The Question We've All Been Asking - Where is Winter?

Where is Winter?

Winter has become the fastest-warming season for nearly 75% of the United States. Many areas are experiencing spring-like weather in what should be mid-winter, and have seen tremendous decreases in snowfall. The Great Lakes are experiencing near-record-low ice coverage this winter. A classic El Nino pattern and the warming climate are to blame. The lack of snow and cold is a huge hit to the tourism industry in northern states that depend on it for activities such as skiing, snowmobiling, snowboarding, ice fishing, and more. This spring-like warmth also opened the door for spring-like weather recently, with Wisconsin seeing its first ever February tornado.

Mary Gilbert, CNN

Potential Fraud with British Wind Farms

Dozens of British wind farms run by some of Europe’s biggest energy companies have been routinely overestimating the amount power they’ll produce. In turn, market records and power traders estimate that is costing consumers millions each year in electricity bills. Britain already has an outdated electrical network, where windy days are providing too much wind power and overloading the system. When that happens, grid operators must pay firms to not generate wind power, costing consumers hundreds of millions each year. When firms overestimate the amount of power they think they’ll produce, it leads to even bigger payouts for turning off their production.

Gavin Finch, Todd Gillespie, Eric Fan, Jason Grotto, and Sam Dodge, Bloomberg

Oregon’s Air Quality Blamed on Climate Change

Air quality across the Pacific Northwest, especially Oregon, is expected to worsen over the next three decades. A new report suggests that the increase in prolonged wildfire seasons and persistent drought, as well as increases in the prevalence of tropospheric ozone and PM2.5 air pollutants are the main factors. Data from the EPA shows orange air quality days in the PNW, where the air quality index is above 100, exploded by as much as 477% between 2020 and 2021. Counties in southern and western Oregon are forecast to experience 40 or more days in 2024 where the air quality index is over 100.

Meira Gebel and Andrew Freedman, Axios Portland

What’s in the works for ClimateWatch?

Our goal is to bring you the latest in climate issues, trends, forecasts, innovations, and more. One way we’re hoping to do that in the future is by including an in-depth analysis from one of our experts! Stay tuned for that, you won’t want to miss it.