Climatologists teach global
warming survival skills on USVI
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Saturday, February 7,
2009/
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ST THOMAS, USVI:
Internationally recognized researchers in the field of
global climate change presented their findings and gave
advice to US Virgin Islands policymakers on Friday at a
one-day conference, held on the campus of the University of
the Virgin Islands, St Thomas campus.
The conference’s keynote speakers were Dr Leonard Nurse, a
University of the West Indies climatologist who was part of
the United Nations scientific team that enabled former Vice
President Al Gore to be awarded the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize
for climate-related efforts, and Dr Ulric “Neville” Trotz,
the senior advisor of the Caribbean Community Climate Change
Center in Belize.
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Dr Ulric Trotz, left, and Dr Leonard Nurse presented
keynote addresses at UVI on the topic of Global
Climate Change |
“There is no argument
whatsoever as to whether the climate is getting warmer,”
Nurse said in his remarks.
While some may debate the cause, Drs Nurse and Trotz both
said the impact of global warming will continue to be felt
locally.
Caribbean temperature trends over the years have yielded
drier dry seasons, shorter wet seasons, and have contributed
to rising sea levels and ocean temperatures.
In recent years the Caribbean region has also experienced
more intense hurricanes over a shorter period of time than
in the past, Dr Trotz said.
According to both presenters, historical data predicted it.
In addition to hurricane intensity, researchers have
documented other climate-related events such as flooding and
mudslides, which have resulted in loss of life and economic
hardship.
UVI Vice Provost for Research and Public Service Dr Henry
Smith said the conference had more to do with planning than
predicting doom. “Planning can be expensive in the short
term but imagine what our society might face in the future
if we fail to plan,” he said.
Forecasting weather events, developing early warning
systems, mainstreaming climate issues and adopting changes
in land use planning are a few tools that researchers
offered the local policymakers who attended.
In addition to UVI researchers from the Center for Marine
and Environmental Studies, conference attendees included
individuals from the Office of the Governor, the Economic
Development Authority, the Department of Planning and
Natural Resources, the Department of Agriculture, Tourism,
the Housing Finance Authority and the 28th Legislature.
In the afternoon, hypothetical scenarios designed by the
researchers caused local policy makers to huddle as they
looked for solutions. The implications of rising sea levels
on historic downtown districts, for example, forced the
participants to think comprehensively about the future.
Dr Lawrence Lewis, special assistant to UVI’s Vice Provost,
said the scenarios gave policymakers a chance to become part
of the process. “It’s done to reinforce the learning at the
conference, and there has been much to be learned at this
conference.” he said.
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