MANGILAO, Guam — The Pacific Regional Integrated Sciences and Assessments Program representatives presented their findings on changes in Guam’s climate at the University of Guam College of Liberal Arts and Social Science Lecture Hall on Oct. 28, 2019.
Their research comes from the Fourth National Climate Assessment, which was published on Black Friday last year.
Sustained Climate Assessment Specialist Zena Grecni reported that the Earth’s climate has seen a substantial increase in the past decades and is projected to rise even more dramatically in the future.
“Right now, we’re dumping about 110 million tons of global warming inducing pollutants into that atmosphere, into that thin fragile layer every day,” said Grecni.
Islands like Guam are on the frontlines of climate change and experience the damaging effects first-hand.
Grecni said climate on Guam is projected to become hotter and dryer and severe storms and stronger typhoons are also projected to become more frequent in the future.
“It’s getting hot,” Grecni said. “Hot days have increased from an average of zero days in the 1950s to a recent maximum of 120 days in 2016; days above 90 degrees Fahrenheit.”
Sea level rise globally is projected to increase by four feet, said Grecni. She continues, saying that sea level rise in becoming apparent on Guam through common flooding which are increasing in frequency.
Grecni also reported that sea surface temperatures are rising which results in major coral bleaching events on Guam.
However, sections of Guam’s coral reefs are becoming more resilient against higher sea surface temperatures.
In addition, she said ocean acidification has been changing the ocean’s chemistry and has made it harder for organisms that rely on calcium, such as snails or mollusks, to survive.
Grecni also discussed the importance of island nations in the discussion of global climate change.
“Islands have shown that no place is too small to make a difference. Islands have been some of our main leaders in climate negotiations globally,” Grecni said. “Guam has political and scientific framework to be a leader in climate adaptation and planning.”
The Pacific RISA Program was established in 2003 and is funded by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Climate Programs Office.
“This program strives to enhance Pacific Island Communities’ abilities to plan for and respond to changing climate,” said Dr. Wendy Miles, research fellow and program manager at the Pacific RISA Program. “We do this by conducting interdisciplinary research and building relationships with local, national and regional stakeholders.”
NCA4 is mandated by the United States Congress under section 106 of the Global Change Research Act of 1990.
Initially introduced under former President Ronald Regan’s administration, the National Climate Assessment is conducted every four years to analyze the effects of global climate change and global climate trends for the next 25 to 100 years.
To view the full report of the Fourth National Climate Assessment, you can visit https://nca2018.globalchange.gov/.