Earth scientists warn impact of continuous burning of fossil fuel would be felt for next 10,000 years
US Supreme Court blocks Obama’s Clean Power Plan
A study by the leading Earth scientists warns of the impact of the continuous burning of fossil fuel on the planet which the experts say would last for the next 10,000. The research was published on Monday in Nature Climate Change, a day ahead of the landmark decision of the US Supreme Court to temporarily stop the Clean Power Plan.
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The scientists point out that the thinking that climate change is a 21st century problem is wrong and the negative impact of continuous burning of fossil fuel could be reversed by cutting emissions after 2100. They point out that “focusing on such a narrow slice of geologic time has created a false public perception,” reports Gizmodo.
The long-term real risks and consequences of the fossil fuel era requires massive adaptation efforts, otherwise it would leave the future generation with dislocation and migration as their only options, states Thomas Stocker, climate scientist at the University of Bern and the report’s co-author.
The researchers studied the impact of climate change using four possible levels of pollution, beginning with 1,280 billion tonnes and ending with 1,520 billion tonnes of carbon pollution emitted between 2000 and 2300. So far, 580 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide has been released into the atmosphere at a rate of 10 billion tonnes a year. All four scenarios target zero carbon emissions by 2300, with all scenarios saying the impact of air pollution would last up to 10,000 years.
Peter Clark, co-author of the study and a climate change expert from Oregon State University, states that to avoid the worst impacts of climate change, there is an urgent need to decarbonise now and reach zero or negative emissions as soon as possible. He stresses, “Reducing emissions alone is not enough.”
But many companies and US states are opposed to the Clean Power Plan pushed by US President Barack Obama. On Tuesday, the US Supreme Court ordered a temporary stop to the plan which mandates dramatic emissions cut by power plants by 32 percent by 2030 after the corporate world and state politicians raised a legal challenge.
In opposing cutting the top cause of carbon emissions, which is electricity consumption, the critics say the goal is not realistic and infringes on the states’ rights when it is forced to put in place radical changes to their infrastructure. Among the nine justices of the court, five voted for the temporary stop to the plan’s implementation, reports Gizmodo.
