President Joe Biden cautioned Americans that the country would have to pay dearly for the ongoing extreme weather. It could go to well over $100bn because disasters like floods and wildfires have taken a heavy toll on properties and lives. On a rough estimate, these have affected nearly one in three American communities. While speaking at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory at Colorado, he said: "We know what the driver is Climate change." He added there is no doubt about the fact that climate change and human activities are interlinked.
The President’s words came even as tropical storm Nicholas lashed Texas and Louisiana with torrential rain.
These led to flooded streets and restricted travel options. Many thousands of properties had to go without power. Before Nicholas, Hurricane Ida took more than 80 lives. The President warned his people to be serious about these wake-up calls and not ignore them. Joe Biden passed executive orders on climate change soon after taking over charge as President of the United States.
President Biden visited California that faced innumerable wildfires
Idaho and some other western states reported their hottest summers on record. California faced more than 7,400 wildfires this year. The result was the destruction of more than 3,500 square miles. Dixie Fire was the state's second-largest fire on record. It burned large areas in the northern Sierra and southern Cascades region.
Sky News quotes him saying: “We can't ignore the reality that these wildfires are being supercharged by climate change.”
On the subject of climate change, the U.S. wants to reach net-zero emissions by 2050. It must make a beginning and start using carbon pollution-free power 15 years before the target date for that to happen.
The President feels such an approach would benefit society.
Biden says climate change responsible for wildfires
President Joe Biden toured Idaho and California, two states hit hard by recent wildfires. It was his first official travel to the West Coast as president. During a speech at Sacramento Mather Airport, he said that recent extreme weather events in different parts of America appear to have links with climate change.
This is costing the country billions of dollars each year in terms of loss of the nation's infrastructure. He reminded: "Scientists have been warning us for years that extreme weather is gonna get more extreme. We're living it in real-time now.”
Global warming worries Joe Biden
The President emphasized extreme weather will be a costly affair for America. Their ferocity and frequencies are on the rise. Global warming is very much there, and the situation is irreversible. He received feedback from various official sources on the impacts of recent wildfires. He even undertook an aerial survey of El Dorado County. Biden had earlier visited New York and New Jersey. That was to survey damage caused by Hurricane Ida.
The country has been facing flash floods in some areas with wildfires in other places. Both damage the infrastructure, and restoring them is a costly affair. Obviously, Congress has to take further action on its infrastructure proposals. He realizes the threats of climate change and wants to ensure that his administration assigns necessary priority. People, irrespective of party affiliations, have to pay the price when there are floods and wildfires.
