It's time well passed to worry about Climate Change, although you wouldn't believe it listening to our dreadful politicians. They still don't get it or if they do they suffer internal machinations ones who don't - or they have just sold out. I've been just preparing a session for a discussion group today on "Death of democracy". Attending a discussion like this illuminates much. The Climate Change update 2018 was presented by Professor Mark Howden of the ANU Climate Change Institute. He's also Vice Chair, IPCC Working Group II and it's in this role that he is a Nobel Prize winner (with others). Of course, some say IPCC are the corrupt ones ripping us off for $billions according to the deniers (as I was told by a NZer recently, almost without prompting). But let's look at this summary of recent science: CO2 emissions rising; Methane rising; temperatures rising; Canberra temps rising; sea temps, levels and volumes rising; catastrophes rising; Australian greenhouse gases rising; heat stress rising. What's going down? Our time to act; not much else. Some startling factoids? Atmospheric CO2 352ppm(2006)>407(2017); CO2 emissions 1990-99 +1.1%pa>2000-2009 +3.3%pa; Sea level rise +2mmpa(1993)>+3.4mmpa(2017); World-wide climate-related catastrophes (Munich Re 2018) ~250(1980)>~720(2017); Perth's dam flows ~340Gl (1911-1971)>~40gL (2011-) . Mark's response to the denialist meme "It's all happened before" was "Rubbish". Who else is warning about climate? Oh, let's see ... Munich Re (reinsurer); Bank of England; APRA. And a day or so ago, so is the tourist industry on the Great Barrier Reef - finally they've got it - and the NFF. There were questions about ice loss, paralysis by uncertainty, tipping points, Paris agreement, short termism, etc. Fascinating and informed but nothing was a joy. Follow it up. I've linked Prof Howden's overheads below.
Professor Mark Howden of the ANU Climate Change Institute presented on Climate Update 2018.
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