Christmas may never feel the same, if climate change continues to alter the planet. Global warming is demystifying wonderful holiday symbols such as the difficult fate of Christmas tree growers, the diminishing prospects of a white Christmas, and so on. The fun of the festive season is however fading with Warming trends melting the snow and increasing drought risks throughout the world. This holiday: is it going to be the warmest one yet?
Snow falls when there is 0°C (32°F) or lower – this is a condition due to global warming, the overall temperature of the earth has risen by 1.1°C since the industrial revolution meaning that snow covered holidays; have become less frequent.
While places like Scandinavia and the Alps will still be cold enough for winter snow, forecasts for the U.S. in the current year suggest that there will be above average temperatures particularly the Midwest where places such as Minneapolis have twice the likelihood of not having snow because of El Niño.
Christmas tree farmers are being challenged by drought in which young trees are most vulnerable. Long droughts this year due to El Niño resulted to November precipitation in the U.S with record 0.004 inches including snow.
These conditions will only be difficult if no concrete measures toward combating climate change are taken. A study estimates that days when snow falls in the Alps could reduce by 30% by the end of the century, which threatens ecosystems and winter tourism associated with the snowfall.
