Dear Editor: The latest study on the climate crisis by 200 climate scientists indicates that the Earth is perilously close to several “tipping points.” These are moments when the Earth has warmed beyond 1.5 degrees Celsius, causing the Earth to be warmed so much that certain side effects become irreversible. The study looks at 26 different systems and points especially to five of them: 1. Melting of the Greenland ice sheet. 2. Melting of the Antarctic ice sheets. 3. The dying off of the warm-water coral reefs. 4. The thawing of permafrost. 5. Impacts to a North Atlantic Ocean current.

There is still hope for reversing carbon dioxide and methane in the atmosphere, but decisive action is paramount for the U.S. and all Industrial nations of the world. I have followed the polls regarding the climate crisis for several decades in the hopes it would become a high priority to citizens and those in power in the U.S. Sadly, until recently, it has been given little priority. The bipartisan Infrastructure and Inflation Reduction Act bills, recently passed, give it the greatest deference thus far regarding the expenditures in “green energy.” The most recent poll regarding those who believe in the climate crisis shows Democrats at 95%, Independents at 75% and Republicans at 50%.

I think these optimistic figures reflect the fact that people are beginning to see the effects in where they live. The young are particularly concerned because they are the ones who could suffer the most with inadequate attention to the warming of the planet. Inaction could lead to a planet unfit to live in! I hope to live long enough to see the issue become our top priority.

Tom Heffernan Ridgway