BOULDER, Colo. (CBS4)– Scientists in Boulder are concerned about the trend in the Trump Administration with regards to climate change.
“I opened the paper this morning and I felt the need to say something,” said NCAR climate scientist Ben Sanderson.
NCAR climate scientist Ben Sanderson (credit: CBS)
In an OpEd that will be published in the Washington Post, Boulder climate scientist Ben Sanderson says whether Pres. Donald Trump pulls out of the Paris Agreement or not, climate change isn’t going away.
“For the U.S. to pull out of that at this particular stage, has large ramifications,” said Sanderson.
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The goal of the landmark agreement among nearly 200 nations is to hold the global average temperature rise to less than two degrees Celsius.
Sanderson says that if the U.S. withdraws and other nations follow, the impacts will be far-reaching.
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“Our models are in good agreement on what the consequences of a two degree would be for sea level rise, for heat records, the frequency of extreme precipitation,” said Sanderson.
Trump has been reversing climate change policy since taking office but some of his top aides are divided on the issue.
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Secretary of State Rex Tillerson is urging the president to stay in the deal while Environmental Protection Agency administrator Scott Pruitt is pushing for withdrawal, along with 21 Republican senators who sent the president a letter saying it’s risky to remain when we won’t meet the goals.
NCAR climate scientist Ben Sanderson (credit: CBS)
Sanderson says it’s riskier still, diplomatically and economically to pull out,
“So China is taking the opposite strategy to become the world leader in clean energy. The U.S. is making a bet that nothing will change and climate change is a problem that will go away.”
