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April 08, 2009

The high cost of climate change

The news has been dominated by the financial crisis, but it’s the climate crisis that may have a greater impact on the economics, health, environment and livelihoods of Kansas City residents, as well as billions of people around the world for decades to come.

What would be the cost of not dealing with climate change? Consider what flooding on the Missouri and Red rivers has cost individuals, cities and taxpayers in the last few years. Now multiply it by millions, because that’s what is in store as floods, droughts and violent storms all increase as a result of climate change. And the poor, the disadvantaged and women will be hurt first and worst.

Last week, Reps. Henry Waxman and Ed Markey introduced new legislation that seeks to lower emissions, create a market-based approach for developing jobs in renewable energy and building community resiliency (4/1, A-5). With this legislation, Congress can address both climate change and economic stagnation.

We should all encourage our Missouri and Kansas representatives — Emanuel Cleaver and Dennis Moore — to support this emerging legislation. Their leadership can help spur the use of renewable energy, create new clean jobs here at home and cut our dependence on foreign oil.

Peg Prendergast
President, League of Women Voters — Jackson, Clay and Platte counties
Kansas City


mike d

My definition of climate change: Mike Thompson telling me on the 6 pm Friday newscast that it might snow 20 inches, then at 10 pm Friday telling me it might not snow at all. Now that's change!

They can't tell me what its going to do 24 hours from now but I am supposed to believe that they know what it's going to do 100 years from now? If you believe them you have been in the heat too long.

Mark Robertson

Yes, we all know how Waxman and Markey adore the free market. Right.
The propaganda wordsmiths are at it again. It's now climate change, because as Engineer points out, the world has been cooling since 99.
The claim that mankind has or is creating harmful global warming is one of the great hoaxes of all time.
Though Peg may be sincere, and most all of us want a clean environment, the environmental extremist movement is the new home of communism. They hate capitalism. Green is the new red. Just ask Czech Republic President,the great Vaclav Klaus, who has lived under communism. Thankyou.

Mark Robertson
Independence, Mo.


So we can control mother nature?
How arrogant. This gal is a gender biased ****. I am sick of men being de-valued.
These uneducated, misonformed, pre-determined fail to disclose the biggest culprit in so called clime change, Methane.
Natural releases being the largest contributor. People like this dolt should practice what they preach, she contributes as much as anyone else with her consumption, so she should be required by law to not consume. Go live off the land lady and do get caught with ANY product that "harms the environment".


OMG, talk about a "green weenie'!

Peg, the disasters you speak of are called "Mother Nature" and have been going on long before man started polluting the air by "breathing".

You want to know why we had, and may have again $4.00 a gallon gasoline? Ask ding bats like old Peg!


Sorry Peg, but it looks like your "cause de jour" has been put aside with the onset of the economic crisis. When things are good (and people are bored), it's a whole lot easier to get people to pay attention than when more pressing concerns weigh heavy on their minds.

Look on the bright side. The shift in focus has kept a lot of attention from being paid to the recent pulling away of many in the scientific community from the "imminent catastrophe" predictions.


Peg Prendergast pulls out all the stops, just like a paraphrase of the famous fictional NYT headline: World will end tomorrow "the poor, the disadvantaged and women will be hurt first and worst". The world may well be warming but it has not repeated the temperatures reached in 1999. The amount of CO2 released by man's commercial and industrial activities make up a very small fraction of the total CO2 released by nature yearly.
