If you want to know why I feel the way I do about climate change, watch this video from a TEDx conference two years ago:
Scientist studying the ice in Antarctica have found that a very large area, the West Antarctic Ice Sheet, is melting at an accelerating rate, and has already reached a point of instability, where its melting will continue regardless of any actions we take to reduce the effects of global warming. It is past the point of no return, so to speak. The impact of this is expected to be a global rise in seal levels of several feet (up to 10 feet, potentially) over the next couple of centuries. Yes, that makes it a problem that won’t affect us, but we have a moral obligation to future generations to provide them with the same potential for prosperity that we enjoy.
The cause of this melting is deep, warmer water being pulled to the surface by increasingly powerful winds circling the continent (which is generally believed to be caused by global warming). As far back as 1978, scientists were warning that global warming could lead to this…and now it’s happening (unless you’re a Republican with your head in the sand).
Read more at the NYTimes.
John Oliver takes on climate change, with a bit of help from Bill Nye.
“I think I know why people think this issue is open to debate. Because on TV, it is.”
The UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) issued a new report concluding that climate change is already having a big impact on agriculture, human health, and water supplies, and are warning that these effects will get more severe over time. The IPCC warns that governments and businesses need to take action immediately against these growing risks, though I fear that even the business-friendly GOP will be more focused on short term profits and gains than long term sustainability.
This is a follow-up to a report last year saying humans are to blame for global warming. You can read more at the New York Times.
There was a nice segment on CNN recently about how the media presents climate change as an issue that can be debated, and gives equal airtime to opposing views on an issue which is really about as settled as you can get in science. Check it out below.
A leaked UN report paints a grim picture for the future of our species on this planet. It warns that climate change may be nearly impossible to solve if we don’t act soon. Dealing with the result of our current course of inaction will require technology that doesn’t exist currently, and may not even be feasible. The report acknowledges the economic damage that stopping climate change quickly will cause…but this pales in comparison to the damage that inaction will bring. I’m not convinced that yet another report like this will actually drive change…not when there are so many special interests focused more on their own short term profit rather than ensuring a stable planet for future generations to enjoy. Sad.
This is funny…yet also a great idea. Name tropical storms and hurricanes not after random names from a dictionary, but after climate change deniers instead!
The levels of CO2 in our atmosphere has reached 400 parts per million, a slightly arbitrary red flag point. Scientists have been warning that anything about 350ppm will lead to dangerous global warming, so this is pretty bleak news though not surprising. When this planet last experienced conditions like this, temperatures were 3-4 degrees Celsius higher, and sea levels were between 16 and 131 feet higher than today. Perhaps the worst news, though, is that the rate of increase in atmospheric CO2 has been increasing slightly, so we’re not even on the right path to fix this problem. (link)
If you want to know why the US doesn’t take any significant action on climate change, look no further than the House of Representatives subcommittee on Climate Change. Its new chair is Rep Chris Stewart, a Republican from Utah who does not believe in man-made climate change. This is also a guy who thinks the EPA should be eliminated because it ‘thwarts energy development.’ Yeah, just ask China how that’s going. I for one believe that sacrificing long term growth and prosperity in favor of short term profits is NOT pro-business, and am disgusted at the Republican party as a whole for taking that stance while at the same time pretending to be pro-business. This short-term perspective is nothing more than personal greed.
When virtually all climate scientists believe in man-made climate change…to have the chair of this subcommittee oppose that view is an outright rejection of science and logic. No wonder Congress can’t get anything done.
(via Salon)
People are so incredibly focused on what fighting climate change would cost then, now, that they tend to overlook the cost of inaction. Sure, most of this cost will be borne by future generations, but what gives us the right to burden them with this? They deserve the same, or better, quality of life as us. So, what is the cost of climate impacts due to human-caused CO2 pollution? A recent study (link) finds the worst case cost, which is based on our current course of action, at about $1240 trillion, a number so large that I have a hard time comprehending it (the timeframe of this is a bit unclear, but they do say the annual impact is about $1.5 trillion so this cost looks like a long-term one, not to downplay its significance any!). What’s more important is that they also estimate that, if we can stabilize CO2 levels at 450ppm, the impact is only about $110 trillion, a substantial savings. Given the obvious cost savings here, and our current inaction, I fear our generation will do nothing more than teach future generations to not be so greedy. Which is not all bad, assuming future generations can manage to still have a cohesive, productive society in the changing ecosystem we’re creating for them. Read more here.
Jumping now to this infographic, obtained from grist. It lays out the expected impact of climate change, taking into account different CO2 emission scenarios (we’re on track for the worst case scenario as laid out here…scary). Click the thumbnail below for the full image.
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