Report confirms warming

Wednesday, March 31, 1993 - 10:00

Report confirms warming

Alarming new evidence that the world is warming came from the Netherlands on March 19.

According to a report in the main Dutch newspaper, de Volkskrant, the Royal Dutch Meteorological Service announced at a press conference that the average temperature in the Netherlands was 10.4° C during the five years from 1988 to 1992, some 1.3° higher than the average over the period from 1890 to the 1970s. The four hottest years of the century occurred during this five year period.

It is virtually impossible, according to the report, that variations in a non-changing climate could bring about such a series of warm years.

Dr. H. Fijnaut, director of the Dutch Meteorological Service, put the chances of this data being only a coincidence at less than one in 10,000. He presented the report to transport minister Maij and director general Enthoven of the Environment Ministry. Both called the results of the report "alarming". Maij said, "If this is correct, measures are inescapable".

[From Eco Newsletter, New York/Pegasus.]

From GLW issue 94