Winter often is an unpopular season. Indeed, in the United States, we use a term from wildlife, snowbirds, to describe people, typically pensioners, who spend parts of spring and summer in cooler areas such as New England while residing in Arizona or Florida during autumn and winter.
Real snowbirds have similar options but rely on the regular changing of the seasons in order to provide a natural signal as to when it is time to migrate. However, if there is more than the slightest shift in how the seasons change, there may be no food for the snowbirds when they arrive in their temporary home.
In the case of the movement of winter into spring, in North America, it is a documented fact that spring now starts about 10 days earlier than it used to. Why does this matter? Well, tree budding, the hatching of animal species prematurely, earlier blooms, etc. all are devastating side effects. In other words, entire biospheres are driven by temperature trends and the changing of the seasons.
As I lived in New England for many years and my immediate family still resides there, the natural production of maple syrup from the vast forests of the north is very personal to me. The maple industry already has seen marked changes in how the trees produce sap. Indeed, much like bee keepers and honey farms in warmer areas, maple farmers may find themselves with little to no raw material in the next few years.
We can argue as to the exact timing of the loss of these valuable natural products but the trend is unmistakable.
What can you do? The answers have not changed even as the damage to our environment continues to worsen. Embrace carbon neutrality. Do it today.
Where to begin? There are many fine choices but my top recommendation is
CarbonFund.org
Fomenting the Triple Bottom Line
Corbett Kroehler
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