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Climate Change is here. We have watched the approach of climate chaos and tipping points in the climate system for decades and been advocating for change for half that time. And still, fossil fuel emissions continue to rise.
By Richard Weller
For those out there who have not caught up with the current situation, global temperature is expected to reach 1.5C within the next 10 years to 15 years.
At this point, tipping points that exist in the climate system are expected to be passed. These tipping points include the melting of Greenland and West Antarctic Ice Sheets.
This means that we will no longer be able to stop the melting and it will continue for 1000 years. In the near term, we are already seeing some minor changes in the occurrence of heat waves, bushfires and floods.
These minor changes are strong enough to impact of people and are already killing Australians (particularly heat waves) causing billions of dollars of damage with loss of property and livelihood.
These extremes will get worse in the next few of years, rising rapidly towards multiple highly significant hits to the Australian people and economy on a yearly, or more often, basis. A radical, permanent change to the climate is looming within this decade.
So, what should we do about it?
Take the scientific warnings seriously, they are the best we have to understand the coming catastrophe.
At the same time, immediate and radical cuts to the use of fossil fuels are necessay. There is plenty of advice on how to do this from a large number of authoritative scientific organisations.
What will happen if we don’t do this?
Disaster is what will happen! For the people of Australia and for the whole of humanity.
Who should take action? All of us! Each in our own way and within our individual capacities, we can all make a difference. Every country on earth, every community and every individual must act and do so rapidly.
Those in positions of influence are the most important actors. This includes political leaders, business people, professionals, religious leaders, the bureaucracy and academics. These people can implement broad and effective action.
Whatever we do achieve, we won’t see results immediately. It will take considerable time before the impacts of today’s decisions are felt within the climate system.
If complacency continues and we see further rises in emissions, the consequences are dire.
It is dire because the natural world does not owe us a liveable climate. This planet has provided us an
environment in which to evolve that is very special.
This environment provides us with air, clean water, food and shelter from the worst of physical conditions that we know exist on many other planets.
It is entirely possible that Earth could move rapidly outside comfortable conditions for humans.
The result would be an unimaginable situation where the climate is actively hostile. Imagine being reduced to small pockets of survivors, eking out an impoverished life in protective shelters. We already build the first such shelters – our homes.
But we still rely on the outside to provide the survival services of air, water, food and
shelter.
We must recognize that these services are critical to our survival well before they are destroyed and
act immediately to protect them. Because if we wait until we feel the collapse of these services, it will be too late.
The biggest contribution we can make this week is to vote for action on climate. I urge everyone to think very carefully – what sort of world will we leave to our children. Act now to radically reduce emissions or give in to the end of our civilisation. It is that serious.
Vote Climate!
