Climate impacts to flora and fauna topic of Oct. 16 Edmonds Waterfront Center presentation
Our changing climate is creating threats to vital biodiversity, causing local species survival rates to decline. In the Pacific Northwest, climate change may cause the complete removal of some species from a specific geographic area due to climate impacts like increasing heat, wildfires, sea level rise and droughts, to name a few.
On land, rising temperatures are forcing animals and plants to move to higher elevations or higher latitudes. For birds, the ability to find food and reproduce is concerning. For trees and plants, while gradual climate changes can be tolerated, the erratic rapid changes that are projected in the future “exceed the capacity of some species to grow, reproduce, and survive” (climatehubs.usda.gov). Some tree species have already seen significant decline, one being the western red cedar, which is thought to have been caused “by drought during the growing season and reduced April snowpack” (nwcasc.uw.edu).
Rising ocean temperatures increase the risk of irreversible loss of marine and coastal ecosystems in our state, impacting marine life, such as salmon and shellfish. Changes in sea surface temperatures, sea level rise and ocean acidification are, according to UW’s Climate Impacts Group, “expected to have implications throughout Puget Sound’s marine food web.” Additionally, sea level rise can lead to flooding, saltwater contamination and habitat loss.
To learn more about both the issues and possible solutions of these challenges, you are invited to attend the second of a three-part panel discussion series on Climate Change and Edmonds, sponsored by the Mayors’ Climate Protection Committee:
Three topics on “Climate Impacts on Flora and Fauna” will be featured at the meeting at 6 p.m. Oct. 16 in Community Room B at the Edmonds Waterfront Center. For those wishing to attend virtually, the Zoom link is edmondswa-gov.zoom.us/j/83764343873.
Speakers include:
– Bill Derry, president of the Pilchuck Audubon Society – Restore the Edmonds Marsh and its Estuary and how it relates to climate change.