Abstract:Present climate change is a manmade problem of global scale and consequences. Climate knows no borders and distinguishes no countries: all nations are susceptible to the impacts of climate change. Car...Present climate change is a manmade problem of global scale and consequences. Climate knows no borders and distinguishes no countries: all nations are susceptible to the impacts of climate change. Carbon dioxide (CO₂) is the main greenhouse gas (GHG) in the atmosphere responsible for long-term global warming, and scientific evidence indicates that the current CO₂concentration is probably the highest in the last 15 million years (World Bank 2012)—more than 391 parts per million (ppm), compared to the preindustrial level of 278 ppm. CO₂ emissions grew 1.1 percent per year from 1990 to 1999 but since 2000 they have been growing by more than 3 percent per year (Gowdy 2010). The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) reported a reading of CO₂ at Mauna Loa of 400.03 ppm on May 9, 2013, crossing for the first time the 400 ppm mark. Global warming due to past anthropogenic CO₂ emissions is irreversible for at least 1,000 years, and current and future CO₂ emissions will result in additional warming (Matthews and Solomon 2013). The international community has set the goal of stabilizing global warming at no more than 2°C above preindustrial levels by 2100, while the Small Island Developing States (SIDS; www.sidsnet.org) have set it at 1.5°C. But given current emission levels and minimal international action to mitigate climate change, “there is roughly a 20 percent likelihood of exceeding 4°C by 2100” (World Bank 2012, p. 1). It is still possible, however, to keep global warming within tolerable limits through the use of appropriate technologies to replace fossil fuel consumption with other energy sources and the application of international political will to change course and control climate change. Any delay of such action will commit the planet to higher and higher temperatures that will become irreversible in the foreseeable future. The likely consequences will be dire.Read More
Publication Year: 2014
Publication Date: 2014-01-01
Language: en
Type: article
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Cited By Count: 2
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