The National Climate Assessment shows the northern plains region can expect declining crop yields and an increased abundance of weeds and other invasive species as a result of climate change.
South Dakota US Senator Mike Rounds says there’s agreement among his senate colleagues that the climate is changing. He says the challenge is how to respond.
The National Climate Assessment occurs every four years.
Senator Mike Rounds says the country is approaching a time when to address a changing climate.
Right now, Rounds says those changes would hurt the US economy at the expense of the rest of the world.
“That’s where you still have disagreement between those who say simply this is the most important thing and we should do whatever it takes in our country and just hope the rest of the world comes along,” Rounds says. “Versus those of us that say, we’re still going to maintain a strong economy—that’s our responsibility. We’re going to do what we can to try and address the issues upfront. If we can do some longer term things to slow down the climate change which is occurring, we would try to do that as well.”
Rounds says that’s why the US pulled out of the Paris Climate Agreement.
Findings from the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology-led Regional Climate Assessment Workshop are included in the national report.
William Capehart leads the Atmospheric Science Program at School of Mines. He says that argument is trivial.
“You have a choice to participate,” Capehart says. “I think we should increase out dependence on renewable resources, for example. I think we should slowly ween ourselves off of fossil fuels, for example. But that’s going to be a decision that not just South Dakota is expected to hold the burden of. It’s going to be everyone else. And there’s no excuse for us to say, ‘No, we’re not going to do it because no one else is.’”
The Climate Assessment says in addition to declining yields, the region will need to adapt to changing water demands with warming-driven losses in snowpack and higher evaporation rates reducing the amount of available water.