by Robert Wilkinson
It seems “levels of heat-trapping carbon dioxide in the atmosphere rose at a record-shattering pace last year,” which has led climate scientists to believe that there is “a diminishing ability of the world’s oceans and plant life to soak up the excess carbon put into the atmosphere by humans.”
As you know based in previous articles on this site, one reason we haven’t seen even more dramatic climate changes is due to the oceans soaking up CO2, which so far has kept things somewhat stable. But according to this story by Joby Warrick at the WaPo titled CO2 levels in atmosphere rising at dramatically faster rate, U.N. report warns, this surge in levels of carbon dioxide is alarming World Meteorogical Organization scientists, since it seems this is an indicator of “an accelerated warming of the planet in decades to come.”
From the story:
The latest figures from the World Meteorological Organization’s monitoring network are considered particularly significant because they reflect not only the amount of carbon pumped into the air by humans, but also the complex interaction between man-made gases and the natural world. Historically, about half of the pollution from human sources has been absorbed by the oceans and by terrestrial plants, preventing temperatures from rising as quickly as they otherwise would, scientists say.”If the oceans and the biospehere cannot absorb as much carbon, the effect on the atmosphere could be much worse,” said Oksana Tarasova, a scientist and chief of the WMO’s Global Atmospheric Watch program, which collects data from 125 monitoring stations worldwide. The monitoring network is regarded as the most reliable window on the health of Earth’s atmosphere, drawing on air samples collected near the poles, over the oceans, and in other locations far from cities and other major sources of pollution.
The new figures for carbon dioxide were particularly surprising, showing the biggest year-over-year increase since detailed records were first compiled in the 1980s, Tarasova said in an interview. The jump of nearly three parts per million over 2012 levels was twice as large as the average increase in carbon levels in recent decades, she said.
“The changes we’re seeing are really drastic,” Tarasova said. “We are seeing the growth rate rising exponentially.”
Please go to the article to find out more. And of course, the problems don’t begin and end with global warming.
The organization’s annual report included, for the first time, figures on the increasing acidification of the oceans stemming from higher levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. As the seas absorb more carbon dioxide from the air, the water’s chemical composition becomes more acidic. Studies extrapolating from the fossil record suggest that the rate of acidification is now “unprecedented, at least over the past 300,000 years,” the WMO said.Higher acidity in seawater is known to disrupt the life cycles of many marine species — from reef-building corals to shellfish beloved by humans — by interfering with the creatures’ ability to use sea-borne calcium to build their shells.
In an indirect way, the acidification of seawater also exacerbates climate change: The oceans over time become less capable of absorbing carbon from the air, allowing more of the greenhouse gas to accumulate in the atmosphere, the report said.
Decreasing our collective and individual carbon footprint is the single most important thing we can do. At some point the powers-that-be will realize the industrial model is unsustainable and turn to newer, cleaner technologies to generate power and the goods we believe we need to live life on Earth. But it’s more likely that it will change not because they see the light, but when they (literally!) feel the heat!!
We will learn that we must all hang together, else we shall all hang separately. I have no doubt that in the end, humanity will come together for the common good, as it has since the beginning, even through the rough patches. At least we’re collectively on the Path of Return, destroying the collective illusion of our separateness from God, Nature, and each other.
For now, do what you can to become the highest Consciousness you can, BE the Divine Self that you are, and envision a better world, freed of pollution and the greedy mindset that fouls our collective nest. Those who live in coastal areas will surely be “holding the Light” as the seas rise, and will create an atmosphere of protection for those who don’t know what to do.
A lot of fear will be confronted and destroyed in the coming decades as the world is purified and transformed, just as it has been through countless millennia of Earth changes. This is just one more evolutionary leap between Great Ages!
© Copyright 2014 Robert Wilkinson
Hi all - Here's the story from NBC with a different slant. It focuses on the acidification of the oceans, and how that affects the food chain from the bottom to the top. Check it out:
U.N. Carbon Dioxide Report Holds Ominous Prediction for Oceans' Acidity
Posted by: Robert | September 09, 2014 at 05:24 PM