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Current Environmental Issues and News
Current Environmental Issues
Links to articles and/or sites which explain current environmental issues and problems:
Global Warming
It was determined that the total "long-term" carbon dioxide equivalent of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere reached 455 parts per million in 2005 according to the latest report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. It had not been expected to reach this level for a decade and is considered a tipping point. "The amount of greenhouse gas in the atmosphere is already above the threshold that can potentially cause dangerous climate change. We are already at risk...It's not next year or next decade, it's now." (Tim Flannery, Australian climate change expert) (Learn More: (1), (2)). The most recent science tells us that unless we can reduce the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere to 350 parts per million, we will cause huge and irreversible damage to the earth. (Learn More: (1))
A record number of floods, droughts and storms around the world in 2007 amounted to a climate change "mega disaster", the United Nation's emergency relief coordinator and under-secretary-general for humanitarian affairs, Sir John Holmes, has warned. "We are seeing the effects of climate change. Any year can be a freak but the pattern looks pretty clear to be honest...this is here and now, this is with us already." Two years ago only half the international disasters dealt with by OCHA, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, had anything to do with the climate; this year all but one of the 14 emergency appeals is climate-related. The OCHA appeals represent the tip of an iceberg since they are launched only with the agreement of the affected country. (Learn More: (1))
- Global Warming FAQ: from National Resources Defense Council and Union of Concerned Scientists
- Climate Change at a Glance (Fact Sheet by UNEP) (PDF)
- Global Warming: A Timeline
- Livestock's Role in Climate Change (PDF) (Responsible for 18% of the world's greenhouse gas emissions)
- Permafrost Methane Time Bomb and Carbon Dioxide, Methane Rise Sharply in 2007
- Acidified Ocean Water and CO2 Emissions Could Violate EPA Ocean Quality Standards within Decades
- Global Warming Could Kill Coral Reefs by 2050 (U.S. Coral Reefs in Severe Decline)
- Soil Releasing more Carbon Dioxide
- Arctic Ice Thinning, Glacier Melt Accelerating
- Canadian Oil Sand Extraction Release Huge Amounts of Greenhouse Gases (the sands cover an area the size of Florida and hold proven oil reserves second only to Saudi Arabia) (see satellite view)
- Animals endangered by global warming: overall threat to all species, polar bear, narwhals
- Current Climate Change Articles by the Environmental News Network
- Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Fourth Assessment Report Summaries:
World Hunger - Growing Food Crisis
Fresh Water Shortages and Water Pollution
Genetic Engineering
World Population Issues
Endangered Species and Biodiversity Loss
Ozone Depletion
Desertification
Hormone/Endocrine Disruptors
Shrinking Wetlands
Nuclear Weapons and Nuclear Power
Air Pollution
Animal Cruelty
Forest Destruction/Deforestation
Toxic Chemicals
Ocean and Coastal Threats
- Major Threats to the Worlds Oceans (Including Shrinking Fish Population)
- Alarming Increase in Ocean Dead-Zones
Food Supply Monopoly
Overall State of the World
- Earth - A Graphic Look at the State of the World
- World Scientists' Warning to Humanity
- United Nations Global Environment Outlook Reports
Current Environmental News
The following web sites report on current environmental news:
- Environment News Service
- Envirolink's News Headlines
- Natural Resources Defense Council Environmental News
- NPR's Environmental News
- Rachel's Weekly
- Legislative Watch: The Bulletin on Environmental Legislation
- EcoBytes by Environmental News Network:
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