CC10. What Do YOU Think About Climate Change?

We have considered actions by the U.S. government and other governments to slow global climate change. It’s important to recognize, however, that it is not just government officials who can make a difference. Every person in the world contributes to the changing atmosphere, and people in industrialized countries like the United States contribute the most. Therefore, it’s important for all of us to be aware of how we affect the climate and to decide what each of us, as individual citizens, wants to do about it.

But first, let’s take a critical look at the first sentence in this chapter. In particular, have “actions by the U.S. government …to slow global climate change” been overshadowed by actions by the U.S. government to promote fossil fuels! Please have a look at the lawsuit JULIANA V. UNITED STATES, that was filed August 12, 2015 by 21 young Americans. Their complaint asserts that the government’s actions supporting the fossil fuel industry result in climate change and has violated the youngest generation’s constitutional rights to life, liberty, and property, as well as failed to protect essential public trust resources. Our Childrens Trust website has a timeline, www.ourchildrenstrust.org/juliana-v-us, showing in detail the progress of this lawsuit that spanned several years. It inspired subsequent lawsuits, including the US’s first constitutional climate trial in June of 2023. In that case, the judge ruled in favor of a group of young plaintiffs who had accused state officials in Montana of violating their right to a healthy environment [see news article https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/aug/14/montana-climate-trial-young-activists-judge-order]. The plaintiffs testified that Montana state policies violated provisions in the state constitution that guarantee a “clean and healthful environment.” Judge Kathy Seeley said in her ruling that by prohibiting government agencies from considering climate impacts when deciding whether or not to permit energy projects, Montana contributes to the climate crisis and stops the state from addressing that crisis.

I. Science & Technology:
What Do We Know About Climate Change? 

It is up to scientists and engineers to study climate change, to predict its impact, and to figure out ways to cope in a warmer world. It is up to you, as a responsible citizen, to follow this research as it is reported on television, in newspapers and magazines. 

Monitoring the Environment

The U.S. government sponsors scientific research stations all over the world to measure the state of the atmosphere and the current levels of greenhouse gases. The network of monitoring stations also includes satellites that keep track of the temperature of the atmosphere and oceans, the condition of sea ice around the poles, and the amount of radiation coming from the Sun. A number of federal agencies are responsible for collecting the data and making them available to the public.

Predicting the Effects of Global Warming

The first predictions of global warming by Arrhenius, 100 years ago, were based on a theory of how the Earth-atmosphere system might react to changes due to the industrial age. Since that time, a great many scientists and engineers have made detailed studies to improve the theory and construct computer models of the Earth-atmosphere system. 

These models cannot predict what will occur in small regions of the world, but they all agree that major changes in climate will result over the next century if greenhouse gases continue to build up in the atmosphere. In recent years the accuracy of these models has been improved by adding the effects of aerosols—fine particles released into the air by power plants, cars, and factories. These models have been tested by comparing them with past climate changes. Further research is needed to take into account the role of clouds and the ocean.

Reducing the Emission of Greenhouse Gases

Energy conservation is currently the cheapest way to reduce the emission of greenhouse gases. If everyone were careful about using energy, we could reduce the emission of greenhouse gases and save money. Engineers are developing more efficient refrigerators and also more efficient appliances for lighting and heating. The aim of these efforts is to reduce the need to burn fossil fuels and to keep carbon dioxide locked in the ground a little longer. Development of alternative energy sources such as wind, solar, and safe nuclear energy are other projects that engineers are working on. 

Finding Ways of Coping in a Warmer World

Some scientists are studying ways to help wildlife adjust to changes in habitat as the climate changes. These efforts may help endangered species establish new colonies, or provide “migration corridors” where land development is halted or restricted so that the animals can migrate on their own.

II. Economics: What Are the Costs Associated with Climate Change? 

We can’t know if the first humans to discover how to control fire were appreciated by their fellow cave dwellers. What is certain is that from then on the use of fire became an important aspect of social policy. As a result, fewer people died from cold and attack by animals. Later, the ability to control fire led to the development of cooking, the extraction and use of metals, and many other processes that form the basis of civilization.

QUESTION 10.1

1. What kind of fuel is used in your home? 
2. What kind of fuel is used in your school? 
3. What kind of fuel is used when you travel? 
4. Do these add carbon dioxide to the air? 
5. Are there any economical alternatives available to you? 
6. What are some of the hidden (or external) costs of using fossil fuels—costs that you or others pay for later? (make a list) 
   Watch the video “Leave It In The Ground” (The Oil/Tar Sands) from ETOM (Earth the Operator’s Manual) and see if you can add to your list of hidden/external costs of using fossil fuels.

August 2015: A new report from Citibank states that investing in low-carbon energy would save the world $1.8 trillion through 2040. Not acting will cost $44 trillion by 2060 from the “negative effects” of climate change. Here are two quotes from the report, Energy Darwinism:

• “…The incremental costs of following a low carbon path are in context limited and seem affordable, the ‘return’ on that investment is acceptable and moreover the likely avoided liabilities are enormous. Given that all things being equal cleaner air has to be preferable to pollution, a very strong ‘Why would you not?’ argument begins to develop.”
  
• “Overall, we find that the incremental costs of action are limited (and indeed ultimately lead to savings), offer reasonable returns on investment, and should not have too detrimental an effect on global growth….” 

Implementing renewable energy sources and improving efficiency would very likely boost the global economy. The report also addresses the cost of stranded assets, i.e. to prevent 2ºC of warming, a third of the world’s oil reserves, half of its gas reserves, and more than 80 percent of its coal reserves need to stay in the ground, or be used at a dramatically reduced rate.

III. Estimating the Costs of Global Warming 

The fuels we use may be the cheapest ones available. In the long run, however, they may actually be very costly. If they contribute to global warming, what would be the real cost to us or our children? Estimating costs is very difficult because we cannot accurately predict the effects of global warming. However, we can imagine various possible scenarios. For example, if sea levels rise, it may become necessary to build seawalls and dikes, or to resettle large groups of people around the world. We can estimate the costs of these actions, as well as the increased costs of health care for the elderly in the case of long spells of hot weather, and the costs to agriculture of droughts or floods.

IV. The Costs of Reducing Emissions of Greenhouse Gases 

Spending now to save money later is rarely a popular choice. For example, people could substantially cut their monthly electric bills by replacing all their regular incandescent bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs. The compact fluorescent bulbs last much longer, but they cost more, so many people are not willing to make the switch.

Solving problems connected with global warming may not rest entirely with stopping emissions from burning fossil fuels. Extracting carbon dioxide from the atmosphere is another strategy, though probably much more costly than stopping and preventing CO₂ emissions.

V. Political Choices: What Will It Take to Do Something About Climate Change? 

It is helpful to keep in mind that environmental issues are not new in national politics. In just about every presidential campaign politicians have talked about the environment. When Adlei Stevenson, then-governor of Illinois, was a candidate for president in 1956, he said:

“We travel together on a little spaceship, dependent upon its vulnerable reserves of air and soil, committed for our safety to its security and peace, preserved from annihilation only by the care, the work, and I will say, the love we give our fragile craft.”

In recent years, environmental issues have become more important in election campaigns because political polls show there is strong support for protection of the environment among U.S. voters. However, politicians with even the best of intentions often encounter difficulties when trying to pass laws or regulations that protect the environment. 

VI. Ethical Dilemmas: What’s the Right Thing to Do? 

Another way to see the controversy about climate change is from the point of view of ethics—a set of moral principles or values that guide our decisions.

Although nearly all climatologists predict that Earth will continue to warm in the coming decades—a warmer climate will not make the planet uninhabitable. The human race has already demonstrated it can exist under extreme temperature conditions. The cultural adaptations we make—like changes in clothing and home structures—allow us to adapt. However, many plant and animal species may not survive. A polar bear cannot unbutton its coat or move to a colder climate if the Arctic summer becomes warmer over the next few decades. 

Other problems that could result from global climate change include rising sea levels, increased storm surge, loss of forests and coastal lands, increased rainfall and floods in some areas and desertification in other areas, as well as threats to human health and agriculture.

Your thoughts about these effects of global warming reflect your ethical code. Do you believe we should slow the burning of fossil fuels to reduce the likelihood of global warming? And if you do, what about the people who work in the fossil fuel industries? Will there be other opportunities for these people to find employment, or will the entire economy suffer? In short, how can we balance the demands of the present against our concerns for the future? As Congressional hearings and international forums illustrate, it is not an easy task.

“Climate change is already taking effect in terms of some of the life support systems. For instance, in the Maldives, there is infiltration of freshwater reserves by sea water. In many places, there is a degree of brackishness in the drinking water. You can see this in the Caribbean. You can certainly see this in the Pacific. Fresh water reserves have been contaminated. Whether it is the storm surge or the sea rising, the [salt] waters get into the fresh water. 

“Climate change is the type of global issue not of our making, so it raises questions of equity and ethics.”

When we think of our world, we can picture it as it appears on a globe—a collection of continents and nations separated by oceans, or, we can see it from the viewpoint of an astronaut, with areas of land, oceans, and swirling clouds. 

QUESTION 10.3.
How does each point of view help us understand our home planet and how it is changing?

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Talking About Climate Change

People have a tendency to not talk about climate change. This may be for many reasons. It’s controversial in many respects (best solutions) but not others (climate change is really happening and humans affect it). It also seems to be such an immense problem that whatever we do may not be enough. There are a number of voices we can hear to help us deal with the problem and not be paralyzed by it. A good example is Katharine Hayhoe, Chief Scientist for The Nature Conservancy and an atmospheric scientist whose research focuses on understanding the impacts of climate change on people and the planet. Listen to her TED talk from November 2018, The most important thing you can do to fight climate change: talk about it.

See Staying current for this chapter.