Climate change has also been a regular visitor to our national parks with the intention to stay for a while. The mixed bag of travelers brought on by the global warming bus includes a garden variety of invasive species called the Red Brome. This weed-like scrub thrives in the higher temps nourished by the increase CO2 in the atmosphere and is spreading much like the wildfires it feeds throughout the high desert landscape of Joshua Tree National Park. The Yucca Brevifolia, also known as the Joshua Tree, from which the park gets it’s name, could very well vanish over the next 100 years, according to Professor Kirsten Erin Ironside from Northern Arizona University and Dr. Ken Cole of the U.S. Geological Survey. Climate models from both experts show an alarming increase in temperatures affecting the long term health of the living iconic landmark. According to Michael Cipra of the National Parks Conservation Association, (NPCA), if the lanky tree goes by the wayside, so will all the animals which use it as a “living hotel.” Another national park which will see great changes made by humanities exhaust will be Glacier National Park, in less than 20 years all the glaciers will become small enough to be made into margaritas. Reducing the emissions which contribute to hotter summers sure seems the way to go, that’s if your interested in renewing your national park’s annual pass.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, April 8th, 2009 at 8:23 pm and is filed under Green Solutions, clean skies, environmental stewardship, weather patterns. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.