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As we confront the planetary harbinger of death and destruction that is climate change, we must take action now. There is no time to wait, to let others do the work for us. We must save the Earth. It will take enormous sacrifices: minimalism, eschewing consumption, going vegan.
The team had documented, for the first time, that severe heatwaves were causing "almost instant mortality of corals." Researchers referred to the resulting, heat-damaged skeletons as "ghost corals, because there was just nothing left."
https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-49255642
#ClimateEmergency
https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-49255642
#ClimateEmergency
Remember when they said the arctic glaciers may melt? Well... the arctic is on fire now. We're past the the time where we question whether we act. Now it's a matter of how rapidly we act to reduce the impact, if we still can. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/north/arctic-wildfires-1.5228945
(Sub)urban sprawl is a big component of climate change because it oft replaces carbon-capturing and air filtering forests with homes, streets and pollution. https://www.curbed.com/2019/8/8/20791945/climate-change-report-2019-ipcc-land-use-cities
We ought to strive for greater efficiency. If every country lived like America we'd need a several more Earths.
âPeople currently use one quarter to one third of landâs potential net primary production for food, feed, fiber, timber and energy .â https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2019/08/how-think-about-dire-new-ipcc-climate-report/595705/
âPeople currently use one quarter to one third of landâs potential net primary production for food, feed, fiber, timber and energy .â https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2019/08/how-think-about-dire-new-ipcc-climate-report/595705/
Agriculture is another problem that must be addressed. Biodiversity and sustainability should be integral to the future of food. https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/how-our-food-is-grown-and-consumed-is-making-climate-change-worse-what-can-we-do
The more plants you eat, the less you're hurting the climate. Local is better of course. Reducing meat and other animal product consumption is very important for the future of everything: our planet and all of its inhabitants, including humans. https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-49238749
"The West Coast this year has seen an unusually high number of marine animal deaths, sending scientists scrambling to understand why. The leading theories all have one factor in common: warming waters caused by climate change." https://www.wsj.com/articles/as-animals-wash-up-on-west-coast-scientists-look-to-climate-change-11563888447
"None of the nearly 300 weather stations scattered about Alaska have recorded a temperature below freezing since June 28, the longest such streak in at least 100 years." https://www.washingtonpost.com/weather/2019/07/30/alaskas-summer-heat-has-been-basically-off-charts/
"The tragedy of the Camp Fire illustrates the way two dual crises in the U.S.âeconomic inequality and climate changeâinteract. Nearly 44% of the U.S. population, about 140 million people, are living in poverty." https://www.fastcompany.com/90386051/homelessness-is-already-a-crisis-but-climate-change-makes-it-much-worse
"Scientists know of only three prior occasions in the past 800 years when there has been melting at the very top of the ice cap, which is kept chilled by the large volume of ice beneath. But this seems to be getting much more frequent." https://www.ft.com/content/591395fe-b761-11e9-96bd-8e884d3ea203
"When one important crop region experiences (what used to be) abnormal climate, like in 2012 when US corn growing regions went through a drought, the effect is felt worldwide in changes in food price and availability all over the planet." https://massivesci.com/articles/ipcc-climate-change-food-desert-soil-warming-carbon-dioxide-co2/
âThe glacier is melting so much that the land is rising from the seaâ said IngĂłlfsson, CEO of Skinney-Thinganes. âItâs harder to get our biggest trawlers in and out of the harbor. If something goes wrong with the weather the port is closed off completely.â https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/09/business/iceland-ice-melt-global-warming-climate-change.html
âThis is the worst year ever,â said Kingfield vendor Pheng Yang, walking through his field in Montgomery, Minn. âUsually I get to play hide-and-seek in the tomatoes. We just have to keep trying and hope for better next year. Itâs nature. What can you do?â https://www.southwestjournal.com/news/2019/08/a-hard-year-for-farmers/
"We found more than 45% of the coastline was already affected by extreme weather events caused by climate change. Whatâs more, these ecosystems are struggling to recover as extreme events are expected to get worse." http://theconversation.com/extreme-weather-caused-by-climate-change-has-damaged-45-of-australias-coastal-habitat-120671
"Heat of this magnitude is impressive. But a heat wave demolishing records by such an obscene margin over such a large area? Virtually unprecedented. Some of these records were not beaten by a small increment. They established an entirely new baseline.â https://www.washingtonpost.com/weather/2019/07/26/european-heat-wave-bears-fingerprint-climate-change/
"The main risks to bees include wide-spread pesticide use in agriculture, parasites, disease and climate change, and crucially -- the loss of valuable biodiversity which poses a further threat to bees and other wild pollinators." https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/08/190808123845.htm
"We studied the impact of temperature on two solitary bee species that emerge in spring and on Pulsatilla vulgaris, one of the earliest flowering plants. A lack of pollinators can have serious consequences for the plants and their reproductive success." https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/07/190724104028.htm
âThe magnitude is unprecedented in the 16-year satellite record,â Thomas Smith, a researcher at the London School of Economics, told USA Today. âThe fires appear to be farther north than usual, and some appear to have ignited peat soils.â https://www.outsideonline.com/2400498/arctic-fires-creating-feedback-loop-climate
"Worldwide, traditional landholders including Indigenous and Afro-descendent populations manage or have land rights over at least 38 million square kilometers (14.67m square miles), equivalent to at least 40% of all protected and ecologically intact land" https://www.pri.org/stories/2019-08-09/without-respect-indigenous-rights-climate-change-will-worsen-un-says
Where Crusiusâ views violently diverge is the solution to these real issues. The manifesto suggests Americans overconsumption will never stop, so the only option is âget rid of enough peopleâ to make the American lifestyle âmore sustainable.â https://earther.gizmodo.com/how-climate-change-is-becoming-a-deadly-part-of-white-n-1837010929
The climate math is brutally clear: While the world can't be healed within the next few years, it may be fatally wounded by negligence until 2020," said Hans Joachim Schellnhuber, founder and now director emeritus of the Potsdam Climate Institute. https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-48964736
"Since the Industrial Revolution, roughly half of annual fossil-fuel emissions have been absorbed by the land's ecosystems and oceans. Without these natural buffers, the world would have warmed by more than 2°C above pre-industrial levels long ago." https://www.khaleejtimes.com/editorials-columns/protect-nature-to-fight-climate-change
'To have any chance of feeding 10 billion people in 2050 within planetary boundaries, we must adopt a healthy, plant-based diet, cut food waste, and invest in technologies that reduce environmental impacts.' https://www.yahoo.com/news/people-have-to-turn-vegan-or-vegetarian-to-stop-climate-change-un-report-warns-190829557.html
âHumans hurt the [ocean] in a global way, whether through overfishing or plastics or whateverâand we do it very quickly,â Savoca says. âItâs a frequent, unabating, constant assault.â https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/2019/04/extreme-animals-live-in-oceans/
âWhen the oxygen is below two parts per million, any shrimp, crabs, and fish that can swim away, will swim awayâ says Louisiana State University ocean ecologist Nancy Rabalais. âThe animals in the sediment that can't swim away can be close to annihilated.â https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/2019/06/massive-dead-zone-predicted-to-be-one-of-largest-gulf-of-mexico/
"Raising livestock for slaughter is, of course, not particularly good for the planet. Animals demand lots of food and water: A single cow might consume 11,000 gallons of water a year. And that cow burps up methane, an extremely potent greenhouse gas." https://www.wired.com/story/ipcc-land-report-food/
"The effects are not likely to be felt evenly around the world, however, and many countries currently experiencing high levels of nutrient deficiency are also projected to be more affected by lower nutrient availability in the future." https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2019-07/ifpr-rcc071719.php
"Cooking on gas stoves can also cause high levels of indoor air pollution, like nitrogen dioxide. We have health effects that have never been considered that come from burning natural gas," Harrison says. https://www.npr.org/2019/08/05/745051104/give-up-your-gas-stove-to-save-the-planet-banning-gas-is-the-next-climate-push
"Methane gas, commonly referred to as ânatural gas,â is the fossil fuel with the most positive image. Natural gas is marketed as not just cleaner than other fossil fuels, but as âcleanââa demonstrably false descriptor with an endless number of caveats." https://www.sightline.org/2019/02/12/calling-natural-gas-a-bridge-fuel-is-alarmingly-deceptive/
"Methane is a very potent greenhouse gas. Greenhouse gases effect the Earthâs temperature and climate system. They absorb some frequencies of infrared radiation emitted from the Earthâs surface, trapping heat in the atmosphere that would otherwise escape." https://www.sightline.org/2019/02/12/methane-climate-change-co2-on-steroids/
In a 2009 study by scientists at NASA and Columbia University researchers evaluated a range of atmospheric processes and compositions and estimated that methaneâs global warming potential could be 79 to 105 times greater than CO2 over a 20-year time frame. https://www.sightline.org/2019/02/12/study-methane-life-cycle-critical-pacific-northwest/
"Fracking has revolutionized the extraction of oil and gas in just a few years, but this highly efficient method comes with environmental and health risks. A new metastudy details its adverse effects on the local environment, the climate and human health." https://wskg.org/news/new-york-study-fracking-causes-environmental-damage-birth-defects/
"A new study published in the Journal of Industrial Ecology shows that the stuff we consume, from food to knick-knacks, is responsible for up to 60% of global greenhouse gas emissions and between 50% and 80% of total land, material, and water use." https://grist.org/living/consumerism-plays-a-huge-role-in-climate-change/
"Climate change damages the economy, health and environment. Wildfires in California, crop failures and crumbling infrastructure. Exports and supply chains could be disrupted, agricultural yields could fall to 1980s levels by 2050 and fire season spread." https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/23/climate/us-climate-report.html
"Warming increases the risk of civil war in Africa is the title of a new research paper in the Proceedings of the US National Academy of Sciences. The report claims that temperature rises have coincided with significant increases in the likelihood of war." https://ourworld.unu.edu/en/does-climate-change-cause-conflict
The humanitarian effects of [climate change] are massive,â he said. âBut what weâre saying is that those humanitarian consequences are likely to spill over into broader security problems that speaks to the heart of how the world organizes itself.â https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/once-again-climate-change-cited-as-trigger-for-war/
"There's scientific consensus that the lives of children are going to be very difficult, and it does lead, I think, young people to have a legitimate question â is it OK to still have children?" she says in a video streamed from her kitchen. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2019/03/26/climate-change-war-famine-drought-makes-women-not-want-children/3099448002/
"Scientists and the U.S. military have argued for years that rising temperatures will likely spur waves of human migration and battles over increasingly scarce resourcesâparticularly water." https://www.nationalgeographic.com/news/2015/3/150302-syria-war-climate-change-drought/
"The Nature paper estimates that the carbon cost of chicken is six times higher than soya, while milk is 15x higher and beef 73x. One kilo of beef protein has a carbon opportunity cost of 1,250kg: that is roughly equal to driving a new car for a year." https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/aug/08/ipcc-land-climate-report-carbon-cost-meat-dairy
Suggested further reading related to the above [PDF]:
Eating Away at Climate Change with Negative Emissions. Repurposing UK agricultural land to meet climate goals.
By Helen Harwatt, PhD & Matthew N. Hayek, PhD.
https://animal.law.harvard.edu/wp-content/uploads/Eating-Away-at-Climate-Change-with-Negative-EmissionsââHarwatt-Hayek.pdf
#ClimateEmergency
Eating Away at Climate Change with Negative Emissions. Repurposing UK agricultural land to meet climate goals.
By Helen Harwatt, PhD & Matthew N. Hayek, PhD.
https://animal.law.harvard.edu/wp-content/uploads/Eating-Away-at-Climate-Change-with-Negative-EmissionsââHarwatt-Hayek.pdf
#ClimateEmergency
"We find that the impacts of the lowest-impact animal products exceed average impacts of substitute vegetable proteins across GHG emissions, eutrophication, acidification (excluding nuts), and frequently land use (Fig. 1 and data S2)."
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/aug/08/ipcc-land-climate-report-carbon-cost-meat-dairy
#ClimateEmergency
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/aug/08/ipcc-land-climate-report-carbon-cost-meat-dairy
#ClimateEmergency
"overfishing isn't the only contributor to higher mercury levels in fish. Climate change â and the rising ocean temperatures that come with it â means fish are more active and need more food to survive. Consuming more prey means consuming more mercury." https://www.cbsnews.com/news/climate-change-and-overfishing-are-increasing-toxic-mercury-levels-in-fish/
"Usually, it's all about sea level rise," Sutherland said. "That would be important if it was the only thing, but all of a sudden we have these ecosystem impacts as well, and that's something we want to quantify."
https://insideclimatenews.org/news/25072019/glacier-melting-warming-oceans-climate-change-arctic-antarctica-study
#ClimateEmergency
https://insideclimatenews.org/news/25072019/glacier-melting-warming-oceans-climate-change-arctic-antarctica-study
#ClimateEmergency
âClimate change is a public health crisis,â Vijay Limaye told The Post. âThe science is really strong in telling us that with climate change accelerating, we expect heat waves to be more frequent, more intense and longer.â
https://beta.washingtonpost.com/science/2019/08/09/climate-change-isnt-an-intangible-future-risk-its-here-now-its-killing-us/?outputType=amp
#ClimateEmergency
https://beta.washingtonpost.com/science/2019/08/09/climate-change-isnt-an-intangible-future-risk-its-here-now-its-killing-us/?outputType=amp
#ClimateEmergency
"We know the overall trend is increased temperature, precipitation, and humidity. What does this do? It increases soil erosion. If you donât have plants in the dirt, the rainfall displaces it and you might, all of the sudden, have an area retaining water."
http://www.medina-gazette.com/News/2019/08/10/Farmers-feeling-climate-change-39-s-damage.html
http://www.medina-gazette.com/News/2019/08/10/Farmers-feeling-climate-change-39-s-damage.html
The Trump administration is proposing changes to federal regulations that could fast-track the approval of natural gas pipelines & other energy infrastructure. Environmental advocates say the move will weaken the ability of states to protect their waters. https://insideclimatenews.org/news/09082019/epa-fast-track-pipeline-permits-clean-water-act-rule-change-trump-executive-order
"The lawsuit asks that the agency's decision be vacated. The groups say the agency should have to re-evaluate the pipeline's effects on wildlife, and they argue work should stop while that happens."
https://www.star-telegram.com/news/politics-government/national-politics/article233800582.html
https://www.star-telegram.com/news/politics-government/national-politics/article233800582.html
"The sex of sea turtles is determined by the temperature of the sand where eggs incubate. With climate change turning up the heat in Florida, producing longer, hotter summers, sea turtle gender balance is way out of whack."
https://amp.miamiherald.com/news/local/environment/article231522408.html
#OneVoice1 #ClimateCrisis
https://amp.miamiherald.com/news/local/environment/article231522408.html
#OneVoice1 #ClimateCrisis
