GeoWorld

The Time for Climate Action Remains Now POSITION I BY TODD DANIELSON n a previous July Conservation/ Sustainability issue, I mentioned a NASA Web site that describes how global climate change is affecting our planet (climate.nasa.gov). For example, the home page currently shows that Arctic sea ice has decreased 12 percent per decade (2012 having the lowest levels on record), carbon dioxide levels are at their highest in 650,000 years, sea level is increasing at a rate of 3.16 millimeters per year and the global average temperature has increased 1.5 degrees Fahrenheit since 1880. And this is just the "tip of the iceberg" of information on the site (pun intended). Past the Tipping Point Todd Danielson is editor of GeoWorld magazine, PO Box 773498, Steamboat Springs, CO 80477; e-mail: tdanielson@geoplace.com. 4 G E O W O R L D / J U L Y 2 O 1 3 According to the site, "Earth-orbiting satellites and other technological advances have enabled scientists to see the big picture, collecting many different types of information about our planet and its climate on a global scale. Studying these climate data collected over many years reveal the signals of a changing climate." This is a solid recommendation of the validity and effectiveness of geotechnology and how it has been used to monitor climate. But much work needs to be done in mitigating or at least lessening the dramatic effects. The evidence mounts that climate change is happening at alarming rates. Most of the global warming since 1880 has occurred since 1970, and all 10 of the warmest years occurred in the last 12 years. Sea level rise in the last decade doubled that of the last century, and the number of record-high temperature events has steadily increased and is on pace for more of the same. All of this led the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, consisting of thousands of volunteer scientists and experts representing more than 120 countries, to claim that "scientific evidence for warming of the climate system is unequivocal." What Can Geotechnology Do? NASA describes many of the climate events that it monitors, including solar irradiance; greenhouse-gas emissions; and very small airborne particulates such as aerosols, dust and smoke. Satellites also track clouds, precipitation, forests and ice loss, among many other elements. Another Web site, The Nature Conservancy's Climate Wizard (www. climatewizard.org), partnered with Esri to create compelling climate-change maps. Users can see temperature and precipitation changes for various time periods as well as projected future outcomes based on different models. Additional sites and organizations also do an excellent job of monitoring the world's changing climate, but all of this does little besides raise awareness (which certainly is important). The difficult work lies with human action. What Can Humans Do? Yes, fighting against climate change seems like an impossible battle, but progress has been made. Remember the ozone hole? It was found in the 1970s that the ozone layer over Antarctica was thinning to unprecedented levels, and the cause was linked to chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) compounds found in cooling systems and aerosol propellants. In this case, the world moved quickly, CFCs were reduced dramatically, and the ozone hole has shrunk to its smallest size since 2002. Much more difficult work needs to be done to mitigate the global problems of current climate change, but the ozone case shows that it's possible via will and action. I'm not suggesting we can stop climate change, but if we don't at least slow it down, all that's left is adapting, and there are many parts of the world that are ill-equipped to do that effectively. The time for action, like always, is now.

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