Despite advancements in climate models and weather mapping, specialists are still unable to predict the degree that climate change will impact the environment. While professors at Grand Valley State University can’t see the future, they confirmed that climate change is making natural disasters and environmental events more severe.

The unpredictability of climate change prompts questions from researchers and uncertainty from climate change deniers. However, irregular weather events have spurred many to look to climate change as the source. Erratic events like rampant fires in Los Angeles, blizzards in Southern states and even inconsistent Michigan winters are all signs of climate change, but it’s not the sole culprit.

A recent story published by The Atlantic warns of unforeseen effects of climate change and pollution, stating the “coming decades may be far worse, and far weirder” than even the most advanced technology can illustrate.

Robert Hollister, a professor of biology at GVSU, draws from 20 years of experience as an educator in environmental science to insist on a different conclusion. Hollister said current erratic weather events were predicted, to some degree, almost 30 years ago.

“I can say with great confidence that the events happening now (sea level rise, hurricane intensity, drought, flooding and fires) were predicted in the 1990s,” Hollister said. “You can go back, read the literature and find, in broad terms, (that) it (the literature) was accurate.”

Though historical predictions offer only generalizations about climate change’s impacts, an argument can be made that some predication is enough indication to rebuke the claim spotlighted by The Atlantic. According to Hollister, the more pertinent issue climate models have trouble predicting is the amount of greenhouse gasses being put into the atmosphere.

“In the broadest terms, the biggest uncertainty (is) about what emission of greenhouse gasses will be,” Hollister said. “We (environmental scientists) understand the impact of greenhouse gasses on the climate at broad scales.”

Laura Schneider is an associate professor of political science at GVSU. As a specialist in environmental policy, Schneider said climate change measurements are a complicated issue.

“All we have ever had to ‘predict’ climate change is computer models,” Schneider said. “Depending upon the data the computer analyses, we get different projections on what might happen to the climate.”

Schneider said that scientists have never been able to predict the future with certainty.

“What scientists are now seeing is that some of our worst-case scenarios are coming true,” Schneider said. “Some changes are happening faster than anticipated, so (climate maps) need to be adjusted with what we’re seeing now to better assess what might happen in the future.”

There are aspects of certain geographical areas more susceptible to certain events, like California’s hot, dry biome. However, Hollister said climate change still contributes to disasters’ severity. According to the World Resources Institute, “unusually severe weather conditions” led to the Palisades and Eaton fires having been some of the deadliest wildfires in California history.

“Climate change makes wildfires more likely, and more likely to be worse,” Hollister said. “But any given fire is a result of the weather at that moment in time, and other factors like land use and fire suppression (play a role).”

Schneider agreed, pointing to the contribution of industrial factors like zoning and building codes to the already prominent fire risk in Southern California.

“The wildland/urban interface and the geography of the region made it a bad situation when fire erupted,” Schneider said. “It wasn’t one or two fires, it was a handful, (which was) beyond expected. Climate change is, in part, about the unprecedented, (and) we certainly see that here.”

In Michigan, changes in precipitation, extreme temperature swings and intense storms are the result of global warming. Inconsistent, unpredictable weather patterns have caused a slew of issues in agriculture. One of the most distinct effects of climate change here is sparse ice coverage on the Great Lakes.

Other obvious conditions are visible on ”ozone action days” during Michigan summers, when residents are advised to limit outdoor activities for health reasons.

“Warmer air is more likely to have ozone and other unhealthy compounds,” Hollister said. “That said, fires in Canada have greatly impacted Michigan summers due to smoke.”

Consequences will persist and conditions will worsen if there is not more aggressive legislative action from the U.S. government. Governmental orders addressing the root of climate change at state and federal levels are inconsistent and incomplete, according to Schneider.

“We do not have a federal policy that directly addresses the problem of climate change,” Schneider said. “We have policies at the federal level that address pieces of climate change, like investment in renewable energy, (but) if we are serious about combating climate change, we need to do better.”