It might be the Pope, it might be the drought, and it might be the regional wildfires. For whatever reason, a series of studies conducted this year reveal that the American public is becoming more concerned about global warming and its climate change consequences.

A Yale study1 reported in April, long before the Pope’s May encyclical letter urging science and religion to work together to address the problem, that a growing level of concern exists among Americans about global warming. Unsurprisingly, since these are where the greatest impact is being felt, the regions expressing the highest level of concern about global warming were the southwestern and western states where the majority of counties exhibit a level of concern above 50%. Eastern inland states, where the problems have been less severe, exhibited the lowest levels of concern.

A national opinion study released in October by Muhlenberg College and University of Michigan researchers2 then reported that 70% of Americans believe there is solid evidence of global warming over the last four decades, a value only 2% below the 2008 recorded high of 72%. At the same time, the number denying the existence of global warming has plummeted to a record low of just 16%. Even Republicans (56% up from 47% six months ago) have joined Independents (69%) and Democrats (79%) with over half agreeing. In an election all these scores would be reported as landslides.

Finally, a University of Texas (Austin) study3 revealed among Democrats there is 90% positive response to the question “Do you think climate change is occurring?” The same study also revealed that among Republicans, the agreement is 59%.

Despite the rejection by climate science deniers of the data and conclusions, study after study over the last ten years has shown that over 95% of climate scientists accept the conclusions that global warming is happening and humans are contributing through emissions of atmospheric pollutants.

Science is not partisan. The basis of science is collecting data to test hypotheses; data have no partisan tilt. The problem is that many individuals have been imposing their partisan preconceptions on the data and deciding to accept or reject both data and conclusions on that partisan basis. What these studies show, however, is that Americans – who have been inundated with distortions and deceptions from fossil fuel corporations, partisan political commentators, and politicians themselves – are finally seeing through the fog.   Among Americans of all partisan loyalties, climate science is becoming, as it should be, a non-partisan issue.

We have recently learned that just like tobacco company researchers before them who knew the dangers of smoking while the corporate executives denied it, Exxon researchers have known about the global warming impacts of their product since the 1970s. For over forty years, fossil fuel executives have exhibited a callous disregard for this information. As knowledge of their concealment grows among potential voters, politicians and commentators who still spread misinformation as they serve the short term profit motives of fossil fuel corporations rather than promote the wellbeing of their constituents and future generations will likely be rejected.

Along with most western states, Oregon has suffered a complex of trends exacerbated by global warming. If we had experienced any one of these acting alone, we could reasonably dismiss it as just another aberrant weather pattern similar to what we have seen before. However, if we look at them collectively, we should connect the dots and seek the common cause.   A series of trends are evident in the data over the last four decades: rising temperature, increased number of days over 100 degrees Fahrenheit, reduced snowfall, earlier spring snowmelt, and reduced soil moisture. These trends have most likely conspired to increase the fire risk with which we are all too aware. In this context, the data tell us that the western wildfire season has extended two and a half months over this four decade period with an increase in both forest acres burned and the number of wildfires over 1000 acres.

It is disturbing, then to see that many of our elected representatives still cling to the view that there is no global warming. Such a view neither serves their current constituents nor future residents of their districts. In a global context, Oregon may be but a minor contributor to the problem, but we must each and all, take responsibility for our actions and become part of the solution rather than continue to be the problem.

Alan Journet, Co-facilitator, Southern Oregon Climate Action Now