Autumn

Today is the fall equinox, the first day of autumn. There are a few leaves turning in the trees and it was a relatively cool day, but autumn in Denver is not as dramatic as it is in the East.

If the story I heard on the radio this week about global warming's effect on Colorado is correct, our weather could start to look more like New Mexico's soon. (Full report here with thanks to Coyote Gulch for providing the link). Temperature increases of 1-4 degrees in average temperature could dramatically shrink the skiing season, reduce the reliability of water supplies for front range cities, and have major negative effects on horticulture in the state. Cactus farming just isn't as commercially viable as growing peaches.

Unfortunately, until policy makers and the general public make the connection between global warming and things like rising sea levels and increased storm activity that the rest of the world has seen the Katrina/Rita duo as an iconic example of, it is hard to see how we are going to make any progress on this front. And, since few nations (even the E.U. and China) are really in a good position to pressure the U.S. to act, the result is likely to be that the U.S. will not act.