Storm Abigail - A Result of Anthropogenic Environmental Change?

Chances are, if you've been living in the UK the last few days you've heard of Storm Abigail (a product of Hurricane Kate), our first ever named storm. Generally, the UK has had relatively stable and easy to manage weather - in Southern England, we get on average less than 650 mm per year of precipitation (Met Office, 2015). Granted, in some parts of Scotland rainfall can exceed 4,000 mm per year, severe storms are quite rare.

Storm Abigail hit with Hurricane-force winds, floods and blackouts when it struck the North. Off the coast of west Scotland, waves measured up to 42ft were forecast along with gusts of 70mph - in some exposed locations reaching up to 100 mph (e.g. in the Western Isles). The Met Office have upgraded the storm to an amber warning.

Is Storm Abigail a sign of things to come in the UK due to increasing anthropogenic change? Mainstream rhetoric seems to state that climate change is a problem that is predominantly only facing developing countries. A Met Office report in 2014 stated how throughout the winter months of 2013/14, the UK experienced an exceptional run of severe winter storms, that culminated in widespread coastal damage and flooding from January. The report estimates that by 2030, a sea-level rise of between 11-16cm is likely, which would only increase flooding and coastal erosion when further storms occur. Additionally, heavy rain events are becoming more frequent. In the 1960s and 1970s, what might have been a 1 in 125 day event is now becoming a 1 in 85 day event (Jones et al., 2013).

Climate sceptics, however, are unsurprisingly doubting the validity of this argument on various blogs. It is my opinion, that anthropogenic environmental change is causing more severe storms like Abigail, as evident by the Met Office report. Already the Met Office have shortlisted several future storm names, indicating a predicted increase in the frequency of severe storms in the UK. Do you think Storm Abigail is a result of climate change?

Source: memecrunch.com