Man-made global warming is likely to get worse and more costly. With the help of television weathermen, President Barack Obama has emphasized the threat of climate change and the need to take fast action.
"We want to emphasize to the public, this is not some distant problem of the future. This is a problem that is affecting Americans right now. Whether it means increased flooding, greater vulnerability to drought, more severe wildfires - all these things are having an impact on Americans as we speak," Obama said to Al Roker, weathercaster of the "Today" show.
The National Climate Assessment and Development Advisory Committee (NCADAC) has concluded that issues brought on by climate change are predicted to accelerate in their disruptive nature and will likely affect the whole nation throughout the century, and even further. But it is not too late to prevent climate change from getting worse, according to the 840-page report released on Tuesday.
"It's a good news story about the many opportunities to take cost-effective actions to reduce the damage," said White House science adviser John Holdren during an interview with the Associated Press.
The report, given by a 60-person panel, provided President Obama with a renewed opportunity to push his campaign against severe climate change, retaliating against skeptics while maintaining how the situation has been aggravated by human actions. By summer, the administration seeks to draft new regulations aimed at restricting gas emissions from coal-fired power plants.
Apparently, not everyone has been convinced: the move has sparked a national debate from many groups of Conservatives, fossil energy supporters, and Republican senators. Senior United States Senator from Kentucky Mitch McConnell said he believes that Obama will take advantage of the situation in order to renew his proposal for a national energy tax.
"I'm sure he'll get loud cheers from liberal elites - from the kind of people who leave a giant carbon footprint and then lecture everybody else about low-flow toilets," said McConnell, as quoted by AP.
