Last week, as I looked out the window and saw the haze and smelled the smoke from fires burning in Canada, it was clear that Buffalo, along with the rest of Western New York, is not immune to the impact of climate change. For so long, we have been insulated from the worst effects of climate change, giving us a false sense of security from the crisis at our doors. This has led us to drag our feet on eliminating our dependence on fossil fuels.
Increases in CO2 from burning fossil fuels causes years of higher temperatures in the North Country, which have dried out the Canadian boreal forest. The amount of land burned measures in thousands of square miles, increasing each year. The good news is that the technology to slow down and even reverse the impact of climate change is available now. We have the “cure.” Renewable energy, such as solar, works fine in Western New York.
