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What’s at Stake: How Global Warming Threatens the Buckeye State 2008-12-17 Whats-at-Stake.pdf

Executive Summary

Contact: Amy Gomberg, Environment Ohio
Office: 614-460-8732
Cell: 614-312-9123

New Report: Carbon Pollution Threatens Ohio’s Environment and Economy

Columbus, Ohio — Today, Environment Ohio released a new report “What’s at Stake: How Global Warming Threatens the Buckeye State.” The report details the environmental and economic harms that may result from Ohio’s changing climate.

“It’s not just about the polar bears and Arctic ice-caps anymore,” stated Amy Gomberg, Environment Ohio’s Program Director. “Climate change poses threats to Ohio’s environment that could have a negative impact on our economy, as well.”

“Not only could climate change lower the water level in Lake Erie, damaging Ohio’s fishing, shipping and tourism industries, but it also could harm Ohio’s agriculture and timber industries.”

Due in large part to the fact that approximately eighty-six percent of Ohio’s electricity is generated by burning coal, Ohio is now the fourth largest contributor of carbon dioxide pollution in the country. Only 23 countries contribute more carbon dioxide pollution into the atmosphere than Ohio. Carbon dioxide is the leading pollutant contributing to our changing climate.

If carbon pollution is left unchecked, and continues to rise at current rates, a plethora of environmental problems that could have a further impact on Ohio’s economy may develop.

“As part of any strategy to prudently and responsibly manage the risks of climate change, Ohio will have no choice but to limit its greenhouse gas emissions,” stated Dr. Andrew Keeler, an economist with The Ohio State University’s John Glenn School of Public Affairs. “Congress and the new Administration need to act as soon as possible to incorporate a price for greenhouse gas emissions into our market economy to address this problem efficiently. Ohio should be forward-looking in its approach to energy conservation and generation in order to prepare for a strong and prosperous future. In particular, our state should take advantage of and contribute to the parts of a likely economic stimulus plan that spur investments in clean energy and green infrastructure.”

Many threats are posed to Lake Erie’s $16 billion commercial shipping, commercial and recreational fishing, and tourism industries.

"Forty years ago the Cuyahoga River caught on fire and Lake Erie was called America’s Dead Sea. Sportsmen fought for clean water laws, and with cleaner water, the fish came back. Since then recreational opportunities, tourism, and the fishing industry have thrived” stated Jim Doss, the President of the Ohio Bass Federation. “Now, climate change threatens Ohio’s chief waterways and in turn, it threatens our economy and the recreational opportunities that depend on them, yet again.”

The report revealed that reduced ice cover on Lake Erie during the winter, and increased water temperatures year round will lead to greater water evaporation from Lake Erie and a decrease in its overall water levels. Some studies show that the Lake’s water level could fall by between 3 and 6.5 feet in the next 70 years, shifting the shoreline up to several miles in shallow areas of the lake, particularly in Sandusky and Maumee bays.

This could have a devastating impact on the Ohio’s shipping industry because every inch that Lake Erie drops commercial ships must leave behind 270 tons of cargo. To put that into perspective, a 2 percent decline in shipping activity could cost the economy over $1 billion.

The report also highlighted impacts to Ohio’s forestry industry. Not only do Ohio’s forests provide a wealth of recreational opportunities, but they also contribute to the state’s $15 billion timber industry, which employs 119,000 people. Rapid changes from global warming would hurt forest ecosystems, potentially cutting forest cover and the industry that relies on it by 50 percent. Additionally, these changes may force Ohio’s state tree, the Ohio Buckeye, to shift its range northward to areas including Michigan.

“For wildlife fans in Ohio, global warming presents two kinds of news – bad and worse.  The bad news is that many of the species we love to observe, like spring warblers and fall waterfowl, will be in short supply or may disappear entirely.  The worse news is that species we don’t like – primarily insects and other disease-bearing vectors – may expand their ranges into Ohio, bringing diseases with them that were previously almost unheard of in Ohio,” stated Jerry Tinianow, the Executive Director of Audubon Ohio.

The good news is, this challenge also presents us with a number of opportunities. Environment Ohio called on President-elect Obama, the new Congress, and specifically Congresswoman-elect Kilroy to enact a green economic recovery plan that makes critical investments in clean energy and green infrastructure to help rebuild the American economy and protect our environment.

By funding clean energy projects, we can put Ohioans back to work making public buildings more efficient and putting solar panels on their roofs, weatherizing 1 million U.S. homes, training more than 100,000 new workers to install clean energy systems, and increasing public transportation capacity by 10 percent a year. This green recovery plan will deliver the economic boost we need.

Putting America on the path to a new clean energy economy means more secure energy in the long term; less global warming pollution; fewer asthma attacks from air pollution; more clean lakes and rivers for drinking water, swimming and fishing, and more good jobs right here at home.

Additionally, Environment Ohio called on Congress to enact an economy wide cap on carbon emissions that is reduced by at least 20 percent by 2020 and by 80 percent by 2050.

“Our carbon pollution problems are not all gloom and doom. The tools to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions are at our fingertips,” concluded Ms. Gomberg. “We are hopeful that the newly elected Congresswoman Kilroy will ensure that America’s economic recovery plan puts us on the path to a clean energy future that will reduce our carbon pollution and secure our economy for the long term.”

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Environment Ohio is a statewide, citizen-based environmental advocacy organization.

NOTES ON METHODOLOGY:

“What’s at Stake: How Global Warming Threatens the Buckeye State” is a compilation of the most recent climate science. Much of background information was taken from The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change – the prestigious United Nations body that won a Nobel Prize last year for its work. They concluded the evidence of global warming is “unequivocal” and that human activities are responsible for most of the increase in global average temperatures.

Additional research included in the report was collected from the National Climatic Data Center, World Meteorological Organization, U.S. Department of Energy, Ohio Sea Grant out of The Ohio State University, NASA scientists, and numerous other climate experts. Please see the endnotes of the full report for a list of scientific papers and studies that were included in the report.