Increased volcanic activity will lead to even higher food and energy costs

According to a recent article written by Ben Aris and obtained by our good friend, Robert Felix, at www.IceAgeNow.com, a continuous series of violent eruptions in the past several months along eastern Russia's 'volcanic belt' has adversely affected global weather patterns.

Food and energy prices, along with cotton and the precious metals, have soared to record or near-record levels. Civil unrest in the Mideast and elsewhere has added fuels to the inflationary fires of fear and greed.

Volcanoes on Russia's Kamchatka seaboard have been "unusually active" in the last six months, says Aris. He adds, "the clouds of dust and ash have been thrown up into the higher altitudes." This has diverted the frigid Arctic winds, pushing extremely cold air and moderate to heavy snows deep into the U.S., Europe and parts of Asia, including winter-weary China. Edmonton, Alberta, reported a record low on March 8 of minus-26 degrees. It was an even colder minus-31 degrees at Prince Albert, Saskatchewan.

Just this past week, unusually cold air spilled into north-central China, Mongolia and parts of Russia that resulted in widespread winterkill in many winter wheat regions devoid of snowcover. This will only add to the global shortages of the golden grains in the next several months.

The Burlington, Vt., area, where we lived for eight-plus years between 1995 and 2003, gauged an all-time record March snowfall of 24.3 inches this past week. One station in northeastern New York State picked up 39 inches of the white stuff during the 48-hour period ending at 8 a.m. on Tuesday, March 8. Swollen rivers swept away many houses in parts of New England hit by torrential rains.

A string of nearly 40 volcanoes, 29 of which are currently active, will likely cause more problems for global food production in the next 12 months into 2012. By March of 2012, it's possible that nearly two billion people worldwide will be facing famine, severe malnutrition or actual starvation in many cases. This has been the 'root cause' of the widespread political unrest on virtually every continent.

Even here in the U.S., by the end of 2012, "nearly 25 percent of the country's children will be living below the poverty line, the worst conditions since the Great Depression of the 1930s," according to a recent CBS report.

These volcanic eruptions have come at the worst time possible. The Pacific Ocean has recently been cooled by a strong 'La Nina,' which is only beginning to weaken in the waters off the west coast of South America.

According to U.S. Climatologist Evelyn Browning-Garris of the acclaimed Browning Newsletter: "Kamchatka tends to be active in normal years. But, recently there have been a ridiculous number of eruptions. Since last November, Kizimen, Shevedluch, Karymsky and Kluchevskoi have been erupting almost constantly."

Browning-Garris added, "volcanic ash screens out the sun, which cools the air near the surface of the planet. The cold Arctic air that normally is confined to the polar regions surges far to the south."

We saw that happen this winter as Dallas, Texas, and Atlanta, Ga., both had 'rare' White Christmasses. Subzero temperatures occurred as far south as El Paso, Texas. Citrus and vegetable crops were destroyed by the record cold. That's why tomatoes are in such short supply across the country. (I miss them on my Sunday cheeseburgers at Burger King after church.)

NORTH IDAHO WEATHER REVIEW AND LONG-RANGE OUTLOOKS

It's Thursday, March 10, as I write this North Idaho weather update. Moderate rains are washing away what's left of the valley snowpack after a long winter season that began with record November snows and subzero temperatures. Ice fishing has ended on area lakes for the season.

Our seasonal snowfall, as of 10 a.m. Thursday morning, had climbed to 111.2 inches, thanks to a very snowy late February and early March. Our normal snowfall for an entire season ending June 30 is 69.8 inches. Last winter, in 2009-10, during a warm and mild 'El Nino' sea-surface temperature event, we picked up only 18.4 inches of the white stuff during the entire season, one wide 'extreme' to the other in short order.

Spokane, as of 10 a.m. on March 10, had measured a much-above normal 66.7 inches of snow this winter and could easily top the 70-inch mark for the third time in four seasons by early April, as I still see some light snows occurring during the late night and early morning hours in the next three weeks.

Normally, Spokane's total seasonal snowfall is just 48.1 inches. Last winter, the Lilac City gauged a mere 14 inches of snow.

Looking farther down the meteorological highway, if the cool 'La Nina' event in the waters of the Pacific Ocean hangs on to life for a while longer as expected, the spring of 2011, which officially begins next Sunday on March 20, should be both cooler and wetter than usual.

But, there will be some welcome drier periods with sunny weather under occasional ridges of high pressure. Gusty winds at times may cause problems. More trees are likely to fall, especially in the typically exposed areas of the Inland Empire.

The summer of 2011 should still be warm and dry under a strong, stationary ridge of high pressure, particularly if La Nina fades away in the Pacific Ocean as predicted. Stay tuned.

Cliff Harris is a climatologist who writes a weekly column for The Press. His opinions are his own. E-mail sfharris@roadrunner.com