Rising temperature patterns have affected ecosystems

According to data from the National Weather Service in Medford, at the beginning of the last century, the number of days here over 100 degrees Fahrenheit averaged around seven per year. 

As the last century unfolded, the number of such days has exhibited substantial variability, but has generally risen. This century, the number has continued its variability, with some years exhibiting over 20 such days. 

The result of the trend is that, on average, we now experience 11 or more days over 100 degrees.  

During the same period of time, our average annual temperature has also risen, from 53 to 56 degrees Fahrenheit. While this may not seem much, given our annual fluctuation between winter and summer average daily temperatures, it is enough to disrupt our natural ecosystems and threaten many native species. 

This is probably implicated in the mortality we are witnessing among some of our forest species, notably the Douglas fir.

Confronted by actual data such as these, and the reality of increasing wildfire risk, it is amazing to find that there are still individuals in the area who deny that the climate is changing.

Given the incontrovertible evidence of the cause, it is equally amazing that some also deny that human activity is responsible. But then, if one lives in the delusional world of conspiracy hoaxes, maybe neither one’s own eyes, nor scientific evidence, are unpersuasive.

Trisha Vigil / Medford

Can Lahaina tragedy convince climate deniers?

The catastrophic loss of Lahaina and human lives is a gut punch. Such a wondrous, charming paradise enjoyed by countless visitors. The history and culture of Hawaii back to the 1700s. Thousands of jobs in the tourism industry.

All lost in a flash.

Even its name was relaxing and peaceful. A young saleswoman in Medford recently told me her profits would be “Maui money,” anticipating her next trip. If I was to take anyone who had never been to Hawaii, the first place I would have taken them would have been to Maui and Lahaina.

A place immune from climate change, as so many believed: tranquil, safe, and wrapped in the comfort of the vast Pacific and its cooling blanket. But now Lahaina is gone. And our trust in the idea that Hawaii would always be a climate refuge is shattered.

Even the isolation of this paradise was not enough for the onslaught of extreme winds and drought.

More extreme weather and climate change is certain. Perhaps the loss on Maui will get the attention of wealthy deniers. They have lost or are now at risk to lose billions there. We all just learned that no matter where we hide or how much money we have, none of us are safe on the current climate trajectory.

Mars won’t have beaches and palm trees. If we continue to deny after Lahaina, we are all doomed.

John Hamilton / Ashland