"This is the beginning... God only knows how long it will take to be a major catastrophe." ... we are creating a future world inhospitable to our society, and a majority of all species of life presently on earth,
A massive collapse of an ice sheet in Western Antarctica has begun and, according to scientists, is most likely an unstoppable event that will cause an inevitable rise in global sea levels of at least 10 feet.
The rise will be relatively slow at first, but (by 2100) will ramp up sharply. This could happen sooner, warn the scientists, as the impacts of anthropogenic climate disruption (ACD/climate change) continue to intensify.
"This is really happening," Thomas P. Wagner, who runs NASA's programs on polar ice and helped oversee some of the research, said. "There's nothing to stop it now."
On April 13, the world's leading scientific body for the assessment of ACD warned of a "devastating rise of 4-5C if we carry on as we are."
The rapidity with which ACD is progressing now is truly astounding. Greenhouse gas emissions grew in the first decade of the 21st century at a rate nearly double that of the previous 30 years combined - this, despite the massive economic downturn in 2008.
With full steam ahead for the industrial growth society that dominates the planet, this dispatch reveals another month of dramatic impacts and stunning reports that show, starkly, how humans are disfiguring all facets of the earth.
Yet mitigating ACD is more challenging than ever, and becoming increasingly so with each passing day. CO2 emissions continue to set annual records, and nothing short of a wartime response is warranted. Nevertheless, governments around the world have made, at best, extremely weak efforts towards transitioning away from fossil fuels.
"Devastating" Impacts of Climate Change Increasing
Tuesday, 13 May 2014 09:45 - By Dahr Jamail, Truthout | News Analysis
West Antarctica ice sheet collapse: 'it will change the coastline of the world'
Adapting to sea level rises as ice sheets melt will be a really big deal – it'll be expensive and hard
Tuesday, 13 May 2014 09:45 - By Dahr Jamail, Truthout | News Analysis
West Antarctica ice sheet collapse: 'it will change the coastline of the world'
Adapting to sea level rises as ice sheets melt will be a really big deal – it'll be expensive and hard
