From USA Today: Report: Climate change behind rise in weather disasters

12:53PM EST October 10. 2012 – The number of natural disasters per year has been rising dramatically on all continents since 1980, but the trend is steepest for North America where countries have been battered by hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, searing heat and drought, a new report says. The study being released today by Munich Re, the world’s largest reinsurance firm, sees climate change driving the increase and predicts those influences will continue in years ahead, though a number of experts question that conclusion. Whatever the causes, the report shows that if you thought the weather has been getting worse, you’re right.

Two words: Oh, please. This is easily dispelled by looking at the data. Apparently Doyle Rice can’t be bothered to do some basic research.

Time for a graphjam, starting with this:

But wait, there’s more:

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How about Hurricanes?

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How about heat waves?

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Droughts

Finally I wonder why Doyle Rice takes the word of a company with a vested interest in such a report? Showing that there are “more disasters” is a prelude to an insurance rate increase justification.

To his credit, he at least got some other views:

However, other experts take issue with Munich Re’s findings. “Thirty years is not an appropriate length of time for a climate analysis, much less finding causal factors like climate change,” says Roger Pielke, a professor of environmental studies at the University of Colorado. Another reinsurer, Axa, isn’t quite sure of the link either: “While a clear upward trend arises from the figure with respect to the number of reported natural events, the attribution of this rise to a climate change signal should be investigated very cautiously,” the French company says in its report “Climate Risks” released earlier this month. Atmospheric scientist Clifford Mass of the University of Washington also has a problem with Munich Re’s findings, saying that once the data are adjusted for population there is no recent upward trend in tornado or hurricane damages. Also, he adds that there is no evidence that global warming is causing more extreme weather in the USA. Hoppe, however, says that even if we adjust for population spread and increased property values, Munich Re still says there were significant increases in the costs of weather disasters over the past few years.

But that doesn’t excuse him saying:

Whatever the causes, the report shows that if you thought the weather has been getting worse, you’re right.

When the data doesn’t support it. Once again it is time to review the essay I wrote last year:

Why it seems that severe weather is “getting worse” when the data shows otherwise – a historical perspective

You can send Doyle Rice a message here on the right sidebar.

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