WhyClimate change is beginning to affect each and every one of us. Over 100 years ago, people began burning more coal and oil for homes, factories, and transportation. Burning these fossil fuels releases carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. These added greenhouses gases have caused Earth to warm more quickly than it has in the past. Scientists from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) tell us that during the past 100 years, the world’s surface air temperature increased an average of 0.6° Celsius (1.1°F). This might not sound much but even one degree can affect the Earth. This has caused sea level to rise by about 15 cm (6 inches) in the last century due to melting glacier ice and expansion of warmer seawater. Some predictions say that in the 21st century sea level may rise as much as 59 cm (23 inches) threatening coastal communities, wetlands, and coral reefs Arctic sea ice is melting. The summer thickness of sea ice is about half of what it was in 1950. Melting ice may lead to changes in ocean circulation. Plus melting sea ice is speeding up warming in the Arctic. Glaciers and permafrost are melting. Over the past 100 years, mountain glaciers in all areas of the world have decreased in size and so has the amount of permafrost in the Arctic. Greenland’s ice sheet is melting faster too. Sea-surface temperatures are warming. Warmer waters in the shallow oceans have contributed to the death of about a quarter of the world’s coral reefs in the last few decades. Many of the coral animals died after weakened by bleaching, a process tied to warmed waters. Heavier rainfall is causing flooding in many regions. Warmer temperatures have led to more intense rainfall events in some areas. This can cause flooding. And extreme drought is increasing. Higher temperatures cause a higher rate of evaporation and more drought in some areas of the world. In 2007 the IPCC concluded in their Fourth Assessment Report that the warming of the climate system was now beyond doubt. The IPCC estimated that to keep global warming at the less risky level of 2 degrees above pre-industrual temperatures, Greenhouse Gas emissions (GHG) would need to be cut by 50-85% by 2050 from their levels in 2000. It’s said that nine out of every ten disasters recorded are now climate related. The rising temperatures and more frequent flooding, droughts and storms affects the lives of millions of people. The Global Humanitarian Forum’s Human Impact Report concluded that climate change today accounts for over 300,000 deaths throughout the world each year – that’s the equivalent of an Indian Ocean Tsunami every single year. By 2030, this figure would rise to 500,000 deaths a year. Climate change today seriously impacts on the lives of 325 million people. Economic losses due to climate change already today amount to over $125 billion per year (this is more than the total amount of international aid to developing nations each year). By 2030, the economic losses due to climate change will be $340 billion annually. The Governments of the world will meet in Copenhagen, Denmark on December 7, to find a binding climate change treaty to replace the Kyoto Protocal which runs out in 2012. Such a deal would not only make environmental sense, it makes economic sense too. The Stern Review estimates that the cost of stablising GHG emissions will cost the world 1% of its total wealth (Gross Domestic Product – GDP) a year. But doing nothing would actually cost us at least FIVE TIMES as much a year, now and forever. If other factors and impacts are taken into effect, that could rise to a staggering 20% GDP a year. The New Earth Deal campaign will seek to galvanize public opinion to put pressure on Governments to secure a deal which is fair and effective. One that puts social justice and the reduction of poverty at the very heart and seeks to equalise emissions per head in each country. |
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