TikTok³ÉÈ˰æ

close

Our climate may be in crisis

By Jack Hughes 3 min read
article image -

New data shows that CO2 levels have risen to 430 ppm (parts per million), a pretty sure indicator that what we have been doing for the last 175 years is moving our climate in the wrong direction and the problems associated with this change will only continue to disrupt the weather on our planet.

Yes, it has been warm before; however the kind of warming we are seeing took millions, possibly tens of millions, of years to achieve in the past.

Our current warming is a result of the industrial revolution which began just 175 years ago. I am not one to say the use of fossil fuels has been all bad. The revolution in our industries was necessary and lifted much of earth’s people from a poor agrarian lifestyle to a thriving new way of life.

I visited the George Westinghouse Memorial in Schenley Park this week in Pittsburgh and was reminded of some of the wonderful inventions that made our lives much easier during this period. Even simple things like a warm home or the automobile contributed to a better lifestyle; all made possible with the use of fossil fuels.

The industries that employed so many also lifted the standard of living for these employees and their families.

Today we are at a crossroad and the evidence continues to mount that perhaps we need to take a hard look at where we are going. In the short span of 175 years we have warmed Mother Earth to the point where she is sending us signals that we may need to alter our behavior.

Our warmer earth has more heat and this heat is the energy that is now fueling our melting glaciers, rising seas, droughts, forest fires and bigger storms. There is even fear that we may be getting close to upsetting global weather patterns such as the Gulf Stream and other ocean currents. If this were to happen, it would be catastrophic.

The new CO2 reading just released last week by our National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the Scripps Institution of Oceanography continues the rise we have been seeing.

Decades ago crossing the 400 ppm level was unthinkable. We did so in 2013 and scientists have warned that CO2 could reach 500 ppm within the next 30 years. The last time it was this high was long before humans roamed our earth and the climate was vastly different; as dinosaurs lived here and the heat for humans would be unlivable.

This past week saw the International Conference on Oceans take place in Nice, France and guess who was not there to participate and perhaps begin to explore solutions to a gathering problem? NOAA was not permitted to attend and it saddens me to think of all that expertise not even having an opportunity to be heard.

Instead we get a steady diet of denial from politicians and big corporations and the scientists are shuttered. Our scientists are among the best people just doing their job and what efforts we go through to silence them.

How sad.

CUSTOMER LOGIN

If you have an account and are registered for online access, sign in with your email address and password below.

NEW CUSTOMERS/UNREGISTERED ACCOUNTS

Never been a subscriber and want to subscribe, click the Subscribe button below.

Starting at $4.79/week.