Posted on 02/07/2014 5:12:18 PM PST by CedarDave
Officials canceled two Olympic test events last February in Sochi after several days of temperatures above 60 degrees Fahrenheit and a lack of snowfall had left ski trails bare and brown in spots. That situation led the climatologist Daniel Scott, a professor of global change and tourism at the University of Waterloo in Ontario, to analyze potential venues for future Winter Games. His thought was that with a rise in the average global temperature of more than 7 degrees Fahrenheit possible by 2100, there might not be that many snowy regions left in which to hold the Games. He concluded that of the 19 cities that have hosted the Winter Olympics, as few as 10 might be cold enough by midcentury to host them again. By 2100, that number shrinks to 6.
The planet has warmed 1.4 degrees Fahrenheit since the 1800s, and as a result, snow is melting. In the last 47 years, a million square miles of spring snow cover has disappeared from the Northern Hemisphere. Europe has lost half of its Alpine glacial ice since the 1850s, and if climate change is not reined in, two-thirds of European ski resorts will be likely to close by 2100.
It’s easy to blame the big oil companies and the billions of dollars they spend on influencing the media and popular opinion.... Nothing besides a national policy shift on how we create and consume energy will keep our mountains white in the winter — and slow global warming to a safe level.
This is no longer a scientific debate. It is scientific fact. The greatest fear of most climate scientists is continued complacency that leads to a series of natural climatic feedbacks — like the melting of the methane-rich permafrost of Arctic Canada.
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
Move the games to New York. They have plenty of snow!
You only need a couple of inches. Everyone down in Atlanta will testify to that.
California is going through a low water situation right now. Of course this is used as proof positive that our planet is dying.
I’m so sick of people fixating on things and claiming some wild ass idea or another, as it relates to our global condition.
Seven degrees by 2100? Seriously? I’ve never seen a projection that predicts anything more than a one degree change in that time.
Sounds like the expert that told everyone up North to get rid of their snow plows and other equipment because by 2010 or so there would be no more snow. Children in Minn., Michigan, Wisconson, etc. would not know what snow was (other than the kind you snort).
Wait a minute. They’ve been telling us for a month now that global warming causes record cold temperatures.
I rank this ‘end of snow’ right up there with the ‘end of the Arctic polar ice cap.’
The Arctic polar ice cap has rebound by 50% from it’s low a year or so ago.
Average February high temps in Sochi are around 50 degrees F.
Ya gotta lighten up Porter. Climate change happens. It has always happened. It happened before you showed up on the planet and it will continue to happen long after you’re gone. Light up you idiot.
Why, it’s almost as if Sochi was a stupid place to hold the Winter Olympics! It’s plenty cold in Yakutsk; why didn’t Putin have it there?
I’ve got 3 degrees and falling right now in southern Michigan with a January record amount of snow and February looks like another big month for snow.
The average high temp for this time of year is 35 degrees (I hit 12 today) and the average low is 18 degrees.
Well, yes, they almost have it right:
Two Rules About Global Warming
1 - Record Setting Cold Temperatures: Snow or ice does not disprove the existence of Global Warming. They are just anecdotal evidence of a temporary condition and cannot be regarded as valid indicators.
2 - Record Setting Warm Temperatures: Drought, rain, storms, melting ice, or other unusual conditions are undeniable empirical evidence that man caused Global Warming is destroying the planet, and maybe even the entire galaxy.
/sar
(credit Freeper Preacher for the rules)
Environmentalist cowards treading on thin ice always say this. They know their argument is too weak for them to try to defend.
Vancouver wasn't much better. Daytime temperatures in Vancouver are usually in the 40s, and the mountain ski resorts are known more for heavy, wet snow than for fine powder that is ideal for skiing.
‘end of the Arctic polar ice cap.’
BTW. When Al Gore was first pushing this Global Warming crap he said the Arctic ice cap would be gone in .... 2014!
Come to Pittsburgh, we have plenty of snow
Whatta laff.
Mr. Powder guy wasn’t around in the West for the 76-77’ ski season....which wasn’t.
The Great Drought Year, worse then now.
Nobody thought that winter would henceforth end. We just waited for another year and...the snow fell.
Like it usually does. And will.
Yeah holding the games in Sochi, Russia's Riviera, is real smart. It the equivalent of holding the winter games in LA with the ski sports taking place at Big Bear in San Bernardino mountains.
>> Nothing besides a national policy shift on how we create and consume energy will keep our mountains white in the winter — and slow global warming to a safe level.
You’re a dick, Porter Fox.
I struggled to read this article to the end. I thought this guy would never shut up.
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