Past the Point of No Return

Climate change deniers are put on official notice.  Stating that greenhouse gas emissions had increased by 20% since 2000, a recent United Nations report indicated that it was unlikely that the goal of stalling global warming at the 2 degree Celsius level by 2020 could be met.  The temperature rise is more likely to be 3 to 5 degrees Celsius by the end of this century.  "So what?" you say - what's a degree or two more?  Well, the significance is that once above the 2 degree Celsius level, the projected costs for dealing with climate change escalate dramatically. 

After our own recent bout with climate change effects (aka Hurricane Sandy), the United States perhaps will awaken to become a leader in halting this doomsday march.  More than 110 deaths and an estimated $50 billion damage have been attributed to the storm that ransacked the East Coast in late October.  Sandy was dubbed a megastorm but it may soon become the norm.  Strong storms such as Sandy and higher level hurricanes will become more and more common because of the increasing global warming. 

Although China has now overtaken the United States in terms of total energy consumption, the United States remains the leading per capita energy consumer with neighbor Canada right behind.  Canada and the United States both are consuming energy at a rate over 8 tons oil equivalent (TOE) per person.  For comparison, other developed nations are generally in the range of 3 (Italy) to 6 (Finland) TOE per person.  China is below 2.   

A major UN climate change conference starts next week in Qatar.  Expect the conferrees to stress the need for drastic reductions in fossil fuels consumption and the development of alternate forms of energy.  Based on their current assessment, one would hope that they also start focusing on engineering solutions to minimize the damage that will surely come.

All of this will take money as well as cooperation among nations.  The time for narrow-minded nationalism and know nothing/do nothing attitudes is over.  The time to invest in the future of the planet, in sustainable energy and infrastructure, is now.

What can I do?
The web is filled with pages on energy conservation and stopping global warming at the personal level.  Here are three of them.
Global Warming Facts: 50 Tips
Power Scorecard: Twenty Things to Conserve Energy   
NRDC: How to Reduce Energy Consumption (This is a link to "Easy Energy Saving Habits".  On that page you will find links to Simple Household Tools and Gadgets, Long Term Efficiency and  Further Resources.)

Article- Related Links
Huffington Post Nov 23 Article
Common Dreams Nov 21 Post
Per Capita Energy Use
Total Energy Use