The Bear Fire burned near the Bidwell Bar Bridge in Oroville, Calif., on Wednesday. (Photo courtesy of Noah Berger/Associated Press)
The August Complex fire has ravaged through 846,898 acres of California as of September 22, 2020, according to “August Complex of fires in Northern California has burned 846,000 acres” by Bill Gabbert. The fire, that began from 37 other fires that began on August 17th, is now 63 miles long and divided into three zones West, North, and South, according to Gabbert, and has burned the beautiful houses, trees, and parks that the state is renowned for. The vivid blue sky that once thrived over the state’s beautiful palm trees has now turned into a copper-red. The East coast quickly deployed their condolences over social media, watching in shock as the once-blooming state now appeared to look like hell-on-earth. You must be wondering why the fires have become so intense. With that, you must have been thinking about the near-frigid temperatures that have rocked Hamilton College and why just a week ago, you were able to see the sun without going blind. Lucky for you, I have the answers!
The reason as to why you were able to see the sun without going blind like our good friend Galileo Galilei is because the smokes from the August complex fires have dispersed all over the United States, reaching as far as the Netherlands, Hamburg, and Germany, according to “Smoke from wildfires in the West Coast reaches east coast and even Europe” by Luke Money of Los Angeles Times. On September 15, 2020, the weather service’s Baltimore-Washington office had tweeted the satellite images, showing smoke “aloft moving over much of the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic.” As smoke covers the entirety of our atmosphere, it blocks the blinding light of the sun from reaching our eyes, making it easier for us to see the red color of the sun without experiencing pain immediately after. With this comes a tremendous drop in temperatures as we are not getting the full intensity of the sun, this paired with the autumn equinox makes the temperatures here at Hamilton close to dropping below freezing. The fact that California’s wildfires were able to impact the entirety of the world should serve as an apt analogy to how not-so environmentally friendly actions we take may not impact us directly but will affect us in many other ways. This allows for a good segway into the main point of this opinion piece which is that it is global warming that is driving these California wildfires and this is why we must take immediate action to minimize our carbon footprint and engage in more environmentally friendly behavior before global warming becomes permanently irreversible.
According to Daniel Swain, a climate scientist at UCLA, interviewed in “Fast-Moving California Wildfires Boosted by Climate Change” by Anne C. Mulkern of E&E News, “Hotter temperatures, less dependable precipitation and snowpack that melts slower lead to drier soil and parched vegetation. Climate change also affects how much moisture is in the air.” He adds that climate change “actually dries out the air during these extreme heat events.” The lack of moisture, dried lands, and vegetation, coupled with a record 130-degree reported in the Death Valley, only 4 away from the highest temperature recorded on earth (134 degrees), is what allowed the fires to spread so quickly throughout California, according to Swain. According to Mulkern, Swain and other scientists at UCLA published a study that stated “climate change has doubled the number of extreme-risk days for California wildfires,” this is because temperatures rose 1.8 degrees-Fahrenheit since 1980 while precipitation dropped 30%, doubling the number of autumn days that offer extreme conditions for ignition of wildfires. Now that it is evident that climate change is the main culprit behind this fire being the biggest in history, I hope that this reminds you that we only have seven years remaining before the effects of global warming become permanently irreversible. That is why you need to be politically aware and environmentally sustainable. Joe Biden is our only chance of getting the Green New Deal in motion, which is a plan that calls for the United States to switch to 100% renewable energy by 2030. If the Green New Deal comes into play in the next couple of years, we will be well underway to approaching a new, healthier, and happier world and hopefully save our generation and the ones coming after us from an early judgment day. For now, I cannot express how important it is for you to reduce your carbon footprint. Do as much as you can. Make sure to recycle, conserve water, use public transportation, carpool, or bike to your final destinations. There are many ways you can do to fill your part when it comes to contributing to a safer, better, and cleaner earth. For more information check out goingzerowaste.com, which is a blog that shares many ways to be more environmentally sustainable and reduce your carbon footprint.