Human activity since the industrialised age has caused rising levels of greenhouse gases. Mankind has benefitted from a cheap and plentiful supply of fossil-fuel. Carbon emissions are a by-product of fossil-fuel. While we enjoyed the cheap energy, the balance of gases in the atmosphere changed. What mankind thought a good thing was not such a good thing!
Scientists have measured greenhouse gases in the atmosphere through time. The combined level of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere is measured as CO2e ppm (parts per million). CO2e is the symbol used to represent carbon dioxide equivalents and generally includes the six main greenhouse gases, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons and sulphur hexafluoride. Before the industrial era (that is, only 200 years ago) the atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide was about 280 ppm (0.0280 per cent). Today the global level of CO2e is 455 ppm, of which 386 ppm is CO2 (carbon dioxide). This is a stunning increase in a very short time. The problem is that the greenhouse gases make up only a tiny percentage of the atmosphere and so the 29 Gigatonnes of carbon dioxide that we emit every year can make a significant impact. While this may sound small at 0.0386 per cent of the atmosphere, it is the next major gas after nitrogen and oxygen which make up 99 per cent of the atmosphere. The problem really starts to come to life when you consider that over the last 650,000 years CO2 levels ranged between 190 and 280 ppm. That is up until about 200 years ago when the proportion of CO2 started to rise at an increasing rate.
The weight of evidence supporting human induced damaging climate change is overwhelming. The vast majority of scientists around the world are convinced of the impact of human involvement. For many years the Nobel Peace Prize winning Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the largest group of international scientists assembled for one cause, has raised its concerns on climate change. Around the world governments have commissioned research and released reports indicating the gravity of the situation and the urgency for action (see links). Climate change is a global issue. Every country will be affected. Every living thing will be touched.
The consequences of our current levels of carbon emissions are unacceptable. We have to recognise that the future depends on choices we make today and so we have to change our behaviour now to fix the problem. We need to be emissions aware and make deep cuts in carbon emissions. We need to be Climakind.
Research on climate change:
The Australian Government – Effects of Climate Change
http://www.aph.gov.au/library/Pubs/ClimateChange/effects/effects.htm
UK Climate Projections
http://www.defra.gov.uk/environment/climate/documents/uk-climate-projections.pdf
Global climate change impacts in the United States :
http://www.globalchange.gov/publications/reports/scientific-assessments/us-impacts/download-the-report
IPCC – The fourth Assessment Report (AR4)
http://www.ipcc.ch/