Summer's storms were supercharged

The ink was barely dry on Seth Borenstein's story "Science Says: Era of monster hurricanes roiling the Atlantic" (Daily Herald, Oct. 5) before it was already obsolete. As I write this, Hurricane Nate is about to make landfall in southeastern Louisiana, adding another chapter to the chronicle of destruction already written by Harvey, Irma, and Maria.

Borenstein's story pointed out that grouping storm activity into 30-year periods reveals a startling increase in the cumulative intensity of hurricanes over the last 167 seasons. That becomes clearest when the storms are measured not only by the wind speed categories 1 through 5 that we are all familiar with, but with a much better yardstick - Accumulated Cyclone Energy - that also accounts for the size of each storm and how long it lasts. And even that method doesn't account for extremes of rainfall and consequent flooding, like that which brought such misery to the residents of Houston following Hurricane Harvey.

Scientists, cautious by nature, disagree on whether old storm records are complete enough to put firm numbers on the increase in seasonal intensity. However, unlike many scientific debates, this one must not be seen as purely academic. The trend is perfectly consistent with the predictions of climate models. More destructive hurricane seasons translate into tens of billions of dollars of economic damage, not to mention the destruction of American lives and health.

The earth is a huge, complex system that reacts sluggishly but inexorably to human interference. The greenhouse gases we pour into the air today will supercharge the storms that our grandchildren will have to survive. We cannot afford to wait decades before taking prudent action to stop climate change from spinning out of control. Every day that passes increases that risk.

Rick Knight, Illinois State Coordinator

Citizens' Climate Lobby

Brookfield