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2012 the second wettest year

2012 was the second wettest year in the UK since records began in 1910, according to provisional statistics from the Met Office. It is just a few millimetres short of the record set in 2000.

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Friends of the Earth: Intense rainfall likely to become common

The head of policy at environmental group Friends of the Earth, Mike Childs, has said that experts expect to see extreme weather events such as intense rainfall become more common as a result of global warming:

So far, the world has warmed by an average 0.7°C above pre-industrial levels - if temperatures rise by the 4°C scientists widely predict then we can only begin to imagine the impacts on our lives and livelihoods.

But there is still time to tackle climate change. We must end our dependency on dirty fossil fuels and reap the benefits of energy efficiency and developing clean power from the wind, waves and sun.

– Mike Childs, friends of the earth

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