At a Tuesday campaign rally in Miami, Florida, Hillary Clinton introduced former Vice President Al Gore by warning that Hurricane Matthew was a harbinger of the current and future impact of climate change.
“Now, some will say, you know, we’ve always had hurricanes,” Clinton said. “They’ve always been destructive. And that’s true. But Hurricane Matthew was likely more destructive because of climate change.”
“Right now the ocean is at or near record high temperatures. And that contributed to the torrential rainfall and the flash flooding that we saw in the Carolinas,” she continued. “Sea levels have already risen about a foot, one foot, in of the Southeast, which means Matthew’s storm surge was higher and the flooding was more severe.”
“Plus, as you know, the impact of climate change goes beyond extreme events like hurricanes. It’s become a daily reality here,” Clinton said, referencing Miami Beach’s frequent problem with so-called “sunny day” flooding, which isn’t connected to rainfall, but rather to ocean levels.
Clinton was frequently interrupted during her address by protestors screaming “Bill Clinton is a rapist!” After one such disruption, Clinton appealed to the crowd: “My friends, please, let’s focus on what’s really important in this election and in your future and the future of our country!”
The crowd responded enthusiastically.
“Because this is what I want you to hear and understand,” she said. “At the rate we are going, one in eight homes in Florida could be under water by the end of the century.”
Clinton went on to outline steps toward a clean energy economy that includes more wind and solar power and modernizing the electric grid. She also referenced infrastructure modernization projects like retrofitting hospitals to continue operating through power outages, and the installation of oyster beds in New York harbor to prevent storm surge.
