I wanted to expand on John's mention last night of the linkage between allergies and global warming.
For allergy sufferers, this is probably not the news that you want to hear. An important point to consider as well is that there will be a financial cost to this. There will most definitely be a cost for patients who will be purchasing more medication to combat the allergies, but there will also be a business cost due to employees being sick or at least not 100% during the work day. Other researchers are pointing to higher asthma rates as well as longer allergy seasons.
Climate change is not some distant issue that doesn't have a direct impact on people, as we are seeing here. The right wing smear machine has done it's best to discredit the problem and they've largely been successful. Fewer people today believe in climate change than a few years ago though the numbers are starting to slowly come back.
Jobs are always going to be important, but the health and well being of the population is important as well. Why do the anti-environment types always ignore health care costs? NY Times:
“There is data showing that pollen is not only more prevalent as a result of the effects of carbon dioxide and greenhouse exposure, but that the pollen proteins are more potent,” said Dr. Clifford W. Bassett, an allergist and assistant clinical professor of medicine at the New York University School of Medicine.
In a study published last year, Agriculture Department researchers found that at certain latitudes, especially north of 44 degrees, the pollen seasons were up to a month longer than usual. In Wisconsin, for example, ragweed was in the air two weeks longer in 2009 than it was in 1995.
