The proposed cuts of the Trump Administration of the EPA has many of us deeply concerned, particularly those cuts targeting climate change offices and research. As someone who believe that climate change is one of the greatest threats facing this planet, the evidence continues to mount that we are at or passing a tipping point. Now, an Argentine research base near the northern tip of the Antarctic peninsula has recorded the record temperature at 63.5° Fahrenheit (17.5 degrees Celsius). It is an astonishing and frightening increase.
Antarctica holds 90 percent of the world’s fresh water as ice. If it were to melt, it could potentially raise sea levels by about 60 meters (200 ft).
There are legitimate questions over the best way to address the obvious evidence of climate change. However, any cutting of research and data production at this time would be extremely harmful. These budgets are small in comparison to the rest of the budget but they contribute immensely to our consideration of different options and policies.
