The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has been reporting on climate issues since 1990. Formed under the auspices of the United Nations in 1988, the IPCC includes scientists from government agencies, universities and the private sector around the world. These experts rigorously review the range of published literature pertaining to climate.
The first three parts of the Fourth Assessment Report of the IPCC were published recently and they lay out in a meticulous manner the state of climate change. The preparation of the IPCC Report was based on a lengthy process of consultation involving over 2000 scientists from around the world and finally approved by 120 governments. The 2007 IPCC Report represents the most authoritative contemporary assessment of climate change.
Parts 1, 2 and 3 of the 2007 Report are cautious in tone, conservative in forecast and conclusive in their findings. The science is solid and the debate is essentially over: our biosphere is warming inexorably, largely due to human activity, with dramatic long term environmental consequences for the planet.
Part 1 of the report states categorically that “the warming of the climate system is unequivocal.” Of the 12 warmest years recorded since 1850, 11 have occurred since 1995. Last year, for example, was the hottest on record in the US. Especially dramatic is the warming trend of the past 50 years when compared with the previous 1300 years of temperature levels.
The IPCC conclusively links this rapid warming of the planet with higher concentrations in the atmosphere of greenhouse gases, such as methane and carbon dioxide. The atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide has increased from a pre-industrial level in 1750 of 280 parts per million to 380 ppm today. According to ice core samples, this increase far exceeds the levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere over the past 650,000 years.
The increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide is escalating alarmingly. The hockey stick analogy, popularized in Al Gore’s film “An Inconvenient Truth,” is an accurate portrayal of runaway carbon dioxide growth and, unless checked, a portent of ever increasing temperatures. Global warming drives changes in weather patterns, such as hurricanes and droughts and shapes long term climate changes.
Not only does the IPCC Report link planetary warming to increased concentrations of greenhouse gases, but it also clearly establishes the connection between human activity since 1750 and increased levels of carbon dioxide and methane. Carbon dioxide is created by the burning of fossil fuels, such as coal, oil and natural gas and by clearing forests. We burn fossil fuels primarily for heat, electricity and transportation.
Part 2 of the IPCC Report describes how climate change will affect the global landscape in the future. Major changes are inevitable but whether they are catastrophic will depend on the speed and the degree to which we can curb our carbon emissions. These environmental crises are not doomsday scenarios dreamed up by crackpot scientists – these are the credible predictions of respected experts, including Nobel laureates.
The report covers a range of potential ecological disasters of staggering magnitude: from the impact of Arctic warming on indigenous people in Canada, to the flooding of tropical islands, to the desertification of farm land in Latin America, to mass starvation in Africa, to heat waves in Europe, to glacial melting in Asia and droughts in Australasia.
Rapid global warming will inhibit the smooth genetic adaptation of plants and animals and millions of species will disappear, followed by cascading effects throughout the worldwide web of life. We suffer collectively when just one species disappears or one Pacific island is inundated by rising ocean levels. There will be no winners on a degraded planet – we will all be losers.
Climate fluctuations have occurred many times in the past but these changes took place gradually over millions of years. The current spike in carbon dioxide levels and the accompanying temperature changes have occurred in the past 250 years – a mere flash in the geologic history of the planet.
Sadly, the climate skeptics have seized on these climate fluctuations and cherry picked their data to promote a theory that global warming is simply part of a natural cycle. Yet, an overwhelming percentage of scientists and virtually all the published literature confirm that anthropogenic (manmade) carbon emissions have created the conditions today that foreshadow a planetary crisis of catastrophic proportions.
The media have been complicit in shaping a wide spread public perception that rapid variations in our weather are a naturally occurring phenomenon. By assigning equal space and time to the scientists and the skeptics, the media has lent credibility to the natural cycle hypothesis. Furthermore, columnists and editorials frequently promote economic growth at the expense of ecological precaution. Even important scientific studies are often ignored or minimized by the media.
Corporate spin has reinforced public confusion about climate. Organizations such as the Heritage Foundation and the Global Climate Coalition have been bankrolled by energy companies to promote anti-Kyoto scare stories, arguing that fighting global warming will cost jobs and raise prices. ExxonMobil has spent $15 million since 2000 funding speakers to create doubt in the public mind about the nature of climate change. Manipulating public opinion in the pursuit of increased corporate profits at the expense of the environment is an ethically bankrupt tactic.
Even governments have been involved in the climate cover-up. President Bush has only grudgingly been forced to accept that anthropogenic global warming is a reality and our own government found green religion in a recent overnight conversion – but not before they had gutted climate websites and energy reduction programs. Government interference was even present in the fine tuning of the April report of the IPCC. Bureaucrats from the US, China, Saudi Arabia and Russia insisted on watering down some of the recommendations of the scientists.
Does blaming governments, corporations and the media absolve us from responsibility for the present state of the climate? No, we are a central cog in the denial machine. Politicians simply reflect our wishes and their hypocrisy and inaction mirrors the views of a large segment of society. We permit corporations to shape our needless wants instead of addressing our essential needs and we allow the media to subvert our values and manipulate our thinking.
The science on climate change is clear and irrefutable and we can no longer remain indifferent, nor can we plead ignorance and confusion. Global warming is largely a function of consumption patterns and consumption always involves individual decisions. Climate issues are, therefore, a question of personal conscience and principle and choice of lifestyle. We are the custodians of the common wealth and it is our moral responsibility, individually and collectively, to protect the health of our planet and to preserve the birthright of unborn generations.
The first three parts of the Fourth Assessment Report of the IPCC were published recently and they lay out in a meticulous manner the state of climate change. The preparation of the IPCC Report was based on a lengthy process of consultation involving over 2000 scientists from around the world and finally approved by 120 governments. The 2007 IPCC Report represents the most authoritative contemporary assessment of climate change.
Parts 1, 2 and 3 of the 2007 Report are cautious in tone, conservative in forecast and conclusive in their findings. The science is solid and the debate is essentially over: our biosphere is warming inexorably, largely due to human activity, with dramatic long term environmental consequences for the planet.
Part 1 of the report states categorically that “the warming of the climate system is unequivocal.” Of the 12 warmest years recorded since 1850, 11 have occurred since 1995. Last year, for example, was the hottest on record in the US. Especially dramatic is the warming trend of the past 50 years when compared with the previous 1300 years of temperature levels.
The IPCC conclusively links this rapid warming of the planet with higher concentrations in the atmosphere of greenhouse gases, such as methane and carbon dioxide. The atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide has increased from a pre-industrial level in 1750 of 280 parts per million to 380 ppm today. According to ice core samples, this increase far exceeds the levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere over the past 650,000 years.
The increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide is escalating alarmingly. The hockey stick analogy, popularized in Al Gore’s film “An Inconvenient Truth,” is an accurate portrayal of runaway carbon dioxide growth and, unless checked, a portent of ever increasing temperatures. Global warming drives changes in weather patterns, such as hurricanes and droughts and shapes long term climate changes.
Not only does the IPCC Report link planetary warming to increased concentrations of greenhouse gases, but it also clearly establishes the connection between human activity since 1750 and increased levels of carbon dioxide and methane. Carbon dioxide is created by the burning of fossil fuels, such as coal, oil and natural gas and by clearing forests. We burn fossil fuels primarily for heat, electricity and transportation.
Part 2 of the IPCC Report describes how climate change will affect the global landscape in the future. Major changes are inevitable but whether they are catastrophic will depend on the speed and the degree to which we can curb our carbon emissions. These environmental crises are not doomsday scenarios dreamed up by crackpot scientists – these are the credible predictions of respected experts, including Nobel laureates.
The report covers a range of potential ecological disasters of staggering magnitude: from the impact of Arctic warming on indigenous people in Canada, to the flooding of tropical islands, to the desertification of farm land in Latin America, to mass starvation in Africa, to heat waves in Europe, to glacial melting in Asia and droughts in Australasia.
Rapid global warming will inhibit the smooth genetic adaptation of plants and animals and millions of species will disappear, followed by cascading effects throughout the worldwide web of life. We suffer collectively when just one species disappears or one Pacific island is inundated by rising ocean levels. There will be no winners on a degraded planet – we will all be losers.
Climate fluctuations have occurred many times in the past but these changes took place gradually over millions of years. The current spike in carbon dioxide levels and the accompanying temperature changes have occurred in the past 250 years – a mere flash in the geologic history of the planet.
Sadly, the climate skeptics have seized on these climate fluctuations and cherry picked their data to promote a theory that global warming is simply part of a natural cycle. Yet, an overwhelming percentage of scientists and virtually all the published literature confirm that anthropogenic (manmade) carbon emissions have created the conditions today that foreshadow a planetary crisis of catastrophic proportions.
The media have been complicit in shaping a wide spread public perception that rapid variations in our weather are a naturally occurring phenomenon. By assigning equal space and time to the scientists and the skeptics, the media has lent credibility to the natural cycle hypothesis. Furthermore, columnists and editorials frequently promote economic growth at the expense of ecological precaution. Even important scientific studies are often ignored or minimized by the media.
Corporate spin has reinforced public confusion about climate. Organizations such as the Heritage Foundation and the Global Climate Coalition have been bankrolled by energy companies to promote anti-Kyoto scare stories, arguing that fighting global warming will cost jobs and raise prices. ExxonMobil has spent $15 million since 2000 funding speakers to create doubt in the public mind about the nature of climate change. Manipulating public opinion in the pursuit of increased corporate profits at the expense of the environment is an ethically bankrupt tactic.
Even governments have been involved in the climate cover-up. President Bush has only grudgingly been forced to accept that anthropogenic global warming is a reality and our own government found green religion in a recent overnight conversion – but not before they had gutted climate websites and energy reduction programs. Government interference was even present in the fine tuning of the April report of the IPCC. Bureaucrats from the US, China, Saudi Arabia and Russia insisted on watering down some of the recommendations of the scientists.
Does blaming governments, corporations and the media absolve us from responsibility for the present state of the climate? No, we are a central cog in the denial machine. Politicians simply reflect our wishes and their hypocrisy and inaction mirrors the views of a large segment of society. We permit corporations to shape our needless wants instead of addressing our essential needs and we allow the media to subvert our values and manipulate our thinking.
The science on climate change is clear and irrefutable and we can no longer remain indifferent, nor can we plead ignorance and confusion. Global warming is largely a function of consumption patterns and consumption always involves individual decisions. Climate issues are, therefore, a question of personal conscience and principle and choice of lifestyle. We are the custodians of the common wealth and it is our moral responsibility, individually and collectively, to protect the health of our planet and to preserve the birthright of unborn generations.
