| Searing summer temperatures are
| |
| | to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions,
|
| shattering records across much of the
| |
| | we are going to get big climate change."
|
| northern hemisphere. Some European
| |
| | But scientists say arresting global
|
| nuclear power plants have cut output
| |
| | warming is a daunting challenge. For one
|
| because river water used to cool reactors
| |
| | thing, carbon dioxide has a lifetime of
|
| is too warm. Forest fires are breaking
| |
| | 50 to 100 years in the atmosphere.
|
| out in Europe and the United States. Are
| |
| | Rutgers University climate researcher
|
| these signs of global warming?
| |
| | Anthony Broccoli says ocean warming
|
| Scientists say no single weather event
| |
| | compounds the problem. "Heat is going
|
| can be attributed to warming. But they
| |
| | into the ocean and gradually the effect
|
| say those incidents are consistent with
| |
| | of that heat going into the ocean would
|
| it and may worsen unless humans stop
| |
| | be to make the climate warmer, even if we
|
| pumping greenhouse gases into the
| |
| | stopped raising atmospheric CO-2 levels
|
| atmosphere. Skeptics argue that global
| |
| | today."
|
| warming is part of the natural climate
| |
| | The 1997 Kyoto Protocol commits more than
|
| cycle. They say whatever humans
| |
| | 120 signing nations to limiting
|
| contribute to it will not cause it to be
| |
| | greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels.
|
| irreversible. VOA's David McAlary
| |
| | The United States is not part of the
|
| examines the issues.
| |
| | agreement because President Bush withdrew
|
| In the past year, several scientific
| |
| | the country from it soon after taking
|
| reports have alerted the world to
| |
| | office in 2001.
|
| increasing glacier melting in Alaska,
| |
| | This was the correct move, according to
|
| Greenland, and Antarctica, reducing
| |
| | Myron Ebell of the Competitive Enterprise
|
| habitat for polar bears and other forms
| |
| | Institute, a Washington public policy
|
| of life.
| |
| | research group promoting government
|
| The habitat for beetles that ravage trees
| |
| | deregulation. "There is just so much
|
| has expanded from the normally warm U.S.
| |
| | exaggeration involved in these claims
|
| southwest into the evergreen forests of
| |
| | about the impacts of climate change."
|
| British Columbia.
| |
| | Ebell does not believe global warming is
|
| Warmer tropical waters seem to be
| |
| | a serious threat. But he says even if it
|
| bleaching coral reefs.
| |
| | were, the Kyoto Protocol is bad politics.
|
| The general scientific view is that these
| |
| | He believes restricting energy use to
|
| changes are caused by a heat-trapping
| |
| | reduce greenhouse gas emissions will hurt
|
| blanket of carbon dioxide and other gases
| |
| | national economies. "All of this effort
|
| in the atmosphere emitted by coal,
| |
| | is going for nothing. The reason I
|
| natural gas, and gasoline burning.
| |
| | believe that is because the world cannot
|
| Richard Somerville of the Scripps
| |
| | afford to go on the kind of energy diet
|
| Institution of Oceanography in San Diego
| |
| | that the Kyoto Protocol is the first step
|
| says the current warming trend is
| |
| | of."
|
| different from ones that have occurred
| |
| | Richard Somerville at the Scripps
|
| earlier in Earth's history. "We know
| |
| | Institution of Oceanography agrees that
|
| enough now to be able to say that the
| |
| | the Kyoto Protocol is flawed. But he
|
| current warming, the warming that we've
| |
| | believes the flaw is its insufficient
|
| seen in the last decades of the 20th
| |
| | limits on greenhouse gas emissions. He
|
| century, is primarily due to human
| |
| | says they will make only a negligible
|
| causes."
| |
| | difference, but argues that the accord is
|
| The United Nations Intergovernmental
| |
| | better than nothing. "Kyoto keeps the
|
| Panel on Climate Change says the
| |
| | issue alive. One of the advantages of
|
| atmosphere has 30 percent more carbon
| |
| | signing Kyoto is it gets you to the point
|
| dioxide than a century ago and Earth's
| |
| | where you can look past Kyoto, where the
|
| average surface temperature has risen
| |
| | nations of the world can come together
|
| nearly one degree Celsius in that time.
| |
| | with the experience of Kyoto, which
|
| The group warns that it can be expected
| |
| | involves large industries, and decide
|
| to go up much more in the next 100 years
| |
| | what does it make sense to try next?"
|
| -- between one-and-a-half and nearly six
| |
| | But opponents of the Kyoto accord say the
|
| degrees.
| |
| | next step should be nature's. Myron Ebell
|
| The panel says this could mean a sea
| |
| | says glaciers have been melting since the
|
| level rise of up to one meter by the end
| |
| | end of the last ice age about 10,000
|
| of this century, possibly engulfing
| |
| | years ago, yet people have adapted. He
|
| coastal regions and island countries.
| |
| | argues that global warming has benefits,
|
| U.S. space agency climate expert James
| |
| | such as a longer growing season and
|
| Hansen was one of the first scientists to
| |
| | hardier crops.
|
| warn of global warming in the 1980s. He
| |
| | "Carbon dioxide is necessary for plants
|
| says the world is nearing the time when
| |
| | to photosynthesize, so if there is more
|
| it cannot be reversed. "We're getting
| |
| | carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, plants
|
| very close to a tipping point in the
| |
| | should grow more quickly, more vigorously
|
| climate system. If we don't get out of
| |
| | and they should be more resistant to
|
| our business-as-usual scenarios and begin
| |
| | things like drought," says Ebell.
|
