Global Warming in Florida
Florida Tries to Shield Wildlife From Climate Change - 08/03/08
Florida's wildlife will face unprecedented consequences associated with climate change, warns the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, FWC, a government agency that is organizing a conference in Orlando this month to find ways of protecting Florida species in a warming world.
Florida is inhabited by endangered and threatened land mammals such as bears, panthers, Key deer, mink and otters, rats and mice, voles and bats. Florida waters host manatees, and endangered humpback, fin, sperm, sei whales, and Atlantic right whales.
On August 20 through 22, experts from the FWC and other state and federal agencies will meet to discuss the predicted impacts of climate change on these and other species of Florida wildlife.
The conference, entitled Florida's Wildlife: On the Frontline of Climate Change, will highlight the climate challenges facing wildlife managers, governments, industry leaders and the public in the next 50 years.
"This summit has global significance, because the effects of climate change on places like Florida and Alaska will be a prelude to what's going to happen elsewhere in the world," said FWC Chairman Rodney Barreto.
Florida facing global warming effects now - 07/13/2007
Unless greenhouse gases are sharply reduced in coming decades, Florida could face environmental catastrophe, with rising seas, increasingly violent weather and severe droughts, Gov. Charlie Crist said Thursday.
That was the governor's opening statement at the two-day Serve to Preserve Florida Summit on Global Climate Change, which seeks to bring together political, business and environmental leaders to find alternative energy sources and urge conservation to combat the effects of global warming.
Crist noted Florida is one of the most vulnerable states to global warming because of its long coastline, covering almost 1,300 miles, as well as its environmentally sensitive Everglades and coral reefs. Some of those areas face being inundated because scientists estimate sea levels will rise 5 inches in the next 25 years and 20 inches by 2100, he said.
Larry Schweiger, chief executive officer of the Natural Wildlife Federation, said Florida could see two-thirds of its beaches vanish by the end of this century, as melting ice in Greenland is depositing 90 cubic miles of water into the oceans each year.
Though some, including many of Crist's fellow Republicans, dispute whether humans are to blame for global warming, the governor said, "There is a strong body of scientific evidence indicating the global climate change is real. We cannot ignore this situation any longer. We have a responsible to face this reality head on and take action to address it now." Title: Global-warming-may-have-big-effect-here URL: http://www.sptimes.com/2007/04/22/Neighborhoodtimes/Global_warming_may_ha.shtml Date: 04/22/07 BEGIN Rising ocean levels and temperatures and increased variability in weather patterns caused by global warming could radically affect coastal communities in the Tampa Bay area, according to climate change experts.
They say that in the next 80 years, the county could be plagued with massive flooding, a significant loss in wildlife, and disastrous bouts of Red Tide that could change the landscape of the area, as well as prove detrimental to the local tourism industry.
"Climate change is a big-deal thing in Florida," said Stephen Mulkey, associate botany professor at the University of Florida, who recently talked to state legislators about global warming and its impact on the insurance industry. "I am thoroughly convinced this is going to be the most significant problem for the state in this century."
Global warming, which experts say is being caused by emissions from greenhouse gases, is heating up the oceans and will lead to stronger hurricanes, Mulkey said.
In St. Petersburg, Mayor Rick Baker is leading the statewide Century Commission for a Sustainable Florida. Pinellas and Hillsborough county commissioners have passed resolutions calling on state legislators to create a global warming action plan. Several beach communities are considering curbside recycling. Eckerd College has initiated a green campus program to lower its carbon emissions.
