Tuesday 25 January 2011

Climate sceptics take note

: Arctic and Antarctic ice melts are occurring at an alarming rate. Photo via The Green Family.

2010 was the hottest year on record according to the United Nations' World Meteorological Organisation, and continues the trend of warmer weather and more extreme weather events.

"The 2010 data confirm the Earth's significant long-term warming trend," WMO Secretary-General Michel Jarraud said. "The 10 warmest years on record have all occurred since 1998."

Arctic sea ice continues to recede with ice cover in December being recorded as the lowest on record for that month.

"There's no good news with respect to that -- the Arctic ice continues to be extremely low," Jarraud told journalists.

These climate statistics come on the back of recent findings that the decade between 2001 and 2010 was the hottest ten year period ever.

While Australia experienced a cooler than average year, most of Africa, southern and western Asia, Greenland and northern Canada had "an exceptionally warm year" in 2010.

Bob Ward, of the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment at the London School of Economics (LSE) was reported in The Age as saying "Self-proclaimed climate change 'sceptics' may still try to claim that global warming stopped in 1998, but they cannot explain away the fact that nine of the 10 warmest years on record have all occurred since 2000."

It is predicted that the continued dramatic melting of ice in the Arctic and Antarctica will have major consequences for low-lying coastal towns and cities around the globe.

A Cairns Regional Council report 'Climate Change Adaptation Action Plan' from June 2009 recognises the potential risk that increased storm surges, cyclone intensity, and sea levels will have on our region.

The report states that by the year 2030, the impact on our lives in terms of the community, our recreation, and our environment warrants a rating of 'Extreme'.

The Council report quotes sea level forecasts from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change who predict a rise of between 18-59 centimetres by the end of the century "with a possible additional contribution from ice sheets of 10 to 20 cm or more."

The report also states that the east coast of Australia may be even harder hit that the average global rise, prompting the Council to adopt a prediction of 79 centimetres by 2100.

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Brandi S, 26-01-11 13:30:

Humans are the problem to global warming and it won't get fixed because the ones in power with money say so...Look at it like this, the most populated cities are coastal cities around the world, which means the earth will balance itself out with flooding. Remember Noah's Ark? Until you regulate the humans, it is then the world will be able to get back into balance...

Ben Smits, 26-01-11 10:32:

Aside from destroying the landscape and disturbing all ecosystems wherever they have ever settled, humans now contribute 30 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide annually to the system. This amount of fossil fuel by-product is unnatural, accumulative and increasing dramatically with the cancerous multiplication of humans generally and the relentless industrial 'developing' of countries in particular. Only a complete fool could argue that climate changes are altogether still due to natural cycles.

Toni Bennett, 25-01-11 18:03:

The glacier at Milford Sound disappeared thousands of years ago - that glacier was in a temperate climate zone and now in our life time many others are receeding in the polar regions - the world is getting warmer, melting glaciers in the coldest areas now - will the Arctic region be the Milford Sound of the 22nd Century. Even if you are a climate sceptic - my mum always said " better to be safe than sorry, " prevention is better than a cure " yarda yarda. Wouldn't you prefer to err on the safe side with a few lifestyle changes - conserve energy where possible, recycle, tax the companies who pollute our air and water, spend money on research to find clean, renewable energy - a WIN WIN cleaner air, water and lower electricity bills. You've gotta love that?

Jason Gray, 25-01-11 11:15:

Yeah Bob, but there weren't a couple of billion people living on the coast then. You can bet that the predicted 79cm rise in sea level will keep getting pushed higher every couple of years as the ice melts faster.

Bob Grant, 25-01-11 10:51:

Climate realists take note.

I was in NZ recently and visited Milford Sound. A beautiful fiord carved out by a glacier. Must have got pretty warm then to melt the glacier and leave the fiord.

I wonder what to blame for the global warming then - maybe it was dinosaur flatulence.