaller ones since Monday. They stretch from San Diego to Santa Barbara County putting billions of dollars of property at risk. The National Weather Service predicts the extreme conditions, with peak wind gusts up to 50 miles per hour, will continue until Sunday. The Thomas Fire is moving fast; its rate can burn through Central Park in 14 minutes. It is the most destructive fire in December in California’s history. The brush burning index as of Thursday is 296; anything over 165 is considered extreme.

The rainfall in late 2016 and early 2017 did little to quench the California land. People lived in homes that were in the pathway of the Santa Ana winds which is why many had to evacuate. New grass that resulted from the rain caused more damage because it can allow the fire to travel much quicker to the more dense areas of the brush. 95 percent of all wildland fires are caused by humans while 5 percent are nature related. Human beings are the number one cause of wildfires in the United States. They attribute to burning debris, unattended campfires, equipment failures, engine sparks, cigarettes, fireworks and arson. Causes involving nature are usually lightning or volcanic eruptions. The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE) is the state of California’s agency responsible for fire protection of the 31 million acres of California land as well as the administration of the state’s private and public forests. Once a fire starts it can slowly die out or spread rapidly. There are several factors that affect the fire like fuel, weather and terrain. One of the reasons why Southern California gets wildfires is because of the dieback of vegetation over the last ten years. Dry, hot Santa Ana winds blow across the area removing moisture from plants and carrying the flames to nearby areas. Wildfires take away homes, wildlife and vegetation. When a wildfire hits the soil, it becomes too hot and its nutrients disappear. Too much water, from the firefighters trying to put them out, can cause erosion. Wildfires come with large amounts of smoke which causes air pollution and other health problems. Scientists cannot link wildfires to global warming. To reduce wildfires or lessen their damage, we can burn and thin the trees to remove the buildup of the vegetation. Another method is urban planning. One scientist says that since we can’t prevent wildfires we should adapt our lifestyle to them.

“High Winds to Hamper California Firefighters Into Weekend.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 8 Dec. 2017, www.nytimes.com/reuters/2017/12/08/us/08reuters-usa-wildfires.html.

Abram, Susan. “Wildfires Raging in Southern California Cap Most Destructive Season in State History. Here’s Why It’s so Bad.” Daily News, Daily News, 6 Dec. 2017, www.dailynews.com/2017/12/05/apocalyptic-conditions-lead-to-wildfires-destruction-across-southern-california/.

Bryner, Jeanna. “FAQ: The Science and History of Wildfires.” LiveScience, Purch, 2 Sept. 2009, www.livescience.com/7872-faq-science-history-wildfires.html.

“Causes, Effects and Solutions to Wildfires.” Conserve Energy Future, 24 Dec. 2016, www.conserve-energy-future.com/causes-effects-and-solutions-of-wildfires.php.

Criss, Doug. “A Look at the California Wildfires’ Jaw-Dropping Numbers.” CNN, Cable News Network, 6 Dec. 2017, www.cnn.com/2017/12/06/us/california-wildfire-numbers-trnd/index.html.

Hall, Shannon. “Storm Waves with the Power to Heave Massive Boulders Over Cliffs.” The New York Times. 29 November 2017. Web. https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/29/science/boulders-storms-waves-tsunamis.html?rref=collection%2Fsectioncollection%2Fclimate&action=click&contentCollection=climate&region=stream&module=stream_unit&version=latest&contentPlacement=18&pgtype=sectionfront

Over the past couple of years, natural disasters have become more common and the effects have been devastating. Most of these disasters have been linked to climate change. One recurring event is a coastal storm, which is due to rising sea levels. Justin Gillis said, “For decades, as the global warming created by human emissions caused land ice to melt and ocean water to expand, scientists warned that the accelerating rise of the sea would eventually imperil the United States’ coastline.” Most people tend to underestimate coastal storms, believing that they are not powerful enough to cause severe harm; however, geologists have proven that the waves of a coastal storm have enough power to move large boulders from beneath the ocean’s surface.

Over the years, geologists have been trying to solve the mystery of how so many large boulders ended up in western Ireland. They believed it was either caused by coastal storms or tsunamis; however, they were not sure if a coastal storm was strong enough to carry large boulders. Geologists collected historical and oceanographic data to determine whether the waves of a coastal storm are powerful enough to carry these immense boulders, which can weigh four times more than a bus. They considered historical data, including the damage from a coastal storm in 1861. This coastal storm had such strong waves that the waves ended up crashing over the lighthouse. Dr. Dewey said, “If you’re throwing a wall of water, say 30 meters or 40 meters high over a large area, volume of water is enormous and the crushing force is tremendous.” A cubic meter of water weighs over 2000 pounds, which produces immense force, indicating capability for causing severe damage.

Although they concluded that coastal storms are the reason for the field of boulders in Ireland, the field of boulders in New Zealand are not caused by coastal storms. The boulders in New Zealand are much heavier and some weigh over 150 tons. Considering the massive weight of the boulders along with the materials between the boulders, geologists are able to determine that these boulders were moved by tsunamis rather than coastal storms. However, this proves that although coastal storms are not seen as detrimental, they have the potential and power to cause extreme destruction. Andrea Dutton, a climate scientist at the University of Florida, said, “It’s a slow, gradual attack, but it threatens the safety and security of the United States.” The only way to somehow reduce the number of coastal storms is to better address the issue of climate change and the issue of the sea level rise. However, individuals all over the world need to be aware of the intensity of all types of natural disasters that arise due to climate change, including coastal storms.

Gillis, Justin. “Flooding of Coast, Caused by Global Warming, Has Already Begun.” The New York Times.  3September 2016. Web. https://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/04/science/flooding-of-coast-caused-by-global-warming-has-already-begun.html

Hall, Shannon. “Storm Waves with the Power to Heave Massive Boulders Over Cliffs.” The New York Times. 29 November 2017. Web. https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/29/science/boulders-storms-waves-tsunamis.html?rref=collection%2Fsectioncollection%2Fclimate&action=click&contentCollection=climate&region=stream&module=stream_unit&version=latest&contentPlacement=18&pgtype=sectionfront

While global warming and its effect on climate change is steadily making its mark on the planet, another concern rises—wildfires, specifically in Southern California and the Greater Los Angeles area. As climate change becomes more drastic, periods of dryness and wetness become more varied and extreme (temperature and precipitation-wise) as they alternate. While very wet seasons are beneficial for crop growth, the consequential dry seasons are even more dangerous in leadings to fires that burn vegetation. As the strong winds, known as Diablo winds in the north and Santa Anas in the south, become drier, its humidity decreases as it descends into California. This lids to an extreme increase in the risk of wildfires starting and rapidly spreading. The influx in carbon dioxide emotions combines with greenhouse gases leads to warmer air, which causes soil and vegetation to become drier and easier to catch on fire. While California is historically used to wildfires in the summer seasons due to dry winds, the expectation of autumn rain in the fall usually snuffs out these fires. However, this period of precipitation has not arrived yet—causing California’s wildfire season to be dangerously extended. Climate change may cause, in the future, less rainfall in the fall, and more in December and January. This is also a dangerous result of global warming, as precipitation is needed to account for the water loss due to evaporation in warming weather. However, some meteorologists believe that the delay of autumn rainfall is due to the recent cooling of pacific ocean waters (known as La Niña), which may have contributed to a ridge of air existing over the Pacific Northwest.

As today’s Skirball Fire and many other wildfires extending over the coming winter depict the devastating impacts of climate change, the effects of global warming are starting to show on the planet. In California, the temperature has generally increased by 1.5 degrees Fahrenheit since 1895, and will only go up. Global warming has contributed to the drought beginning in 2012, and with wildfires increasing, it’ll have an immense impact on vegetation as well as residents of California. Another reason as to why these wildfires are becoming more severe is due to its impact on California’s growing urban environment. As the state becomes more dense in population, human activities create a heat-island effect—the increase in heat, which reduces summer cloud cover. Cloud cover is very important for vegetation and the need to retain moisture. The increased heat-island effect may be another contributing factor to the extreme wildfires ripping through Southern California. The effect of human activities is increasingly becoming evident, and without drastic measures to cut down on the average human lifestyle, the natural disasters across the planet will only get worse.

Fountain, Henry. “In a Warming California, a Future of More Fire.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 7 Dec. 2017, www.nytimes.com/2017/12/07/climate/california-fires-warming.html?rref=collection%2Fsectioncollection%2Fscience&_r=0.

Each year, Greenland loses 270 billions tons of ice as the planet warms, however new research shows that some of the water may be trapped in the ice sheet. In the summer of 2015, scientist directly measuring a river of meltwater runoff on the top of the ice. What they concluded was that not as much meltwater flows immediately through the ice sheet and drains to the ocean as previously estimated. This has serious implications for sea level rise considering the enormous size of Greenland. The scientist say that the reason for this is being some of the meltwater is retained in porous ice instead of flowing to the bottom of the ice sheet and out of the sea. Greenland is currently losing an average of about 260 billions tons of ice per year which would contribute about two inches to sea level rise by the end of the century. The flow data, collected over 72 hours, showed that current models are overestimating the amount of runoff by 2- percent to nearly 60 percent. The apparent problem with the current models is that they didn’t consider the possibility of water retention in the ice. Sunlight hits the ice sheet which melts the surface but since some of the light reaches deeper into the ice, it causes melting underneath the surface of the ice sheet. The ice around this internal melting developed a porous texture and can, according to findings, hold on to some of the meltwater. This had led to scientists to change their current models to more accurately measure the amount of meltwater that’s being dumped into the ocean.

Now that scientists know to create new models that account for meltwater trapped in the ice caps due to water retention in deeper layers of the ice, they will be able to collect more accurate data in order to measure sea level rise due to the melting ice water in Greenland and other areas as well. Sea levels continue to rise with projections showing anywhere between 1 to 5 feet of rise by the end of the century. Depending on how accurately scientist are able to measure the rising sea levels determines how exactly prepared we can be to adjust to the changing earth. Sea level also has an impact of climate and natural disasters as rising sea levels could make tsunamis and coastal hurricanes more dangerous and damaging making it all the more important that scientist can accurately measure sea level rise.

Citation:

Fountain, Henry, and Derek Watkins. “As Greenland Melts, Where’s the Water Going?” The New York Times, The New York Times, 5 Dec. 2017, www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/12/05/climate/greenland-ice-melting.html.

Humans have come a long way in discovering more about our Earth with each passing year. In the last few decades, we have been able to more clearly visualize how our Earth’s core is like. Recently, studies from Yale University and Rutgers University has uncovered a peculiar finding about what lies below our feet. It was discovered that in a region that is not known for earthquakes, volcanoes or vast mountains, there may be evidence suggesting that the region is slowly transforming. It was found that there are warm rocks in the less dense regions and slower seismic waves passing through it. “They also observed wave patterns that suggest deformations in the rock itself” (Blakemore). Under normal conditions, tectonic plate movement should leave skid marks, but since this region is undergoing change, those skid marks were erased because of the upward moving rocks. Our Earth is becoming more and more difficult to predict because of many factors. We are entering new territories because data collected in the past show patterns that we are no longer following.

Despite these changing conditions under New England, citizens should not fret. These changes are fairly recent and will occur over an extended period of time. Study co-author Vadim Levin says “Maybe it didn’t have time yet, or maybe it is too small and will never make it. Come back in 50 million years, and we’ll see what happens”. Geological changes occur over millions of years. In terms of geological time, humans have not lived that long on Earth. It will be a long time before we can see significant geological changes. For the longest time, New England has been known to be an area of little geological change, but after this finding, we know that New England’s “subsurface is anything but stagnant”. (Blakemore). At least this finding opens up our perspective of our own planet. It is still and always be undergoing change.

Sources:
https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2017/12/magma-bubble-rising-under-new-england-volcanoes-science/              (Erin Blakemore)

On March 11th, 2011, Japan faced catastrophe as a powerful earthquake and 50-foot tsunami hit the country (Fackler). The earthquake was a record 8.9, the most powerful earthquake to hit Japan and the sixth largest earthquake since 1900. Waves, by some account, reached 23 feet, and reached neighboring countries as well though at a decreased height. The quake occurred due to tectonic plate interactions between the plate on which Japan sits (it is currently undetermined which plate that is) and the Pacific plate which slides underneath. The fast movement of the Pacific plate leads to rapid buildups of large amounts of enemy. As It moves, it stick to the plate above it, pulling it down until the plate snaps back upwards. The seafloor thus springs up several meters, resulting in relatively frequent earthquakes in that area. Due to this, Japan has invested heavily in protecting its coast and in building buildings that absorb the shock of the ground and sidewalk’s movement (Sample). Therefore, the most horrific consequence of the 2011 earthquake and tsunami is probably that which occurred at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant.
The March 11th natural disasters caused necessary cooling systems in the nuclear plant to stop working, leading the reactors to overheat so that three out of six melted down. Uranium fuel rods liquefied and burned through the reactor’s steel walls and the plant’s concrete floors, and it was unknown exactly where the molten fuel had reached. As the plant’s operator, Tepco has worked tirelessly in the cleanup process, having already decontaminated rural towns around the plant. However, without actually working on the plant itself, it will be difficult to persuade the public that the 2011 accident is in the past. In July, a small robot was finally able to successfully navigate through one of the destroyed reactors and take images through the hole that the molten uranium burned through, producing pictures of uranium fuel resting underneath. With some idea of where the fuel now resides, Tepco hopes to begin the internal cleanup process. Thus, the government has invested into a $100 million research center to develop robots to enter the reactor and cleanup the fuel, a new and challenging test for the country’s robotic engineers. It will another few decades to complete the cleanup of the plant in the aftermath of the 2011 earthquake and tsunami, which is the “worst atomic disaster since Chernobyl (Fackler).

Fackler, Martin. “Six Years After Fukushima, Robots Finally Find Reactors’ Melted Uranium Fuel.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 19 Nov. 2017, www.nytimes.com/2017/11/19/science/japan-fukushima-nuclear-meltdown-fuel.html.

Sample, Ian. “Japan Earthquake and Tsunami: What Happened and Why.” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 11 Mar. 2011, www.theguardian.com/world/2011/mar/11/japan-earthquake-tsunami-questions-answers.

The Environmental Protection Agency held a single hearing on the policy reversal regarding coal and climate change. The hearing was held in Charleston, Virginia, a state heavily dependent on coal mining. Concerns were heard from both sides. While many want to impose regulations on coal consumption, others are concerned about the jobs and revenue that would be cut down too. The Clean Power Plan was established by President Obama to reduce CO2 emission from power plants by decreasing usage of fossil fuels such as coal. However, the plan never took effect due to lawsuits from conservative states and coal companies. Coal companies such as Murray Energy Corp said that the plan was “an illegal power grab that has cost miners their jobs.” Along with these coal companies, President Trump and EPA head appointee Scott Pruitt blamed the regulations on coal and petroleum companies for the loss of jobs and negative economic impacts. However, energy analysts say the loss of revenue is due to the competition of coal with more natural gases.

On the other hand, despite Virginia being the heart of coal mining, most meeting attendees were in favor of fossil fuel regulations. They want to promote a better, cleaner world for the future of their children. Which comes to show that the main thing standing in the way of passing plans to reach these goals of a cleaner environment is money and economical claims.

Biesecker | AP, John Raby and Michael. “EPA Hears Worries about Climate in Heart of Coal Country.” The Washington Post, WP Company, 28 Nov. 2017, www.washingtonpost.com/business/epa-hears-worries-about-climate-in-heart-of-coal-country/2017/11/28/3d8f4c96-d474-11e7-9ad9-ca0619edfa05_story.html?utm_term=.96b2fbc9dcb8.

“Complying with President Trump’s Executive Order on Energy Independence.” EPA, Environmental Protection Agency, 26 Oct. 2017, www.epa.gov/energy-independence.

In Santa Fe, New Mexico the Chaco Canyon stands as one of America’s grand national monuments.  The canyon which was built by the indigenous people of New Mexico represents a civilization that has excelled in architecture, agriculture, astronomy and the arts.  The canyon and the surrounding region have been highly protected by conservationists and the government, specifically the National Park Service, but when Trump took office the area around the Chaco Canyon became a prime contester for oil and gas drilling.  Although the surrounding region has been protected by the National Park Service, the land legally belongs to the Bureau of Land Management and the Bureau of Indian Affairs which are less focused on protecting the sight and more focused on economic gain.

Drilling and fracking, the process of injecting liquid at high pressure into subterranean rocks, have a detrimental effect on the region.  Not only does drilling in the area of the canyon run the potential of ruining artifacts that have not yet been discovered but it also increases the regions chances for earthquakes.  In addition drilling emits carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxide and and other harmful chemicals from blasting activities (Indian Affairs).  Ryan Zinke, who serves on the Trump administration as the United States Secretary of the Interior mad oil drilling his priority.  What Zinke fails to realize is that by permitting more drilling, especially in areas as sensitive as the Chaco Canyon he is putting the people in his own country at risk to natural disasters.  In addition, the emissions have potential to detrimentally ruin human health and will therefore lead to more citizen death in the region.

Drilling regulations are of benefit to this country because although it may help America’s economy, we are slowly deteriorating the Earth making America a lot more susceptible to national disasters.   There have been studies done in industrial states, Kansas and Oklahoma that experience multiple small magnitude earthquakes a day, in an attempt to link drilling to the increase of their susceptibility to earthquakes.  The data shows that fracking, although not directly linked to causing earthquakes, increases the chance of earthquakes and adds to the harmful groundwater that already exists in the ground (Fifield).  Natural disasters are occurring more frequently and with more intensity as is in America so it is in every benefit for America to take precautions and cut down on anything that can increase natural disasters.

Works CitedOil and Gas Drilling/Development Impacts, teeic.indianaffairs.gov/er/oilgas/impact/drilldev/.

Moe, Richard. “The Treasures of Chaco Canyon Are Threatened by Drilling.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 1 Dec. 2017, www.nytimes.com/2017/12/01/opinion/chaco-canyon-new-mexico-drilling.html.

Fifield, Stateline Jen. “Scientists study link between U.S. oil drilling and rise in earthquakes.” PBS, Public Broadcasting Service, 14 July 2016, www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/scientists-study-link-u-s-oil-drilling-rise-earthquakes.

Garbage is rapidly filling up dumpsters all over the world, taking up space and sitting there. As the world population increases, so do these harmful dumps. Dumps release methane, a greenhouse gas that is harmful to the environment. 3.5 million tons of solid waste are produced a day around the world, and that number continues to increase as the world population increases. While in other parts of the world poor people do not produce a lot of waste, this is not the case in New York. Another source of waste is food waste. Most parts of the world contribute to food waste, with Nigeria being one of the few countries to waste very little food.

The article actually says that garbage should be treated as a resource in order to overcome this crisis. Nations have begun to implement zero waste programs to try to solve several problems that come with having too much trash, such as a lack of space to put it in and the harmful chemicals that come with burning it. While some parts of the world such as New York and Tokyo are successfully recycling, people are still producing too much waste. Some compost programs are being implemented in New York, and Tokyo separates its trash very meticulously so that they can burn the trash that won’t release any harmful chemicals and be able to recycle as much as possible. Space is running out to put trash in, so these programs must be followed and implemented quickly in other parts of the world. Although this is a problem that is not discussed often, the solution rests in how each person sorts their trash and disposes of it. The programs depend on each person doing their part to make it successful.

Van Lohuizen, Kadir. “Drowning in Garbage.” The Washington Post, WP Company, 21 Nov. 2017, www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2017/world/global-waste/?utm_term=.ed58b3dd3549.

There is still a large amount of radioactive water in Japan after more than six years of the tsunami that hit the Fukushima power plant. These tanks filled with radioactive water could spill should another earthquake or tsunami hit. Some are advising the government to gradually release the liquids into the Pacific Ocean. However, fishermen are arguing that the water is already viewed as dirty despite all the testing that show that anything caught around the area is safe to eat. A big problem is that the fish that are caught in this area require a lot of testing to make sure they are safe. To meet the standard, they have to have less than half the radioactive cesium level allowed under Japan’s national standard and one-twelfth of the US’ limit. On March 11, 2011 a 9.0 magnitude offshore earthquake triggered a tsunami that killed more than 18,000 people along the northeast coast of Japan. It resulted in massive flooding, knocking out power for the cooling systems at the plant. Half of the reactors had a partial meltdown causing radiation to release into the air and contaminate the water that ran into the Pacific Ocean. Currently, the amount of radioactive water is growing by 150 tons a day. The reactors are beyond repair but the cooling water must be pumped to keep them from overheating. The water picks up radioactivity before leaking out of the chambers. It grows more contaminated by mixing with groundwater. It is costly to the utility that owns the plant and time consuming; the process of diluting the water would take about a decade to complete. The company plans to store the water until 2020 while experts argue moving the tanks to an intermediate storage area or delaying the release until 2023, when the tritium has disappeared naturally.

Japan is still recovering from this earthquake turned tsunami. However, it was not the largest nor deadliest earthquake and tsunami that has hit this century. In 2004, the Banda Aceh earthquake and tsunami hit Sumatra, with a magnitude of 9.1, killing more than 230,000 people. Scientists predicted there would be a small earthquake hitting the main island of Japan, but they didn’t expect something so powerful. They found that a large earthquake and tsunami hit Japan in 869. Officials disregarded the warnings from the scientists, resulting in experts around the world to assess the history of natural disasters of a country, to better predict the future of the country’s risk. The 2011 earthquake happened in a subduction zone where two tectonic plates collide. In the zone, one plate slides beneath another into the mantle. The plates stick and all the built up energy is released as an earthquake. Scientists discovered that there was a thin, slippery clay layer lining the fault which allowed the plates to slide an incredible distance which resulted in the following tsunami. The sudden horizontal and vertical thrusting of the Pacific Plate, which had been slowly advancing under the Eurasian Plate displaced the water above and spawned a series of highly destructive waves. Two years later there would be a 7.3 magnitude tremor from the same plate boundary region. Residents received a minute warning about the earthquake. Less than an hour after the earthquake, the tsunami waves went as high as 128 feet and 6 miles in. Many people, organizations, and agencies underestimated the size of the waves. The aftermath of the tsunami resulted in scientists dropping sensors along the fault line, looking at tsunami deposits to better understand ancient sediment records of deadly waves and examining the damage, and looking for ways to build buildings more resistant to quakes and tsunamis.

“Risky Stalemate as Science Battles Human Fears at Fukushima.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 24 Nov. 2017, www.nytimes.com/aponline/2017/11/24/world/asia/ap-as-japan-fukushima-stalemate.html.

Oskin, Becky. “Japan Earthquake & Tsunami of 2011: Facts and Information.” LiveScience, Purch, 13 Sept. 2017, www.livescience.com/39110-japan-2011-earthquake-tsunami-facts.html.

Rafferty, John P., and Kenneth Pletcher. “Japan Earthquake and Tsunami of 2011.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 22 Nov. 2016, www.britannica.com/event/Japan-earthquake-and-tsunami-of-2011.