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An audible murmur ran through the crowd when images of flooding in Hamburg and the Glenwood, Iowa, area flashed on the screen.
They’d come to Creighton University on Sunday to hear noted climate scientist James Hansen speak about global warming, but in the back of so many minds was that climate change isn’t about polar bears and sea level rise. The consequences can be felt in the heart of a continent, too.
More extreme weather is one of the three most destructive effects of climate change, Hansen told the crowd. The two others are sea level rise and species extinction.
Taken by themselves, floods such as those that occurred in March in Nebraska and Iowa don’t prove much, he said, but a look at weather globally does. “There is an increased frequency of climate extremes, which is not natural,” he said with the slide as his backdrop. “People around here should recognize climate extremes.”
An Iowa native and former director of the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies, Hansen has been credited with bringing global warming to the national consciousness during testimony before Congress in 1988.
“The 100-year flood now occurs more than once a century, and don’t be surprised by a 500-year flood,” he said.
“Dry places (like the Middle East and U.S. Southwest) become drier, wet places (like Southeast Asia) become wetter,” he said. “At a place that is sometimes wet and dry (like Nebraska), those extremes tend to get greater.”
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People watch from the Huron Street bridge as water from Willow Creek flows just under bridge in Missouri Valley, Iowa on Wednesday, March 13, 2019.
Standing water from melting snow and rain reflects the evening sky as a truck travels north on Highway 275 near Fremont, Nebraska, on Wednesday, March 13, 2019.
Nebraska State Patrol Trooper Keith Bell surveys the water levels as floodwaters continue to rise near Salt Creek in Ashland, Nebraska, Thursday, March 14, 2019.
Sean Hanger, of Ashland and his son Aiden, navigate the floodwaters which continue to rise near Jack Anderson Ball Park in Ashland, Nebraska, Thursday, March 14, 2019.
Both Iowa and Nebraska were hit hard by flooding earlier this year and are in need of the disaster aid. Bell Creek, on the east side of Arlington, Nebraska flooded parts of the town on Thursday, March 14.
Blake Japp pulls his remote control truck out of the water while playing in the shallow floodwaters of Bell Creek on Thursday, March 14, 2019, in Arlington, Nebraska.
Brent Schwindt of Norfolk, Nebraska, holds his son Paul, 4 months, as his wife Lacey Hansen sleeps on a blow up mattress at Lutheran High Northeast on Thursday, March 14, 2019, in Norfolk. The school was being used as an evacuation shelter for people affected by flooding in the area.
Motorists are forced to turn around as West Maple Road west of 216th Street is closed as floodwaters rise over the road near the Elkhorn River in Elkhorn, Nebraska, Friday, March 15, 2019.
Adam Jensen races to load his Lincoln Navigator outside his home near Mayne and Condron Streets in Valley, Nebraska. With three kids and a dog they plan to head to a hotel in Iowa. Valley residents were ordered to evacuate because of flooding on Friday, March 15, 2019.
Paul Schmidt walks with his children Calvin and Avery while looking back at floodwaters over Broad Street in Fremont Nebraska on Friday, March 15, 2019.
At sunrise, Norfolk City Engineer Steven Rames inspects the levy next to the Northeast Community College on Friday, March 15, 2019, in Norfolk, Nebraska. Rames said the levy was stable and that the water had dropped 8 to 9 feet.
Volunteers race to stave off floodwater by sandbagging along Old U.S. Highway 275 between Morningside Road and Downing Street in Fremont, Nebraska on Saturday, March 16, 2019.
Volunteers race to stave off floodwater by sandbagging along Old U.S. Highway 275 between Morningside Road and Downing Street in Fremont, Nebraska on Saturday, March 16, 2019.
Anthony Thomson, left, and Melody Walton make their way out of the flooded blocks near 1st and M Streets after a visit to Melody's house where they loaded up supplies in Fremont, Nebraska on Saturday, March 16, 2019.
A crowd gathers to watch residents make their way in and out of the flooded blocks near 1st and M Streets in Fremont, Nebraska on Saturday, March 16, 2019.
Bonnie Warner, Barb Pierce, Katie Cameron and Amanda Pierce cheer for a convoy of Hy-Vee trucks escorted by the Nebraska State Patrol and the Army National on Sunday, March 17, 2019. The trucks delivered much needed supplies to the city that was surrounded by floodwaters.
Hy-Vee staff rush to offload a convoy of trucks that were escorted by the Nebraska State Patrol and the Army National Guard Sunday, March 17, 2019 in Fremont, Neb. The trucks delivered much needed supplies to the city that was surrounded by floodwaters.
People gather in downtown Hamburg, Iowa to watch the floodwaters creep closer to a barrier built on Sunday, March 17, 2019. The levee protecting the town from the floodwaters of the Missouri River broke, flooding the town.
Paul and Margaret Vorthmann's flood damaged home in shown in Missouri Valley, Iowa on Monday March 19, 2019. The family began the process to salvage items from the home and clean.
Amelia Fritz, left, hugs her daughter Heather Rockwell in Glenwood, Iowa on Monday, March 18, 2019. They were evacuated from Pacific Junction, Iowa after floodwaters hit the town. They are part of 15 relatives all staying in the same house or in a camper in the front driveway.
Residents such as Andrew Bauer and Shawn Shonerd of the Bellwood Lakes neighborhood are among some who can only access their home by boat on Monday March 18, 2019.
Shawn Shonerd, left, and his partner Andrew Bauer, who live in Bellwood Lakes are surrounded by large chunks of ice Monday March 18, 2019 after the historic flooding along the Platte River days prior in Bellwood, Nebraska.
Two vehicles on the property of Duane Graybill are in disarray in Bellwood, Nebraska, Monday, March 18 after flooding hit the Bellwood Lakes neighborhood.
Photos: Major flooding hit Nebraska and Iowa towns in March 2019
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People watch from the Huron Street bridge as water from Willow Creek flows just under bridge in Missouri Valley, Iowa on Wednesday, March 13, 2019.
CHRIS MACHIAN/THE WORLD-HERALD
The junction of Highway 275 and Highway 91 is flooded on Wednesday, March 13, 2019 just north of Scribner, Nebraska.
RYAN SODERLIN/THE WORLD-HERALD
Cody Stump walks through a flooded street in Hooper, Nebraska, on Wednesday, March 13, 2019.
RYAN SODERLIN/THE WORLD-HERALD
High water rolls through a street in Hooper, Nebraska, on Wednesday, March 13, 2019.
RYAN SODERLIN/THE WORLD-HERALD
High water floods a street in Hooper, Nebraska, near a trailer park on March 13.
RYAN SODERLIN/THE WORLD-HERALD
High water floods a street in Hooper, Nebraska, near an old bank building on Wednesday, March 13, 2019.
RYAN SODERLIN/THE WORLD-HERALD
Standing water from melting snow and rain reflects the evening sky as a truck travels north on Highway 275 near Fremont, Nebraska, on Wednesday, March 13, 2019.
RYAN SODERLIN/THE WORLD-HERALD
Crews from the Ashland, Mead and Yutan Fire and Rescue assist with evacuating the final residents in Ashland, Nebraska om Thursday, March 14, 2019.
BRENDAN SULLIVAN/THE WORLD-HERAL
Crews from the Ashland, Mead and Yutan Fire and Rescue assist with evacuating the final residents in Ashland, Nebraska Thursday, March 14, 2019.
BRENDAN SULLIVAN/THE WORLD-HERAL
Nebraska State Patrol Trooper Keith Bell surveys the water levels as floodwaters continue to rise near Salt Creek in Ashland, Nebraska, Thursday, March 14, 2019.
BRENDAN SULLIVAN/THE WORLD-HERAL
Sean Hanger, of Ashland and his son Aiden, navigate the floodwaters which continue to rise near Jack Anderson Ball Park in Ashland, Nebraska, Thursday, March 14, 2019.
BRENDAN SULLIVAN/THE WORLD-HERAL
Floodwaters continue to rise as mailboxes are consumed near Furnas Street and N. 15th Street in Ashland, Nebraska, Thursday, March 14, 2019.
BRENDAN SULLIVAN/THE WORLD-HERAL
Residents are rescued from a flooded area near Missouri Valley, Iowa on Thursday March 14, 2019.
JOE DEJKA/THE WORLD-HERALD
Jenna Muntz stands behind a row of sandbags as she takes a photo of the rising floodwaters in Cedar Creek, Nebraska on Thursday, March 14, 2019.
CHRIS MACHIAN/THE WORLD-HERALD
A semitrailer truck that tried crossing Bell Creek in Arlington, Nebraska, was swept off the road by fast moving floodwaters.
RYAN SODERLIN/THE WORLD-HERALD
Both Iowa and Nebraska were hit hard by flooding earlier this year and are in need of the disaster aid. Bell Creek, on the east side of Arlington, Nebraska flooded parts of the town on Thursday, March 14.
RYAN SODERLIN/THE WORLD-HERALD
Blake Japp pulls his remote control truck out of the water while playing in the shallow floodwaters of Bell Creek on Thursday, March 14, 2019, in Arlington, Nebraska.
RYAN SODERLIN/THE WORLD-HERALD
Bell Creek, on the east side of Arlington, Nebraska flooded parts of the town on March 14.
RYAN SODERLIN/THE WORLD-HERALD
People navigate over giant chunks of ice that were thrown by floodwaters near River Resort in Yutan, Neb Thursday March 14, 2019.
JEFF BUNDY/THE WORLD-HERALD
A flooded home near Mosquito Creek in Council Bluffs, Iowa on Thursday, March 14, 2019.
KENT SIEVERS/THE WORLD-HERALD
Two corn cobs float in floodwaters near Mosquito Creek in Council Bluffs, Iowa on Thursday, March 14, 2019.
KENT SIEVERS/THE WORLD-HERALD
A Blackhawk helicopter hovers over Waterloo on Friday March 15.
CHRIS MACHIAN/THE WORLD-HERALD
A cow makes his way through floodwaters near Columbus, Nebraska on Friday, March 15, 2019.
CHRIS MACHIAN/THE WORLD-HERALD
A house is surrounded by floodwaters near Waterloo, Nebraska on Friday, March 15, 2019.
CHRIS MACHIAN/THE WORLD-HERALD
Floodwaters run through the town of Rogers, Nebraska on Friday, March 15, 2019.
CHRIS MACHIAN/THE WORLD-HERALD
Highway 75's northbound lane is closed due to flooding near MerrittÕs Beach RV Park on Friday, March 15, 2019.
CHRIS MACHIAN/THE WORLD-HERALD
Cars drive drive across a flooded Platte River on Highway 50 just north of Louisville on Friday, March 15.
CHRIS MACHIAN/THE WORLD-HERALD
Water covers a road near Valley, Nebraska on Friday, March 15, 2019.
CHRIS MACHIAN/THE WORLD-HERALD
Brent Schwindt of Norfolk, Nebraska, holds his son Paul, 4 months, as his wife Lacey Hansen sleeps on a blow up mattress at Lutheran High Northeast on Thursday, March 14, 2019, in Norfolk. The school was being used as an evacuation shelter for people affected by flooding in the area.
RYAN SODERLIN/THE WORLD-HERALD
Motorists are forced to turn around as West Maple Road west of 216th Street is closed as floodwaters rise over the road near the Elkhorn River in Elkhorn, Nebraska, Friday, March 15, 2019.
BRENDAN SULLIVAN/THE WORLD-HERAL
A crowd of people gather to overlook the floodwaters which continue to rise along the Missouri River in Plattsmouth, Nebraska, Friday, March 15, 2019.
BRENDAN SULLIVAN/THE WORLD-HERAL
Homes, vehicles and RV's are submerged in floodwaters that continue to rise along the Missouri River in Plattsmouth, Nebraska, Friday, March 15, 2019.
BRENDAN SULLIVAN/THE WORLD-HERAL
Adam Jensen races to load his Lincoln Navigator outside his home near Mayne and Condron Streets in Valley, Nebraska. With three kids and a dog they plan to head to a hotel in Iowa. Valley residents were ordered to evacuate because of flooding on Friday, March 15, 2019.
KENT SIEVERS/THE WORLD-HERALD
CJ Cunningham holds his German shorthair Cazz after they were rescued from the King Lake area Friday, March 15, 2019.
KENT SIEVERS/THE WORLD-HERALD
Water flows over Highway 30 between Fremont and Arlington, Nebraska on March 15.
KENT SIEVERS/THE WORLD-HERALD
People keep an eye on floodwaters along Highway 30 between Fremont and Arlington, Nebraska on Friday, March 15, 2019.
KENT SIEVERS/THE WORLD-HERALD
Horses belonging to Faye Etherington are brought into town through floodwater on Highway 77 in Fremont Nebraska on Friday, March 15, 2019.
KENT SIEVERS/THE WORLD-HERALD
Paul Schmidt walks with his children Calvin and Avery while looking back at floodwaters over Broad Street in Fremont Nebraska on Friday, March 15, 2019.
KENT SIEVERS/THE WORLD-HERALD
At sunrise, Norfolk City Engineer Steven Rames inspects the levy next to the Northeast Community College on Friday, March 15, 2019, in Norfolk, Nebraska. Rames said the levy was stable and that the water had dropped 8 to 9 feet.
RYAN SODERLIN/THE WORLD-HERALD
A pickup is stranded on the east side of Norfolk, Nebraska, in floodwaters on Friday, March 15, 2019.
RYAN SODERLIN/THE WORLD-HERALD
Sarpy County Sheriff's Deputy Darin Morrissey rides an ATV through floodwaters in Hawaiian Village on Saturday, March 16, 2019.
CHRIS MACHIAN/THE WORLD-HERALD
Ron Eklund looks east at a flooded Main Street on the eastern edge of Plattsmouth on March 16.
CHRIS MACHIAN/THE WORLD-HERALD
Bo Staskiewicz carries a sandbag as volunteers filled sandbags on Main Street in Plattsmouth, Nebraska on Saturday, March 16, 2019.
CHRIS MACHIAN/THE WORLD-HERALD
Volunteers race to stave off floodwater by sandbagging along Old U.S. Highway 275 between Morningside Road and Downing Street in Fremont, Nebraska on Saturday, March 16, 2019.
KENT SIEVERS/THE WORLD-HERALD
Volunteers race to stave off floodwater by sandbagging along Old U.S. Highway 275 between Morningside Road and Downing Street in Fremont, Nebraska on Saturday, March 16, 2019.
KENT SIEVERS/THE WORLD-HERALD
The Elkhorn River covers West Dodge Road on Sunday March 17, 2019.
JEFF BUNDY
Floodwaters cover Valley Neb, Sunday March 17, 2019.
JEFF BUNDY
Water runs through a breached levee near Ashland, Neb Sunday March 17, 2019.
JEFF BUJNDY
Luke Thomas and Air Force Tech Sgt. Vanessa Vidaurre look at a flooded portion of Offutt Air Force Base on Sunday March 17, 2019.
Z LONG/THE WORLD-HERALD
Nearly 3,000 feet of Offutt Air Force Base's runway is now covered by the Missouri River on Sunday March 17, 2019.
Z LONG/THE WORLD-HERALD
Anthony Thomson, left, and Melody Walton make their way out of the flooded blocks near 1st and M Streets after a visit to Melody's house where they loaded up supplies in Fremont, Nebraska on Saturday, March 16, 2019.
KENT SIEVERS/THE WORLD-HERALD
A crowd gathers to watch residents make their way in and out of the flooded blocks near 1st and M Streets in Fremont, Nebraska on Saturday, March 16, 2019.
KENT SIEVERS/THE WORLD-HERALD
Floodwaters destroyed County Road 18 at U.S. Highway 30 near Fremont, Nebraska on Saturday, March 16, 2019.
KENT SIEVERS/THE WORLD-HERALD
Bonnie Warner, Barb Pierce, Katie Cameron and Amanda Pierce cheer for a convoy of Hy-Vee trucks escorted by the Nebraska State Patrol and the Army National on Sunday, March 17, 2019. The trucks delivered much needed supplies to the city that was surrounded by floodwaters.
KENT SIEVERS/THE WORLD-HERALD
Hy-Vee staff rush to offload a convoy of trucks that were escorted by the Nebraska State Patrol and the Army National Guard Sunday, March 17, 2019 in Fremont, Neb. The trucks delivered much needed supplies to the city that was surrounded by floodwaters.
KENT SIEVERS/THE WORLD-HERALD
People in Hamburg, Iowa, fill sandbags and build a water retaining wall as they defend the town from floodwaters on Sunday, March 17, 2019.
RYAN SODERLIN/THE WORLD-HERALD
Interstate 29 west on Hamburg, Iowa, is submerged by floodwaters from the Missouri River on Sunday, March 17, 2019.
RYAN SODERLIN/THE WORLD-HERALD
Bradley Perry and other help to fill sandbags as the city of Hamburg, Iowa, fights to keep their town from flooding on Sunday, March 17, 2019.
RYAN SODERLIN/THE WORLD-HERALD
Water runs over the levee protecting Hamburg, Iowa, on Sunday, March 17, 2019.
RYAN SODERLIN/THE WORLD-HERALD
Lana Brandt of Hamburg, Iowa checks out the rising water on the south side of the city on Sunday, March 17, 2019.
RYAN SODERLIN/THE WORLD-HERALD
The sun begins to set on the Missouri River floodwaters west of Hamburg, Iowa, on Sunday, March 17, 2019.
RYAN SODERLIN/THE WORLD-HERALD
Businesses on the southwest side of Hamburg, Iowa, were flooded on Sunday, March 17, 2019.
RYAN SODERLIN/THE WORLD-HERALD
People gather in downtown Hamburg, Iowa to watch the floodwaters creep closer to a barrier built on Sunday, March 17, 2019. The levee protecting the town from the floodwaters of the Missouri River broke, flooding the town.
RYAN SODERLIN/THE WORLD-HERALD
Floodwaters from the Elkhorn River begin to recede, revealing a heavily damaged west Dodge road on Monday March 18, 2019.
JEFF BUNDY
Paul and Margaret Vorthmann's flood damaged home in shown in Missouri Valley, Iowa on Monday March 19, 2019. The family began the process to salvage items from the home and clean.
MEGAN MCGILL/THE WORLD-HERALD
Amelia Fritz, left, hugs her daughter Heather Rockwell in Glenwood, Iowa on Monday, March 18, 2019. They were evacuated from Pacific Junction, Iowa after floodwaters hit the town. They are part of 15 relatives all staying in the same house or in a camper in the front driveway.
CHRIS MACHIAN/THE WORLD-HERALD
Residents such as Andrew Bauer and Shawn Shonerd of the Bellwood Lakes neighborhood are among some who can only access their home by boat on Monday March 18, 2019.
BRENDAN SULLIVAN/THE WORLD-HERAL
Shawn Shonerd, left, and his partner Andrew Bauer, who live in Bellwood Lakes are surrounded by large chunks of ice Monday March 18, 2019 after the historic flooding along the Platte River days prior in Bellwood, Nebraska.
BRENDAN SULLIVAN/THE WORLD-HERAL
Debris floats on the surface of water in the Bellwood Lakes neighborhood in Bellwood, Nebraska Monday, March 18, 2019.
BRENDAN SULLIVAN/THE WORLD-HERAL
Two vehicles on the property of Duane Graybill are in disarray in Bellwood, Nebraska, Monday, March 18 after flooding hit the Bellwood Lakes neighborhood.
On Sunday, Hansen noted that the Missouri River is running higher more frequently than it once did. Five of the top 10 river stages at Omaha have occurred in the last 10 years, according to the National Weather Service. Three of those records have been set this year.
In the last 10 years, Nebraska and Iowa have seen two historic floods on the Missouri River, in 2011 and 2019, and Nebraska has seen its hottest, driest year on record, the costly flash drought of 2012.
While much has been made of news stories saying that there are just “12 years left to act,” Hansen advised against getting caught up in numbers. Yes, the window for manageable solutions is closing, he said.
“We’ve already passed the safe level of CO2 (carbon dioxide emissions),” he said. “We know we’re on the knife’s edge of giving young people a situation that could be out of their control.”
By acting now and not waiting additional decades, it remains possible to more affordably harness Earth’s natural cleansing systems for carbon, such as the ocean, soil and biosphere, he said. Delayed action could put doing so technologically or economically out of reach.
Hansen advocates for shifting to nuclear energy as a way to move away from fossil fuels.
“The world needs energy,” he said. Fossil fuels, he noted, lifted the developed world out of poverty. Now, though, the path forward is for the U.S. to put a price on fossil fuels that reflects their true cost to society.
The best way to do so is to attach a fee at the point of origin for fossil fuels, such as the coal mine in the U.S. or the port of entry for foreign oil. The money from that fee would be returned to American households in the form of a dividend. Hansen estimated that 70% of Americans would make more money from the dividend than they would pay in increased prices.
If the U.S. leads the way, other countries will have an incentive to follow, he said.
Hansen advocated that people join the Citizens Climate Lobby to lobby Congress for the fee and dividend.
“We have to save this world,” he said. “It is not an unsolvable problem.”
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