John Clayton grew up on a farm in Poweshiek County, which he now farms. He is a member of Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement. 

We’ve not made progress in climate solutions by expanding wind and solar energy and promoting ethanol and methane. Former Iowa Governor and U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, who is now CEO of the World Food Prize, noted that manure can be converted into a source of energy. However, manure methane gas leaks during processing, which renders this gas ineffective in reducing emissions. Methane is 120 times more potent as a warming agent than carbon dioxide.

The main issue is that “climate solutions” only work if we reduce our reliance on coal and oil and halt methane leaks. Despite the rise in wind and solar power, global warming hasn’t slowed, because energy use has expanded, leading to increased fossil fuel consumption that offsets the benefits of clean energy.

According to a NASA-led study published in 2023, “A 2-degree rise in global temperatures is considered a critical threshold above which dangerous and cascading effects of human-generated climate change will occur.” Realistically, preventing a 2-degree rise is no longer a feasible goal.

Climate scientists point out that burning fossil fuels releases sulfur and other particulates into the atmosphere, which reflect sunlight energy back out into space. As a result, reducing fossil fuel use enables more solar energy to hit the Earth’s surface, which, combined with the trillions of tons of carbon humans have already emitted to the atmosphere, will push global temperatures higher.

Additionally, rising temperatures are expected to trigger tipping points, such as the melting of the Greenland ice sheet and the collapse of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation, a large ocean current system. That would lead to a temperature rise of more than 2 degrees Celsius. At this stage, avoiding such an outcome becomes impossible.

We hope that extreme weather events prompt political leaders to become rational and reduce our reliance on fossil fuels. While scientists rely on logical analysis, politics often appears today to be driven by emotion based on fallacies rather than reason. An example is the Epstein Files controversy, which is causing significant upset among MAGA supporters—a political base that influences President Donald Trump, the U.S. Supreme Court, and both chambers of Congress. The concern here is not about climate change or other policy issues; instead, it’s rooted in conspiracy theories. This irrational monomania political behavior stands in the way of addressing the dangerous consequences of a climate crisis.

In conclusion, dwelling on doom and gloom won’t solve anything. Rational thought can guide us toward hope. We may not prevent vast suffering or deaths, but we can lessen the scale of the catastrophe and find ways to improve.

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Top image is by leolintang, available via Shutterstock.