In contrast to the Trump administration’s stance, a 600-page report by government researchers concludes it’s “extremely likely” that human activities are the “dominant cause” of climate change.
The Climate Science Special Report “is part of an even larger scientific review known as the fourth National Climate Assessment. The NCA4, as it’s known, is the nation’s most authoritative assessment of climate science,” says NPR. “The report’s authors include experts from leading scientific agencies, including the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, NASA and the Department of Energy, as well as academic scientists.”
“I believe that measuring with precision human activity on the climate is something very challenging to do,” EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt said in an interview earlier this year. “There’s tremendous disagreement about the degree of impact.”
But the report found no such ambiguity, arguing that unless greenhouse gases are dramatically reduced, “the increase in annual average global temperature could reach 9 degrees Fahrenheit relative to pre-industrial times,” says NPR. The report also blamed this year’s brutal wildfire season and increasingly heavy rainfall in the Northeast on climate change.