Measurable trends show our climate is getting hotter, drier and more unpredictable. Compare the past ten years (2003-2012) to the decade before and you\u2019ll find Nashville\u2019s mean annual temperature rose 0.7<\/span>o<\/sup><\/span>F, an unthinkable gain by meteorological standards.<\/span> [1]<\/a>\u00a0Meanwhile, the summer of 2012 was the second driest on record for all of middle Tennessee: In June, The Tennessean<\/i> reported that Nashville received a paltry 0.26\u201d of rainfall. The drought forced nearby Williamson County to issue a mandatory restriction on water use and irrigation\u00a0<\/span>[2]<\/a>.\u00a0And\u00a0the Southeast is getting hit by more frequent and intense tornadoes; earlier and longer-lasting tornado seasons are to blame for increasing the risk of events like the April 2011 string of twisters that destroyed Tuscaloosa. Overall, 3,527 monthly weather records were broken for heat, rain, and snow across the US in 2012 according to the National Climatic Data Center (NCDC), and one hundred of these records belonged to Tennessee.<\/span><\/p>\n STAYING THE COURSE<\/b> As the impacts of warmer temperatures continue to mount, are city leaders doing enough to prepare Nashville and its residents for the future costs of climate change?<\/span><\/p>\n Most major cities in the United States, such as Los Angeles, NYC, Chicago<\/a>, Portland<\/a> and Miami, have plans in place to first slow down, then survive the oncoming hazards of global warming. These cities are leading the way in creating detailed adaptation plans for their states<\/a>, which the EPA defines as plans that \u201clay out a strategy, including specific policy recommendations, that a state will use to address climate change and reduce its greenhouse gas emissions.\u201d For example, the main goal of the Chicago Climate Action Plan is \u201cto reduce our emissions and prepare for change.\u201d Its strategies focus on five different areas: energy-efficient architecture, clean energy, efficient transportation, reduced waste, and adaptation.\u00a0Their plan puts innovation and education on the forefront of the city\u2019s defenses to protect the wellbeing of all citizens.<\/span><\/p>\n Yet despite the red flags, Nashville has chosen to make no explicit moves in regards to climate change or even express the need to prepare. In fact, Tennessee is one of just 18 states that has yet to complete a state climate change action plan.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThe attitude of Metro Public Works has been geared towards environmental consciousness the past few years,\u201d says Steve Haruch, Culture Editor at Nashville Scene <\/i>and author of an August 2010 article<\/a>[3]<\/a> on the effects of climate change in Nashville. \u201cThere are efforts toward mitigation and adaptation to be as environmentally conscious as possible moving forward, but nothing directly addressing climate change.\u201d\u00a0He points to a few examples of Nashville trying to lower its carbon footprint, like the green renovations of Deaderick Street in the heart of downtown. (Nashville\u2019s \u201cgreen street\u201d is now divided by a median of plants and boasts new LED traffic lights and pedestrian signals, rain gardens, pervious concrete, and solar-powered parking meters.\u00a0<\/span>[4]<\/a>\u00a0But Metro Public Works is designed to run on a project-by-project basis, Haruch notes. It\u2019s not equipped to address the big picture. Instead, these sustainability development projects are slapping a Band-Aid over the crack in a dam set to burst.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n BECOMING THE NORM<\/strong><\/p>\n Jason Adkins, Professor and Environmental Projects Coordinator at Trevecca Nazarene University, believes the consequences of not having an adaptation plan spells disaster for the city\u2019s poorest and most vulnerable residents. He describes the toll that extreme heat has on vulnerable populations, compounded each year by intensified summers: \u201cPeople experiencing homelessness are forced to endure extreme heat that\u2019s becoming all the more frequent,\u201d he says. \u201cThey don\u2019t have water. They don\u2019t have shelter. The homeless are liable to suffer from dehydration, stroke, and over-exhaustion.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cClimate change hits the poor first and worst,\u201d adds Adkins.<\/span><\/p>\n Perhaps no other event has caused as much damage and hazard to the city as the Tennessee Floods of May 2010, when torrential rains engulfed much of the city for over a week. The rain killed 10 in Davidson County, flooded major tourist attractions such as the Grand Ole Opry, Bridgestone Arena and LP Field, and cost well over $1.5 billion in damage alone (not factoring in loss of revenue.) <\/span>[5]<\/a><\/p>\n But only the underserved neighborhoods lacking proper infrastructure lost everything.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cWe called it \u2018a thousand year flood\u2019,\u201d Adkins says. \u201cThe lowest-income housing was next to the creeks that flooded, and entire homeless camps washed away. These once-rare events \u2013 the acceleration of storms, diluting of banks and creeks, extreme heat, extreme drought, early springs and record rains \u2013 are becoming the norm.\u201d<\/p>\n CONNECTING THE DOTS Despite vague promises from Mayor Karl Dean to make Nashville more sustainable and eco-conscious, both government officials and citizens have been slow to respond to the significant threats to its economy and residents posed by climate change.<\/span><\/p>\n The Southeast region is, as Haruch dryly notes, \u201ca state where schools can legally question evolution as a concept.\u201d This same attitude has shown itself in the city\u2019s tepid resolve against climate change. There\u2019s little hard data to conclude whether or not climate change acceptance is lower in more conservative states, but difficulty in pushing legislation for green energy may be a sign of apathy and reluctance to change.<\/span><\/p>\n Clearly climate change has had trouble gaining traction in Nashville. Haruch notes the difficulty in telling \u201cthe climate story\u201d in such a way that people will care about the issue enough to act before devastation hits. \u201cClimate change is thought of as something that affects coastal areas or \u2018somewhere else\u2019 besides our home,\u201d he says. \u201cPeople aren\u2019t connecting the dots yet.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n But we will. Today, it\u2019s January and 70<\/span>o<\/sup><\/span>F. This afternoon, a flash-flood thunderstorm ripped through Nashville and spawned 21 tornadoes across Middle Tennessee. Wilson and Hickman counties reported severe damage, and one Nashville resident was killed by falling debris from the storm\u00a0<\/span>[6]<\/a>\u00a0And while climate skeptics are all too keen to declare that not every intense thunderstorm, period of drought, or unusually warm day can be linked to global warming, there are trends we cannot ignore. By staying the course and choosing not to create a plan of action, we\u2019re taking a huge gamble\u2014a risk that scientific research confirms will end in catastrophe. For the sake of Nashville\u2019s economy and people, particularly our most vulnerable populations, it\u2019s time for the city to get serious and prepare before the next disaster hits.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n [1]<\/a> \u201cMonthly Average Mean Temperatures at Nashville, Tennessee (1871-Present)\u201d http:\/\/www.srh.noaa.gov\/ohx\/?n=monthlymeantemps<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n [2]<\/a> Bundgaard, Chris. \u201cDrought forces mandatory water restrictions.\u201d WKRN-TV Nashville. 5 July 2012. http:\/\/www.wkrn.com\/story\/18958667\/drought-forces-mandatory-water-restrictions<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n [3]<\/a> Haruch, Steve. \u201cHot Problems.\u201d http:\/\/www.nashvillescene.com\/nashville\/climate-change-isnt-coming-to-nashville-its-already-here-and-the-future-might-be-hotter-than-we-can-handle\/Content?oid=1739432&showFullText=true<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n [4]<\/a> Johnson, Elizabeth. \u201cRenovated Deaderick Street enhances Nashville’s city core.\u201d The Tennessean. <\/i>Jun 2010. http:\/\/www.tennessean.com\/article\/20100615\/DAVIDSON\/100615071\/Renovated-Deaderick-Street-enhances-Nashville-s-city-core<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n [5]<\/a>Edwards, Joe. \u201cNashville flood damage tops $1.5 billion; Grand Ole Opry stage underwater.\u201d May 2010. http:\/\/www.csmonitor.com\/From-the-news-wires\/2010\/0509\/Nashville-flood-damage-tops-1.5-billion-Grand-Ole-Opry-stage-underwater<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n [6]<\/a> WKRN-TV Nashville. \u201cStorms spawn 21 tornadoes, leave 1 dead in Nashville.\u201d 6 Feb 2013. http:\/\/www.wkrn.com\/story\/20761477\/tennessee-weather-wednesday<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Sweating without a Plan: How Nashville\u2019s inaction towards climate change could be the biggest risk of all by Summy Lau | 29 January 2013 Humidity, dehydration and a constant sheen of sweat characterized the few weeks I spent in Nashville during July 2010. As a Chicago native, I didn\u2019t realize that the scorching summer temperatures […]
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