Greenhouse gas emissions hit danger mark: scientist - Reuters

[Eugene]

Source: Reuters

Greenhouse gas emissions hit danger mark: scientist
Tue Oct 9, 2007 1:44am EDT

By Michael Perry

SYDNEY (Reuters) - The global economic boom has
accelerated greenhouse gas emissions to a
dangerous threshold not expected for a decade and
could potentially cause irreversible climate change,
said one of Australia's leading scientists.

Tim Flannery, a world recognized climate change
scientist and Australian of the Year in 2007, said
a U.N. international climate change report due in
November will show that greenhouse gases have
already reached a dangerous level.

Flannery said the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate
Change (IPCC) report will show that greenhouse gas
in the atmosphere in mid-2005 had reached about
455 parts per million of carbon dioxide equivalent
-- a level not expected for another 10 years.

"We thought we'd be at that threshold within about
a decade," Flannery told Australian television late
on Monday.

-snip-

Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/environmentNews/idUSSYD29548220071009

[Javaman]

1. We are so screwed.

honestly, all the hopes of some sort of cosmic awakening by the people of earth aside, does anyone really honestly think that we can put the brakes on in time?

We can't even agree on the most basic things of life: food, health and shelter.

[OKIsItJustMe]

2. I'm afraid not

The vast majority may not react until it is far too late.

:scared:

[GliderGuider]

3. We are now past a number of major tipping points.

GHG, ice/water albedo, oil depletion, global economic destabilization, crashing global grain stocks...

There's really little point hitting the brakes when all four wheels are in the air over the abyss. It's time to grab Thelma's hand say a little prayer.

[Nihil]

4. The sooner the better.

That way the people who have been lying, cheating and greedily destroying
the planet for their personal profit will be seen in plain light while they
are still alive rather than living in unchallenged luxury and only being
castigated a generation later.

One has this hope of ropes & lamp-posts but I suspect there will be a sudden
investment of their ill-gotten gains into the personal security industry to
prevent such a well-deserved judgement being delivered by the people.