Letters to the editor in the past two issues of the Reporter (April 14 and 21) have included comments from Mr. Ulstein and Mr. McLachian on the subject of climate change. I can only conclude from their remarks that they must not have grandchildren. For if they did, they would presumably care enough about those children’s future to get the facts on this subject instead of resorting to false assertions and juvenile name-calling while burying their heads in the sand expecting the issue to go away.

There are mountains of well-substantiated scientific data which prove the amounts of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere have reached levels unseen in the history of our planet. Incidentally, Mr. Ulstein’s assertion about volcanoes as a cause has been debunked so many times that it hardly merits a response. The data also demonstrates that the presence of these gases is caused by human activity which, in turn, is causing the unprecedented warming of the planet.

The world’s glaciers are disappearing at an alarming rate. For example, the Chacaltaya glacier, which provided La Paz, Bolivia with its water supply, has disappeared completely causing a major humanitarian crisis. (Google it; it’s a fact.)

People are already being displaced by rising sea levels, just two of the lethal consequences of continuing to ignore this issue. Even China is committing huge sums of money to convert to sources of renewable energy in order to reduce emissions. Meanwhile, we have a federal administration that continues to prop up the fossil fuel industry while denying climate change and disincentivizing conversion to renewable sources, which are rapidly becoming cheaper than fossil fuel sources. In fact wind power already is. Elsewhere, in one of the grandest ironies I’ve seen, the Kentucky Coal Mining Museum is switching to solar power to save money!

So, for those of us who do care about what kind of world we are leaving for our grandchildren, everyone, please take steps to reduce the use of fossil fuels and other contributors to greenhouse gas emissions, and remind your state and federal representatives that protecting our environment needs to be a top priority. Remember, this is the only planet we’ve got!

Dave Osmer

Bellevue