To the Journal editor:

According to Copernicus, the European Union’s climate change monitoring service, June 2024 ended up as the warmest sixth month on record in terms of global average temperature, breaking the previous record set in June 2023.

Copernicus also reports this June was the 13th month in a row that the observed global average temperature was the highest on record for each individual month! The World Meteorological Organization also reports the time from 2015 through 2023 was the warmest 9-year period since at least the 1880s.

This recent warming has caused record high sea surface temperatures/sea level rise as well as record low Antarctic sea ice, according to the WMO. Additionally, the Weather Channel reported 2023 set a record for heat deaths in the U.S., with 2,300 heat-related fatalities in the summer of 2023 per death certificates that included excessive heat as the cause of death.

This record warmth occurred as the concentration of the atmospheric greenhouse gas carbon dioxide (which traps heat near the Earth’s surface) reached an all time high 426.9 parts per million in May 2024 at the Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii.

The great majority of the most qualified scientists in my field of atmospheric science blame human-caused greenhouse gas emissions for this steady increase in carbon dioxide and temperature. In fact, Rick Spinrad, the NOAA administrator, stated: “We must recognize that these are clear signals of the damage carbon dioxide pollution is doing to the climate system, and take rapid action to reduce fossil fuel use as quickly as we can.”

Other short-sighted, irresponsible human actions like mass deforestation have also contributed to this climate change.

NOAA also reports there were an annual record 28 weather-related disasters in the U.S. that caused at least $1 billion in damage in 2023. This 2023 surge in weather extremes is in line with a September 2022 WMO report stating that human-caused global warming/climate change has caused weather-related disasters to increase fivefold over the last 50 years.

The WMO warns that unless humans reduce the burning of the dirty fossil fuels as well as the deforestation responsible for this climate change, these disastrous impacts will only get worse in the future.

The Mining Journal has printed several articles recently highlighting some of the extreme weather events observed around the world. In the July 12 issue, an article entitled “A look at heat records that have been broken around the world” highlighted a number of record high temperatures observed across the Earth this year, including a 120 degree temperature in Las Vegas, Nevada.

The article further stated: “For many places, the highest temperatures since record-keeping began have come in just the last 10 to 15 years. That’s the clearest possible sign that humans are altering the climate, said Randall Cerveny, a professor at Arizona State University.”

If we don’t take the necessary action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and slow this dangerous climate change, the significant weather-related impacts listed above as well as events like the flooding that struck the Houghton area on Father’s Day 2018 and the lack of snow that did not allow the Marquette Mountain ski hill to open frequently this winter will become more likely.

To encourage our elected officials to take the necessary action to address human-caused climate change and help protect our area and economy, I urge your readers to go to the Citizens’ Climate Lobby website at https://citizensclimatelobby.org/get-loud-take-action and follow the Write Congress link there to urge our Congressional representatives to support policies like carbon pricing to encourage a transition to clean, renewable energy sources.