For more than a decade, scientists have been providing dire warnings about climate change and predicting problems as a result, not just for plants, animals, marine life, and the ecosystem, but for humanity. While we at SDTN love diving in warm tropical water just as much as you do, we agree with scientists who view increased planetary temperatures as a major problem. Unfortunately, Earth's temperature is rising faster than ever. Here, we'll take a look at what is causing the problem, plus we'll look into some ways everyone can help put the brakes on climate change.
Life on a Changing Planet
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) publishes frequent reports on global warming, and scientists are continually adding new information to the latest results. The newest reports are alarming:
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Sea Level Rise Rates are Larger than Initially Projected. Due to rapidly melting sea ice, levels are rising. In fact, if the West Antarctic Ice Sheet melts completely, it will cause sea levels to rise by an average of about sixteen feet globally. In some places, including along the coast of the United States, sea levels will be even higher due to changes in gravitational pull that would cause water to accumulate north of the Equator, adding more than 4 additional feet of water. We've seen what can happen when surge causes sea levels to rise by just a few feet; with an increase like this, coastal communities and ecosystems would be completely wiped out, rivers would rise, and life as we know it would come to a grinding halt.
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Forests are Dying off at an Unprecedented Rate. Due to warming and drought, old growth forests, particularly in the northwestern portions of the North American continent, are dying. Forest fires, long known as part of a healthy ecosystem when controlled, are decimating alpine environments. New seedlings are subject to increased mortality, and insect infestation is on the rise. Since 1999, well over 30 million acres of trees in Western Canada have been killed off by mountain pine beetle infestations. Not only does this translate to lower carbon dioxide conversion, it also increases the release of carbon into the atmosphere. In the United States alone, forest fires release about 80 million tons of carbon into the atmosphere annually.
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Positive Climate Feedbacks are Increasing. When greenhouse gases are released from soil and ocean sediments previously locked beneath ice, climate change happens even faster. In addition, melting permafrost and deep ocean ice are releasing methane, which causes the greenhouse effect to increase even more. This same type of destabilization is thought to have contributed to rapid warming that occurred approximately 635 million years ago.
As additional problems such as the loss of sea ice reflectance, which bounces the sun's heat back into the atmosphere instead of allowing darker colored ocean water to absorb it occur, Earth warms even faster. The droughts, deadly storms, and weird weather we are currently experiencing are directly related to global warming - and unless we change our ways, things are likely to get even worse.
We're not here to scare you; in fact, we know that if each of us makes some simple changes, we can help to slow global warming. The decisions you make each day can make a difference, and by sharing what you know with others, you can help even more. By promoting green energy, reducing our carbon footprint, planting more trees, and even by saying no to foods and other products that are excessively packaged or produced in a manner inconsistent with sound ecological practice, we can make a difference. It's not too late.