Two worrying indicators.

Two items in the news recently could be a worrying indicator of the future.

The first is the three holes that have suddenly appeared in the Siberian tundra and are reportedly caused by a methane explosion. There have always been worries about the possibility of a warming climate melting the permafrost and releasing methane from the frozen soil. This soil really consists of massive amounts of organic matter, grass and wood which is half rotted and held in suspension by the extreme cold. If the ice melts the organic matter rots and huge quantities of methane are released. As methane is a greenhouse gas that is 72 times as powerful as CO2 over a twenty year period this has the potential to change the world’s climate very rapidly.

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The second incident is the sudden algae bloom in Lake Erie which has suddenly erupted and turned the water toxic and unsuitable for drinking. This is caused primarily by phosphates in the water which come from farming activities and it is triggered by warm water temperatures. The worry here is that tens of millions of people rely on water from the Great Lakes and that the climate is forecast to increase the temperature in the region by over three degrees centigrade this century.
Two swallows do not make a summer but these incidents highlight the type of problem that a warming world can bring.