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Experts Break Down New Report On Climate Change And Impact On Iowa

River to River, hosted by Ben Kieffer

Human influence beginning in the 20th Century on to the present "unequivocally" warmed our planet. Without action, severe weather and increased temperature will only continue, according to the report.

The United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change released a report confirming that humans using fossil fuels has caused the oceans and land to warm. This change has contributed to droughts, wildfires and floods devastating today's communities. But if we are sequestering as much carbon as we are producing by 2050, the report further confirms that we can limit global warming to 1.5 degrees C above pre-industrial levels.

This kind of worldwide impact can be a little hard to connect to our lives. For this episode of River to River, host Ben Kieffer speaks with two climate scientists about what's in the report and what it means for Iowans.

Guests:

  • Eugene “Gene” Takle, distinguished emeritus professor in the Department of Agronomy at Iowa State University
  • Bill Gutowski, professor of meteorology in the Department of Geological & Atmospheric Science at Iowa State University
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Ben Kieffer is the host of IPR's River to River
Zachary Oren Smith is a reporter covering Eastern Iowa