Extreme weather is becoming more and more ilsolated in the Balearics

Extreme weather is becoming more and more ilsolated in the Balearics. | M.E. DE JUAN

Humphrey CarterPalma09/11/2021 10:30
TW
0

The weather and weather patterns have certainly changed in the Balearics over the past 30 years I have been living here. I remember that April was traditionally a wet month and the summer longer but not as harsh, plus the forecasts were usually region wide - not any more.

Take this weekend, for example. Weather alerts were issued but only certain parts of the Balearics were struck by the full blast of Storm Blas.

Sunday morning in Palma, apart from the wind, was relatively sunny and pleasant while elsewhere in the north, north east and not to mention Andratx, which always seems to get a battering and Minorca, near hurricane force winds and heavy rain struck.

The freak hail storm on Friday in Cala Ratjada was another isolated incident which also enveloped Ibiza.

Climate change can not be ignored, the question is what do we do? My feeling is that the damage we’ve all done so far will be extremely hard to repair, especially with key governments not signing up to extremely important proposals and objectives. It’s more a case of damage limitation.

I fear we’re going to have to live with what we’ve got, manage the current situation while planning for the future and making sure the problem does not get any worse. Changing the past is nearly impossible but managing the future has to be paramount.