While most, but not all, of the developed world has moved on long ago from the “Is climate-change real?” debate and has begun taking steps to mitigate its effects, a large majority of Americans (ostriches) are still debating and denying all of the signs and science pointing to an assortment of global calamities within the next century if our current course isn’t altered immediately. Though this willfully ignorant segment of the U.S. population has no problem ignoring the possibility of waterlogged cities, water shortages, drought, resource wars, extreme energy costs, and increased food shortages/prices, there is one thing they prick their ears up and grab protest signs for every time; immigration.
Hey Limbaugh…You Care About Climate Change Now?
A new report ‘In Search of Shelter‘ has just been released highlighting climate-change affected ‘hotspots’ around the globe that will most likely see the first large displacements and subsequent migrations of people. The report, which was the result of a joint effort between the charity CARE, the United Nations University, and Columbia University, lists “dry bits of Africa; river systems in Asia; the interior and coast of Mexico and the Caribbean; and low islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans”, as areas where eco-migration is most likely to occur in the next 40 years.
The International Organization For Migration estimates that by 2050, with a peak Earth population of 9 billion people, there will be well over 200 million climate-change migrants flooding into ‘lifeboat’ areas around the globe seeking shelter and resources (though several other sources estimate this number to be closer to 700 million people). These ‘lifeboat’ areas will most likely be developed countries, like the U.S. and parts of Europe, as well as other more ‘geographically fortunate’ areas that will not feel the negative effects of climate-change as severely as the rest of the globe.
Needless to say, the majority, if not all, of these countries will not even come close to being able to handle such a mass of people; both from a logistical and resource standpoint. Not to mention the political quagmire that would surely ensue from debating the status of these immigrants as forced or voluntary refugees. The current definitions and applications of the terms wouldn’t even necessarily apply to the majority seeking asylum. One sees how hot and bothered the U.S. gets now when around 500,000 Mexicans run the border every year. Think of the reaction if it were 10 or 20 times that number. There could never be enough walls or Minutemen to deal with a influx like that.
So doesn’t it make since to take the steps necessary to prevent such migrations from occurring in the first place? If people refuse to recognize the likelihood of environmental consequences resulting from human actions/inactions, then perhaps they’ll be able to see the subsequent human consequences. Though science can still be viewed as ‘inaccurate’ by some shockingly large numbers of people still huddled under the few remaining rocks of modern society, the human condition is well known to all of us. This being the case, it should be clear to everyone that human beings, when in survival situations, will do pretty much anything to stay alive. Now picture 200-700 million people all in this state of mind. Still don’t care about climate-change?
The Good: The findings of this report have been thoroughly verified by organizations and universities extremely well-versed in matters regarding immigration and climate-change. This report has come out well in advance of when these migrations are supposedly to begin to occur.
The Bad: As is the case with most urgent reports relating to facts and highly likely probabilities, there will still most likely be a very large contingent still unwilling to change habits or at least even listen.
The Bottom-Line: These predictions, while dire in most respects, are still likely avoidable. But like everything related to combating climate-change, it will take a global unified effort.
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