“One of the country’s leading scientists on climate change, the University of Washington’s Dr. Richard Gammon, will address questions surrounding global warming at a public forum on Friday, Jan. 28, 7:30 p.m. at South Whidbey High School .The public is invited to attend the forum, which is being sponsored by the Island County Chapter of the Washington Conservation Voters. There is no charge.Even though it’s called ‘global warming’ it’s very much going to be a local problem, said Fran Abel, chair of the local WCV group. According to the scientists, the major local weather changes-more rain and less snow in the mountains — will mean big problems for the Puget Sound region. We want to have a public dialogue on what we can do about global warming.Dr. Gammon is a professor of chemistry and oceanography and has been studying the effects of greenhouse gases for nearly 20 years. The burning of fossil fuels is thought to contribute to global warming. His current research focuses on the study of trace gases critical to climate change. He is actively involved in improving the public understanding of the climate change challenge. The impacts of climate change, and the ability to adapt to such changes, are best understood at the regional scale, Gammon said. By increasing public understanding of the causes and effects of global warming, we improve our chances of stabilizing the global climate.A report titled Impacts of Climate Variability and Change in the Pacific Northwest issued by the University of Washington last November projects a warming of about two degrees by the 2020s and four degrees by the 2050s. Although a warmer Northwest may sound appealing, the research also projects that winters will become wetter – hardly welcome news given experience over the past several years. Such temperature increases will pose major problems for the Pacific Northwest’s water and hydropower systems and undermine salmon recovery efforts. Sea levels are projected to increase, and forest health to decline. For more information on Dr. Gammon’s presentation, contact Fran Abel at 730-3924.”