A Small Step Forward

by Larry Powell 

Last winter, I asked CBC Manitoba to start announcing atmospheric C02 levels on their weathercasts. (See "CBC Manitoba Thinks Nothing Can Be Done About Climate Change!)

C02 levels cause global warming, melting ice caps and glaciers, rising sea levels, droughts, floods, blizzards, tornadoes, cyclones, hurricanes, and ice storms. Safe levels are 350 ppm or below. They have already been way above that for some time.

At the time of my request, the CBC said it would be "inflammatory" to announce such levels. 

But I finally did convince their broadcast meteorologist,  John Sauder, to place a link to C02 atmospheric levels on his website, "John Sauder's Forecast." 
(Lower left.)


Thank you, John! You have done the public a real service! l.p.

Soggy Fields Put Northern U.S. Farmers on Tight Deadline

Manitoba Co-operator - Apr 29'11 - By: Suzanne Cosgrove -Chicago | Reuters

Conditions described here are hardly confined to the US. Vast farm fields, such as this one near Winnipeg in March, were covered by snow-melt in another vast flooding event. l.p.
Incessant rains have turned Indiana farmer Larry Winger's grain fields into ponds, making it impossible for him to seed his corn crop. Details here.

Fossil Fuel Industry Gives us Cause to be Skeptical

Science Matters - David Suzuki  
The priority for people who run oil companies is to maximize profits. Details here.

Blizzard Worsens Flood Woes for Manitobans

Manitoba News Release
............................................................
April 30, 2011 FLOOD BULLETIN #29
.    A major storm is causing snow and rain along with high winds that are expected to shift from southerly to northerly directions across most of southern Manitoba.  The slow-moving system is expected to move across Manitoba today (Sat.) and tomorrow.  

A lonely Robin awaits the return of spring.

The storm will affect the dates of river crests and prolong the duration of the flood.  Forecasters are assessing the storm's impact and will have more information once it is over.

.    Due to high wind gusts forecast across southern Manitoba today, those properties with flood-protection works and exposed to north winds can expect wind setup and wave action and are advised to assess the need for flood-protection reinforcements.

Assiniboine River

.    Water levels on the Shellmouth Reservoir increased by 1.18 ft. since yesterday to 1,411.55 ft.  

Above, the bridge over the Lake of the Prairies (Shellmouth Reservoir) near Roblin.

Inflows into the Shellmouth Reservoir have decreased to approximately 16,500 cfs.  
A tighter shot showing water levels beneath the bridge deck.
Outflows are the maximum possible with current reservoir levels at 9,080 cfs.
 
.    The Shellmouth Reservoir is forecast to receive significant run-off from the current storm, adding to current high water levels.  The dam will be operated to prevent outflows from exceeding 10,000 cfs.

Manitoba may well experience the longest period of flooding in its history, thanks to cooler weather and now this latest system with its unwanted precipitation in the form of wet snow. As much as 30 cm (1 ft) has already fallen in some parts of western Manitoba, with winds gusting up to 100 km/hr. (One community, near Dauphin, recorded an incredible 50cm!)
(All photos by l.p.)

"Massive" Crop Losses Feared in U.S. South's Drought

Apr 28, 2011 Reuters
The worst drought in more than 40 years intensified across Texas over the last week, with high winds and heat causing "massive crop losses," with little relief in sight, according to weather experts Thursday. Details here.

Larry Tries Again to Draw Attention to the Manitoba Flooding & Climate Change Connection

PUBLISHER'S COMMENT:

Below is my letter to Terry McLeod, host of the CBC Radio "Information Radio," morning show in Winnipeg. It is in response to an invitation he extended to listeners to comment on the current flood situation.

I'm not holding my breath that it will be used. My record in having such letters/emails see the light of day "on the air," especially on the climate change topic, has not been too good! I hope they will prove me wrong this time! l.p.
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Dear Terry,

Perhaps it's high-time for us to recognize the link between climate change and the increasingly serious floods we are facing in our province and elsewhere. Climate change is caused by humans. We are creating too many greenhouse gases by, among other things, the vehicles we drive and the planes we fly in. These, in turn are warming the planet and creating more extreme weather events such as the flooding which has definitely been on the increase in both frequency and intensity.

Wouldn't it be better to start putting more emphasis on sustainable energy which would reduce our reliance on fossil fuels? Instead, we are expanding the airport, pressing on with massive transportation corridors and exploring for oil, a decidedly non-sustainable source, at record levels!

We also need to think about just who is suggesting the "link" I refer to. Is it just me? Hardly!

• Environment Canada's Chief climatolotist, Dave Phillips is saying it.
• Peer-reviewed articles in the Journal Nature are saying it.
• The Winnipeg-based International Institute for Sustainable Development is saying it.
• The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change is saying it.
• Thousands of climate scientists around the world are saying it.

After a brief flurry of attention this problem generated earlier this decade, our politicians, industry and media all seem to have come down with collective amnesia and are now shamefully neglecting this most important environmental issue of our time. In so doing, we are surely immersing not only ourselves, but future generations in a huge whirlpool of uncertainty!

Larry Powell
Roblin, MB

Last Members of Manitoba First Nation Leaving as Reserve Monitors Flood

By: The Canadian Press 04/25/2011

WINNIPEG - The last residents of a Manitoba reserve on the U.S. border were leaving Monday if they weren't needed to monitor flooding, said the man in charge of the evacuation.

Howard Nelson said about 800 members of the Roseau River First Nation would have traded life on the reserve south of Winnipeg for that in city hotels.

He said the evacuees could be there for five to 10 days, but it was hard to predict because the road into the community might be closed by flooding.

However, the water on Monday was still almost two metres below the top of a protective dike.
Nelson said pumps were being used to get water out of almost 30 flooded basements in low-lying areas.

This year's spring flooding has forced about 1,600 people to leave their homes in Manitoba — most from Roseau River and the Peguis First Nation along the Fisher River near Lake Winnipeg.
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 The number of people displaced by the flooding is only a fraction of what it was in the "flood of the century" in '97. 

That's the good news.

Fact is, floodwaters also cover a larger area of the province than ever-before experienced. Several communities in the Red River Valley are still bracing for water levels which will eclipse those of the flood of '09. And that will be the second-worst flooding in a-century-&-a-half! l.p.

The normally tranquil Boggy Creek, near Roblin (above), is now swollen to a torrent. About a kilometer downstream, it empties into Lake of the Prairies on the Assiniboine River. (l.p. video)

Please also read, "It's Time for Change. Big Change! Global warming & the Manitoba floods."