ENVIRONMENT - Are We?

"2015: The Point of No Return?" by T. Lau, Enterprise IT Green

As debate in Washington rages about how the U.S. can contribute towards carbon regulation, it's sometimes worth remembering the goal here is nothing less than the continued existence of the planet. The movement towards carbon reduction is grounded ultimately not on tree-hugging environmentalism, but on a scientific belief that life itself is at grave risk without those reductions.

Twenty Nobel prize winners in physics, chemistry, economics, peace in literature recently signed the Saint James Palace Memorandum. According to the memorandum, the world must start reducing carbon emissions by 2015 in order to have a chance at reducing dangerous climate change. A two degree (Celsius) temperature rise is the most the world can take, as anything more will create "unmanageable" climate risks. In order to keep the climate rise down to 2 degrees or lower, the Copenhagen summit later this year (the successor to Kyoto) must agree to reduce global carbon emissions by 50% by 2050.

In other words, according to these very smart men and women, carbon emissions must peak by 2015 at the latest, at which time they must begin a reduction or we will face a catastrophe similar to nuclear war. The effects of global warming are already starting to manifest themselves. According to the a newly-released U.N. report, global warming currently kills 300,000 people a year. The vast majority of those deaths occur in developing countries, which contribute far fewer carbon emissions than developed countries. In some parts of the world such as the Carteret Islands near Papua New Guinea, some islands are literally bisected in half by rising sea waters. The tiny island nation of the Maldives (7 feet above sea level) is so concerned about climate change that its President is making plans to relocate all his citizens to other countries.

So as IT goes through sometimes-difficult steps to reduce carbon emission and energy use, it's worth keeping in mind that the goal here is awfully important, no matter how painful the transition may be.