Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
by climate change will require a combination of adaptation to the changes that are likely to occur
and global reductions of CO2 emissions from anthropogenic sources.
Among the last serious doubters on the question of the human role—“anthropogenic” means caused by
humans—was the American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG). Apparently facing widespread
dissent from many of its members, the AAPG also issued a revised 2010 statement that was more accept-
ing of the human factor:
The AAPG membership is divided on the degree of influence that anthropogenic CO2 has on recent
and potential global temperature increases . . . Certain climate simulation models predict that the
warming trend will continue, as reported through NAS, AGU, AAAS and AMS. AAPG respects
these scientific opinions but wants to add that the current climate warming projections could fall
within well-documented natural variations in past climate and observed temperature data. These
data do not necessarily support the maximum case scenarios forecast in some models.
Given the most optimistic estimates, global warming from the car-with-the-windows-closed effect is
happening around us with potentially disastrous effects. The temperatures will not only continue to in-
crease, with dangerous pollutants as well, but sea levels will continue to rise, further threatening low-lying
coastal areas, especially in catastrophic weather conditions. That is significant because with rising temper-
atures, there is a growing belief that tropical storms are becoming more dangerous. The essential idea is
that warmer ocean waters produce more dangerous tropical storms and hurricanes, which derive their en-
ergy from ocean waters.
The best the world can do now is park the car in a shady spot and roll down the windows. In all like-
lihood, with even radical changes in fuel usage and protection of forests, the best we can do is slow the
process down rather than eliminate the threat of global warming.
It is a debate, however, that many governments have moved past. Many countries are preparing for
a new era in which the iced-over Arctic will eventually melt, opening up a treasure trove of resources.
In a report published by the Associated Press in 2012, Eric Talmadge reported that several countries, in-
cluding the United States and Russia, that are near the Arctic are making serious military preparations to
defend—or potentially fight over—the Arctic. The U.S. Geologic Survey estimate that 13 percent of the
world's undiscovered oil and 30 percent of its untapped natural gas is in that region.
These are some of the expected consequences of a warmer world. And the fight for the world's re-
sources on a much greater global scale may already have begun.
Geographic Voices
Jim Robbins,
“Why Trees Matter”
We have underestimated the importance of trees. They are not merely pleasant sources of shade
but a potentially major answer to some of our most pressing environmental problems. We take them
for granted, but they are a near miracle. . . . What trees do is essential though often not obvious.
Decades go, Katsuhiko Matsunaga, a marine chemist in Japan, discovered that when tree leaves de-
compose, they leach acids into the ocean that help fertilize plankton. When plankton thrive, so does
the rest of the food chain. In a campaign called Forests Are Lovers of the Sea, fishermen have re-
planted forests along coasts and rivers to bring back fish and oyster stocks and they have returned.
The “Antarctic Donut”: Powdered or Jelly?
