[Imc-uk-features] Feature Proposal for Climate Topic Page

[Chris]

Hi

On Mon 17-Dec-2007 at 11:39:39PM +0000, wy911 goowy wrote:
> "Human beings are currently causing the greatest mass
> extinction of species since the extinction of the
> dinosaurs 65 million years ago. If present trends
> continue *one half of all species of life on earth* will
> be extinct in less than 100 years, as a result of
> habitat destruction, pollution, invasive species, and
> climate change."
>
> Habitat destruction,pollution, invasive species,
> including newly introduced invasive species, du, ocean
> depletion, haarp, nuclear energy - the list goes on and
> on
>
> The one thing missing from the list is carbon-driven
> climate change

But these things are clearly related, for example,
yesterday:

  The journal Science has published a paper today that is
  the most comprehensive review to date of the effects
  rising ocean temperatures are having on the world’s
  coral reefs. The Carbon Crisis: Coral Reefs under Rapid
  Climate Change and Ocean Acidification, co-authored by
  seventeen marine scientists from seven different
  countries, reveals that most coral reefs will not
  survive the drastic increases in global temperatures and
  atmospheric CO2 unless governments act immediately to
  combat current trends.

  The paper, the cover story for this week’s issue of
  Science, paints a bleak picture of a future without all
  but the most resilient coral species if atmospheric CO2
  levels continue on their current trajectory. Marine
  biodiversity, tourism and fishing industries and the
  food security of millions are at risk, the paper warns.
  Coral reef fisheries in Asia currently provide protein
  for one billion people and the total net economic value
  of services provided by corals is estimated to be $30
  billion.

  Atmospheric CO2 levels are currently at 380 parts per
  million (ppm) and the paper’s authors, members of the
  Coral Reef Targeted Research & Capacity Building for
  Management Program (CRTR), calculate that once levels
  reach 560ppm, the calcification process could be reduced
  by up to 40 percent. Recent science also suggests that
  by 2100 the oceans will be so acidic that 70 percent of
  the habitat for deep-water corals, once considered
  relatively safe from the effects of climate change, will
  be uninhabitable.

  http://www.innovations-report.de/html/berichte/umwelt_naturschutz/bericht-100230.html

Chris  

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