{"id":15180,"date":"2017-07-19T07:43:42","date_gmt":"2017-07-19T07:43:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/newsroom247.com.ng\/?p=15180"},"modified":"2017-07-19T07:43:42","modified_gmt":"2017-07-19T07:43:42","slug":"remove-carbon-dioxide-from-atmosphere-or-face-extreme-climate-change-scientists","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/newsroom247.com.ng\/?p=15180","title":{"rendered":"REMOVE CARBON DIOXIDE FROM ATMOSPHERE OR FACE EXTREME CLIMATE CHANGE &#8211; Scientists"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Humans must start removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere as soon as possible to avoid saddling future generations with a choice between extreme climate change or spending hundreds of trillions of dollars to avoid it, according to new research.<\/p>\n<p>An international team of researchers \u2013 led by Professor Jim Hansen, Nasa\u2019s former climate science chief \u2013 said their conclusion that the world had already overshot targets to limit global warming to within acceptable levels was \u201csufficiently grim\u201d to force them to urge \u201crapid emission reductions\u201d.<\/p>\n<p><code><script async src=\"\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js\"><\/script><br \/>\n<!-- www.deltanewsroom.com --><br \/>\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\" style=\"display: block;\" data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-2163942495525027\" data-ad-slot=\"1411897411\" data-ad-format=\"auto\"><\/ins><br \/>\n<script>\n(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\n<\/script><\/code><\/p>\n<p>But they warned this would not be enough and efforts would need to be made to reduce the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere by about 12.5 per cent.<\/p>\n<p>This, the scientists argued, could be mostly achieved by agricultural measures such as planting trees and improving soil fertility, a relatively low-cost way to remove carbon from the air.<\/p>\n<p>Other more expensive methods, such as burning biomass in power plants fitted with carbon-capture-and-storage or devices that can remove carbon from the air directly, might also be necessary and would become increasingly needed if steps were not taken soon.<br \/>\n<code><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.alternativeadvert.com\/show.php?z=30&amp;pl=13762&amp;ad_type=59&amp;rl=180\" width=\"300\" height=\"250\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe><\/code><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>An\u00a0academic paper in the journal\u00a0<em>Earth System Dynamics<\/em> estimated such industrial processes could cost up to $535 trillion this century and \u201calso have large risks and uncertain feasibility\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cContinued high fossil fuel emissions unarguably sentences young people to either a massive, implausible clean-up or growing deleterious climate impacts or both,\u201d said the paper.<\/p>\n<div id=\"taboola-mid-article-left-rail-thumbnails\" class=\"inline-block inline-block-left trc_related_container trc_spotlight_widget\"><\/div>\n<p>\u201cWe conclude that the world has already overshot appropriate targets for greenhouse gas amount and global temperature, and we thus infer an urgent need for rapid phasedown of fossil fuel emissions [and] actions that draw down atmospheric carbon dioxide.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThese tasks are formidable and \u2026 they are not being pursued globally.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><code><script async src=\"\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js\"><\/script><br \/>\n<!-- www.deltanewsroom.com --><br \/>\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\" style=\"display: block;\" data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-2163942495525027\" data-ad-slot=\"1411897411\" data-ad-format=\"auto\"><\/ins><br \/>\n<script>\n(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\n<\/script><\/code><\/p>\n<p>Cuts to emissions of greenhouse gases such as methane, nitrous oxide and ozone would also be required.<\/p>\n<p>The study is to be used as part of a ground-breaking lawsuit brought against the US Government by 21 children in which the plaintiffs claim their constitutional right to have a health climate in which to live in is being violated by federal policies.<\/p>\n<p>If the case succeeds, environmentalists believe it could force the Trump administration to reduce greenhouse gases and take other measures to prevent global warming.<\/p>\n<p>The paper pointed out that the last time temperatures were this high, during the Eemian period, global sea levels were about six to nine metres higher than they are today, suggesting significant rises are still to occur.<\/p>\n<p>The paper said that the Paris Agreement, the tumbling price of renewable energy and the recent slowdown in the increase of fossil fuel emissions had led to a sense of optimism around the world.<\/p>\n<p>But, speaking to The Independent, Professor Hansen said he believed this optimism was misplaced.<br \/>\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.alternativeadvert.com\/show.php?z=30&amp;pl=13762&amp;ad_type=59&amp;rl=180\" width=\"300\" height=\"250\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe narrative that\u2019s out there now \u2026 is that we\u2019ve turned the corner,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOn the contrary, what we show is the rate of growth of climate forcing caused by increased methane [and other gases] is actually accelerating. That\u2019s why it\u2019s urgent.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Asked to assess the world\u2019s current progress in fighting climate change, he said the \u201cs*** is hitting the fan\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>Professor Hansen, now a scientist at the Columbia University Earth Institute in the US, said he believed the court case had a chance of winning.<\/p>\n<p>A court would not be able to tell the Government what to do, he admitted, but would be able to say that failing to deal with the problem was unconstitutional and require politicians to produce an effective plan.<\/p>\n<p>The paper said the need for \u201cprompt action implied by these realities [of climate change] may not be a surprise to the relevant scientific community\u201d because of the available evidence.<\/p>\n<p><code><script async src=\"\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js\"><\/script><br \/>\n<!-- www.deltanewsroom.com --><br \/>\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\" style=\"display: block;\" data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-2163942495525027\" data-ad-slot=\"1411897411\" data-ad-format=\"auto\"><\/ins><br \/>\n<script>\n(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\n<\/script><\/code><\/p>\n<p>\u201cHowever, effective communication with the public of the urgency to stem human-caused climate change is hampered by the inertia of the climate system, especially the ocean and the ice sheets, which respond rather slowly to climate forcings, thus allowing future consequences to build up before broad public concern awakens,\u201d it said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAll amplifying feedbacks, including atmospheric water vapor, sea ice cover, soil carbon release and ice sheet melt could be reduced by rapid emissions phasedown.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis would reduce the risk of climate change running out of humanity\u2019s control and provide time to assess the climate response, develop relevant technologies, and consider further purposeful actions to limit and\/or adapt to climate change.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>It warned that sea level rise of up to a metre \u201cmay be inevitable even if emissions decline\u201d and would have \u201cdire consequences\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>Sea level rise of several metres would result in \u201chumanitarian and economic disasters\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cGiven the increasing proportion of global population living in coastal areas, there is potential for forced migrations of hundreds of millions of people, dwarfing prior refugee humanitarian crises, challenging global governance and security,\u201d the paper said.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/newsroom247.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/flood.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-15181\" src=\"http:\/\/newsroom247.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/flood-300x180.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"180\" srcset=\"http:\/\/newsroom247.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/flood-300x180.jpg 300w, http:\/\/newsroom247.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/flood.jpg 480w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>About 65 per cent of the power produced by the massive Drax power plant in North Yorkshire comes from burning biomass, making it the largest single renewable electricity generator in the UK, although some dispute how green the process is.<\/p>\n<p>If it was to be fitted with carbon-capture-and-storage (CCS), it would create the type of negative emissions system envisaged in the paper. Drax was involved in the White Rose project to build a \u00a31bn CCS plant but pulled out after cuts to renewable energy subsidies by the Government.<\/p>\n<p>It insisted that biomass with CCS could make a major difference to the fight against climate change.<\/p>\n<p>A Drax spokesperson said: \u201cWe are confident the technology we developed as part of the White Rose project has real potential in terms of delivering dramatic reductions to carbon emissions produced by power stations and heavy industry.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHowever, the current regulatory environment means any such project isn\u2019t viable at the present time. We are also awaiting the Government\u2019s response to Lord Oxburgh\u2019s review into CCS.\u201d (http:\/\/www.independent.co.uk)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Humans must start removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere as soon as possible to avoid saddling future generations with a choice between extreme climate change or spending hundreds of trillions of dollars to avoid it, according to new research. An international team of researchers \u2013 led by Professor Jim Hansen, Nasa\u2019s former climate science chief [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":15181,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"spay_email":"","footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false},"categories":[11],"tags":[3988],"class_list":["post-15180","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-environment","tag-professor-jim-hansen"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"http:\/\/newsroom247.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/flood.jpg","jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4oswh-3WQ","_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/newsroom247.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15180","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/newsroom247.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/newsroom247.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/newsroom247.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/newsroom247.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=15180"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/newsroom247.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15180\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15182,"href":"http:\/\/newsroom247.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15180\/revisions\/15182"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/newsroom247.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/15181"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/newsroom247.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=15180"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/newsroom247.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=15180"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/newsroom247.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=15180"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}