Environment Texas
|
Statesman.com
By
Asher Price

Environmental group Environment Texas released an analysis Tuesday that found that heavy rainstorms are happening increasingly frequently.

The report found heavy downpours used to happen once a year on average in the state; they now happen once every 9.3 months, according to data from the National Climatic Data Center.

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Environment Texas — an advocacy group trying to shut down coal plants — links the storm analysis to climate change. The report suggests the planet's warming increases evaporation rates, in turn increasing water in the atmosphere.

"Scientists have found that the water content of the atmosphere is now increasing at a rate of about 1.3 percent per decade. The additional moisture loaded into the atmosphere by global warming provides more fuel for intense rainstorms and snowstorms," the report says.

In a news release, Environment Texas tried to address the issue of whether downpours actually meant more water: Evaporation that sends water skyward also means less soil moisture, meaning less water for crops or to bleed into waterways.