Letters

According to 27east.com, intense rainfall led to “significant scour and erosion” on the west side of the Sunrise Highway bridge abutment over the Shinnecock Canal in Hampton Bays [“Lane Restrictions on Sunrise Highway Will Last at Least Through Next Week,” 27east.com, October 31]. Many commuters are experiencing this firsthand.

These kinds of rain events will become more commonplace here and elsewhere due to the increase in water vapor in the atmosphere. Water vapor is increasing because our planet is heating.

Scientists tell us this: “For every degree Celsius in warming, the water-holding capacity of the atmosphere increases by about 7 percent. Record-high sea temperatures ensure there is more moisture in the atmosphere, by an estimated 5 to 15 percent, compared to before the 1970s, when global temperature rise began in earnest.”

Specifically, does this pertain to Long Island? The answer is yes. You can read one study here: lispartnership.org/ecosystem-target-indicators/heavy-precipitation/.

The Climate Action Plan implemented by Southampton Town primarily focuses on strategies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, with limited emphasis on climate change adaptation measures. In contrast, the Shinnecock Climate Plan incorporates both emission reduction initiatives and approaches to enhance resilience. Perhaps it’s time to look at their climate plan.

We elected a president who denies climate change, and he appointed EPA administrator Lee Zeldin, who supports those views and is shaping policies accordingly. Some climate leaders — here and in other nations — are growing silent in the face of Donald Trump’s denialism.

Locally, I’m unsure voters take climate mitigation or adaptation into account when they go to the polls. We should start doing that, and soon.

Mike Anthony

Westhampton

Anthony is a former chair of the Southampton Democratic Committee — Ed.