What is the importance of the climate in the novel, The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch?

The author uses the climate as a symbol of the pollution and destruction of the environment by humans, and the consequent downfall of humanity. In the world of the novel, the climate has become fairly inhospitable to humans, with temperatures rising to high extremes each day. This seems like a somewhat prescient view of the effects of climate change, although it is likely based more heavily on the depletion of the atmosphere’s ozone layer.