Climate Code Red : The Case for Emergency Action

Revealing extensive scientific evidence that the global warming crisis is far worse than officially indicated, this meticulously documented call-to-action argues that the planet is almost at the point of no return. From large ice sheets disintegrating and devastating losses of species to the promise that sea levels will rise more than 16 feet this century, this study shows that it is no longer a case of how much more can be “safely” emitted but whether emissions can be stopped completely before the Earth’s climate is beyond human restoration. Demonstrating that these imperatives are incompatible with politics and a "business as usual" attitude, this survey illustrates how the environment faces a sustainability emergency that urgently requires a clear break from failure-inducing compromise. rebOOk ......Page 1 Advance praise for Climate Code Red......Page 2 Contents......Page 8 PART ONE The Big Melt......Page 21 CHAPTER 1 Losing the Arctic Sea-Ice......Page 22 CHAPTER 2 Greenland's Fate......Page 31 CHAPTER 3 Trouble in the Antarctic ......Page 38 CHAPTER 4 A Rising Tide......Page 43 CHAPTER 5 The Quickening Pace ......Page 55 CHAPTER 6 Most Species, Most Ecosystems......Page 70 CHAPTER 7 The Price of Reticence ......Page 74 PART TWO Targets ......Page 81 CHAPTER 8 What We Are Doing......Page 82 CHAPTER 9 Where We Are Headed ......Page 89 CHAPTER 10 Target 2 Degrees ......Page 95 CHAPTER 11 Getting the Third Degree......Page 104 CHAPTER 12......Page 115 CHAPTER 13 The Safe-Climate Zone......Page 124 Putting the Plan Together......Page 136 PART THREE The Climate Emergency ......Page 143 CHAPTER 15 This is an Emergency ......Page 144 CHAPTER 16 A Systemic Breakdown......Page 147 CHAPTER 17 When 'Reasonable' Is Not Enough ......Page 153 CHAPTER 18 The Gap Between Knowing and Not-Knowing......Page 161 CHAPTER 19 Making Effective Decisions......Page 171 CHAPTER 20 The 'New Business-As-Usual'......Page 178 CHAPTER 21 Climate Solutions......Page 192 CHAPTER 22 Can 'Politics as Usual' Solve the Problem? ......Page 208 CHAPTER 23 What Does an Emergency Look Like?......Page 218 CHAPTER 24 The Climate Emergency in Practice......Page 226 CHAPTER 25 The Climate-Safe Economy ......Page 236 CHAPTER 26 In the End......Page 246 Appendix: A Climate Code Red Scenario ......Page 251 Notes ......Page 260 This meticulously documented call-to-action reveals extensive scientific evidence that the global warming crisis is far worse than officially indicated - and that we're almost at the point of no return. Serious climate-change impacts are already happening: large ice-sheets are disintegrating, sea-level rises will reach 5 metres this century, and we're seeing devastating species loss. It is no longer a case of how much more we 'can safely' emit, but whether we can stop emissions and produce a deliberate cooling before the Earth's climate system reaches a point beyond any hope of human restoration. These imperatives are incompatible with 'politics as usual' and 'business as usual' - we face a sustainability emergency that urgently requires a clear break from the politics of failure-inducing compromise This meticulously documented call-to-action reveals extensive scientific evidence that the global warming crisis is far worse than officially indicated — and that we're almost at the point of no return. Serious climate-change impacts are already happening: large ice-sheets are disintegrating, sea-level rises will reach 5 metres this century, and we are seeing devastating species loss. It is no longer a case of how much more we can ‘safely'emit, but whether we can stop emissions and produce a deliberate cooling before the Earth's climate system reaches a point beyond any hope of human restoration. These imperatives are incompatible with ‘politics as usual'and ‘business as usual'— we face a sustainability emergency that urgently requires a clear break from the politics of failure-inducing compromise. "In this call to action, David Spratt and Philip Sutton reveal extensive scientific evidence that the global warming crisis is far worse than official reports and national governments have indicated, and that we are almost at the point of no return."--Publisher description Uses scientific evidence to argue that the Earth's climate is very close to becoming beyond humankind's ability to restore and advocates an end to the "business as usual" approach to the global warming crisis. David Spratt & Philip Sutton. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 267-295) And Index.