I believe that e-democracy discussion group moderators for mn-politics-discuss and mn-stpaul are in large part responsible for the failure of Twin Cities residents to learn about climate change by the group moderator's refusals of posts on global warming for over four years.
Twin Cities residents are ignoring global warming, thinking that it is someone else's problem. Minnesota is adding heavily to the accumulation of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Rapid global warming is already underway, with devastating consequences in just years, continuing for centuries. Following are excerpts from testimonies delivered to the Full Committee of the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation on March 3, 2004, Washington D.C.: ------------------------------------------------- Opening Remarks by The Honorable John McCain, United States Senator: "There is a strong scientific consensus about the fact that global climate change is occurring, and occurring as a result of human activity. Those few scientists, and those in industry to claim otherwise do so despite their lying eyes. The dramatic and devastating changes wrought by climate change can be seen all around us." "There has been and continues to be a series of major climate-related events around the world. We have seen increased melting of the polar ice caps, the shifting and destruction of many species, the destruction of coral reefs, unprecedented heat waves and other extreme weather events, and new "outbreaks" of health problems linked to climate change. The devastation will only get worse until we begin to address this very serious issue." ---------- Opening Remarks by The Honorable Joseph Lieberman United States Senator: "Our problem of global warming is much like another of the serious problems facing us today - our national debt. We can ignore it for a while, but the more we continue emitting greenhouse gases unabated, the more we are buying ourselves a bigger debt to pay off down the road. Just like a dollar borrowed today will eventually have to be paid back, a ton of greenhouse gases emitted today will have to be offset by emissions reductions in the future. By avoiding modest emissions reductions today, opponents of our bill would not evade the cost of greenhouse gas reductions - they would only ensure that they would have to pay even more in the future." ---------- The Testimony of Dr. Robert Corell Chairman, Arctic Climate Impact Assessment, and Senior Fellow, American Meteorological Society: "Arctic Climate is Warming Rapidly and Much Larger Changes are Projected: Records of increasing temperatures, melting glaciers, reductions in extent and thickness of sea ice, thawing permafrost, and rising sea level all provide strong evidence..." "Warming Across the Arctic and its Consequences are likely to have Major Implications for the Entire World: The likelihood of continued melting of glaciers including the Greenland Ice Sheet have significant implications for the entire planet as the total land- based ice in the Arctic has been estimated to be about 3,100,000 cubic kilometers which, if melted, would correspond to a sea-level equivalent of about 8 meters." "Climate warming is projected to cause vegetation shifts because rising temperatures favor taller, denser vegetation, and will thus promote the expansion of forests into the Arctic tundra, and tundra into the polar deserts. This change, along with rising sea levels, is projected to shrink tundra area to its lowest extent in at least the past 21,000 years, potentially reducing the breeding area for many migratory bird species and the grazing areas for land animals that depend on the open landscape of tundra and polar desert habitats. Half the current tundra area is projected to disappear in this century." http://pi.com/local/aplocal_story.aspcategory=6420&slug=Climate+Change +Senate ---------- The Testimony of Dr. Marvin Geller, Professor, Institute for Terrestrial and Planetary Atmospheres, State University of New York, Stonybrook, Marine Science Research Center: "Human activities (greenhouse gas emissions, ozone depletion, changes in land use, etc.) have reached the point where they significantly add to the physical processes that have produced a changing climate over the Earth's history. State-of-the-art climate models cannot reproduce the rapid warming of global temperatures that have been observed from about 1970 onward at, and near, the Earth's surface without including the influence of human activities." ---------- The Testimony of Dr. Lee Hannah, Research Fellow, Climate Change Biology, Center for Biodiversity Science, Conservation International: "The rise of climate change will expose species to a new and deadly combination - habitat loss and climate change. Species move to maintain their preferred climate, but this may be impossible where a cornfield or superhighway or other human land use lies in the way. Since many parts of the world have already lost most of their natural habitat, such obstructions are the rule, rather than the exception. When a species can't move to find its suitable climate, its range shrinks, its population dwindles and its risk of extinction rises. Species extinctions will result as movements required by climate change run into existing habitat loss. Climate change will be much more deadly in today's heavily transformed landscapes than it would be in a fully natural world." "Restraining climate change must be a major complement to heightened conservation if major species extinctions are to be avoided. Instituting reductions sooner can mean substantially lower impacts on wildlife in the long run. Early reductions can help stabilize global greenhouse gas concentrations at lower levels, meaning less climate change and less rearrangement of natural systems. In the end, lowering greenhouse gas levels can reduce the risk of extinctions for hundreds of thousands of species." "The time to act is now. There are long lead times associated with reducing greenhouse gas concentrations. It is unrealistic to think that last-minute efforts will save the day or that wholesale changes in the way we fuel our cars or generate our electricity can be made overnight." ---------- The Testimony of Dr. Jerry Mahlman, National Center for Atmospheric Research: "Global warming is real and is a phenomenon that humans have created. Climate scientists worldwide have understood its essence since the so- called "Charney Report" of the National Research Council 25 years ago. Our burning of fossil fuels (coal, oil, and natural gas) is the undisputably direct cause of the ever-increasing concentrations of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. This added carbon dioxide acts directly to warm the planet. There is no scientific controversy about these facts. The eventual warming amounts for Earth are expected to be substantial, but with some remaining uncertainty concerning how much warming we will receive for given scenarios of future amounts of carbon dioxide, and other "greenhouse" gases." ---------- The Testimony of Dr. Lara Hansen, Senior Scientist, Climate Change Program, World Wildlife Fund: "One of the most visually dramatic effects of climate change has been coral bleaching. Coral reefs are the most biologically diverse ecosystems of the ocean--rivaled only by the tropical rainforests on land." "With the majority of human population living in coastal regions, many people depend on living coral reefs for food and protection from storm surges and erosion, as well as the additional benefits of tourism, medical research and aesthetic beauty. Coral reefs contribute an average of 25 percent of the total fish catch in developing countries, providing food for one billion people in Asia alone." "Because human activities that contribute to global warming are at the root cause of the almost epidemic coral bleaching and other environmental damage currently underway, we have a window of opportunity now to prevent further and more catastrophic damage if elected officials act quickly." "Significant reductions in CO2 and other greenhouse gas emissions are urgently needed to slow global warming. Such reductions can be achieved by setting mandatory caps on greenhouse gas emissions, including CO2, and supporting a switch towards clean energy-increased energy efficiency, and use of renewable energy resources such as wind, solar and biomass." "... there is great risk to life on earth and high costs in terms of wildlife and critical ecosystems by delaying action in the face of global warming." "In conclusion Mr. Chairman, to prevent further and more catastrophic damage to wildlife like corals and critical ecosystems like coral reefs, mounting scientific evidence clearly indicates that the United States and other countries must act responsibly and enact laws that will significantly reduce CO2 and other greenhouse gas emissions now before it is too late." Full testimonies can be read from: http://commerce.senate.gov/hearings/witnesslist.cfm?id=1080: THE WORLD IS IN CRISIS DUE TO GLOBAL WARMING! Hydrologist's recommended links: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ClimateArchive/message/608 Financial incentives-ConserveNow! http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ClimateArchive/message/229 Thank you for your comments to P&C. [Pat N.] For discussion go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Paleontology_and_Climate/ Pat Neuman Chanhassen, MN ________________________________________________________________ The best thing to hit the Internet in years - Juno SpeedBand! 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