Tracking Climate and Health in Vermont
Climate change is a long-term change in the typical weather conditions of a particular location, which could include warming, cooling, or changes in precipitation frequency or intensity. Natural occurrences contribute to climate change — such as ocean currents, volcanic eruptions, solar cycles, and variations in the earth’s orbit. However, between 90% and 100% of publishing climate scientists agree that human activity is contributing to the climate change that we are currently experiencing,1 primarily because of fossil fuel emissions and land use changes.2 There has been rigorous scientific study into the causes of climate change, and natural processes alone cannot account for the warming observed over the past century.
While climate change is a global issue, local effects vary. In Vermont, average temperatures are 2°F and 4°F warmer than they were in the mid-1960s, and we receive 7 inches more of precipitation per year. Scientific evidence suggests that we will have more heavy precipitation events in the future, and average temperatures will continue to get warmer.