Here's what the first six months of 2012 brought:
• The hottest January to June ever recorded in the continental United States.
• More than 22,000 daily high temperature records tied or broken.
• The largest drought declaration in over 50 years, with more than two-thirds of the continental United States in drought at the end of July.
• One of the most destructive freak derecho storms in history.
• Fires in Colorado that have destroyed more than 700 homes.
Unfortunately, the first half of 2012 is not the exception. It's becoming the new normal. In 2011, for instance, an unprecedented 14 disastrous weather events resulted in an estimated $53 billion in damage –- not including health costs. But the trend goes back much further. In fact, the 13 warmest years ever recorded have occurred since 1997, according to the United Nations World Meteorological Organization. June 2012 also marks the 328th consecutive month with a global temperature above the 20th century average.
The extreme weather of 2012 has already caused billions of dollars worth of damage, but again, that's just part of the trend. Learn more from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA’s) billion-dollar weather/climate disaster page.
There's little doubt that climate change is contributing to the extreme weather disasters we've been experiencing. Numerous studies, such as this one conducted in connection with NOAA's 2011 State of the Climate report, shows the clear links between extreme weather and human-induced climate change.
There are solutions to address extreme weather tied to climate change. For starters, we need our lawmakers to quit ignoring climate change and start limiting carbon pollution that is heating our planet and increasing the intensity of extreme weather.