Will be joined by constituents, lawmakers, leaders in climate change impacts, solution
MEDFORD, MA. – Superstorm Sandy is the latest example of climate change contributing to extreme weather. With Sandy expected to cost between $30 and $50 billion, the storm’s devastating impacts should be taken as a warning for Massachusetts and New England. As temperatures and sea-levels rise and storms become more severe, many of Boston’s best-known landmarks – Faneuil Hall, Quincy Market, North Station, Copley Church – will be threatened by major weather events. Congressman Edward J. Markey (D-Malden) will hold an emergency meeting calling for immediate action in Congress to protect Massachusetts and the region from the devastating impacts of extreme storms fueled by climate change.
WHAT: Emergency meeting on climate change threat to Massachusetts, New England
WHO: Congressman Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), dean of the Massachusetts Congressional delegation
- Kevin Knobloch, President, Union of Concerned Scientists
- Mindy Lubber, President and CEO, Ceres
WHEN: Sunday, November 4, 2012, 11 AM
WHERE: Arlington Town Hall, 730 Massachusetts Avenue, Arlington, Mass.
Rep. Markey penned an op-ed in the Huffington Post on what a post-Sandy climate change action plan would look like, writing, “In 1775, Paul Revere warned Massachusetts revolutionaries of an invasion coming from the sea. With climate change, low-lying areas of Boston and the Bay State could now face an invasion of the sea itself.”
Rep. Markey also released the report, “The New New England: How Climate Change Jeopardizes the Northeast’s Economy and Environment”, on climate change effects in New England. Findings of the report include:
- Ocean temperatures in the Northeast during the first half of 2012 were the warmest on record, which can fuel stronger storms
- Rates of sea-level rise from North Carolina to Massachusetts are up to four times faster than the global average
- January to August 2012 set a new record for high temperatures in New England both on land and in the ocean.
- Extreme downpours and snowfalls have increased by 85 percent since 1948.