Viewpoint: Montana needs accurate, reliable weather forecasting
Tim Miller
The weather seems to be getting more inconsistent and erratic. More winter rain and less snow, with daytime temperatures in the 40s, have become common in December and January.
In mid-December, Lincoln County was hit with drenching rain resulting in severe flooding, and Libby has been under an extended boil water order due to bacterial contamination in its drinking water system. Immediately following the flooding, western Montana experienced extreme wind shears that uprooted trees and caused widespread power outages.
Montana has always had extreme weather events, but they are becoming more frequent and more costly for Montanans.
When I head outdoors or travel, I like to know the weather conditions so I can prepare accordingly. I check the home weather monitor for current temperature and precipitation, and I consult the National Weather Service for the 24-hour outlook.
Whether traveling or recreating outdoors, we have all learned to depend on our weather scientists. With recent federal budget cuts to these civil services, we are losing both the scientists and the data that inform these forecasts. The National Weather Service has been understaffed for decades, and recent firings have made the situation much worse as we head toward another Montana spring and summer likely filled with extreme weather.
In December, the Trump administration announced its intent to dismantle the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR). Climate scientist Dr. Katharine Hayhoe said, “Dismantling NCAR is like taking a sledgehammer to the keystone holding up our scientific understanding of the planet.” Among NCAR’s many accomplishments is the development of wind shear warning systems for commercial aviation routing and emergency re-routing that have saved countless lives.
In response, a bipartisan congressional letter noted that NCAR’s research supports “a wide range of real-world applications, including agricultural planning, drought and water management, wildfire behavior analysis, flood forecasting, aviation safety, and emergency preparedness.”
Fortunately, funding for NCAR does not rest with the executive branch, it rests with Congress. Let’s take a few minutes to contact Senators Daines and Sheehy and Representatives Zinke and Downing to remind them of their authority to set the federal budget, how deeply Montanans depend on weather science, and to urge them to sustain funding for NCAR.
For more information on saving NCAR: https://agu.quorum.us/
Tim Miller volunteers with Citizens’ Climate Lobby, a nonpartisan, grassroots organization advocating for federal policies to reduce pollution and support clean energy. Learn more at citizensclimatelobby.org.