Cliff Mass ‘taken aback’ by claims of this year’s ‘super drought’

Cliff Mass was surprised to hear how Governor Jay Inslee and some of the media described this summer’s potential drought.

Inslee declared a statewide drought on May 15. But it’s not because the Pacific Northwest is without water, the University of Washington Atmospheric Sciences professor told KIRO Radio’s Dori Monson.

“I was a little taken aback,” Mass told Dori. “The reality is that precipitation was normal last year. There will be plenty of water for municipalities.”

The main issue is the low snowpack in the mountains, Mass said. The drought declaration mostly impacts Eastern Washington.

“That’s a problem, but not the cause of a ‘hyper-drought,'” he added.

Inslee needs to be more careful of the terminology he uses, Mass said. Since declaring the drought, the governor has been more cautious with his language, he pointed out.

“What he’s doing is fine; he just needs to be careful about exaggeration,” Mass said.

Related: Mass to Shatner: Send California’s farms north

The media was picking up on the language and using it to blow reports out of proportion. Some of the media began “going wild” about super-droughts, hyper-droughts and tinder bombs, Mass told Dori.

Though many believe that by the end of the century the Earth will be generally warmer, people have a tendency to exaggerate to get others to rally around a cause, Mass said. Every weather event is “hyped up” as a sign of global warming.

Dori questions how much global warming is actually permanent versus cyclical. He asked Mass if people are using it for monetary purposes.

“It’s not all about money,” Mass responded.

Everyone should protect the Earth, Dori said, but is it worth it to spend billions to reduce fractions of CO2 emissions?

“There are things that need to be done that won’t cost much,” Mass said. Fuel standards, for example.

Related: Dave Ross: Here’s how to stay happy during a drought