Environment

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Environmental and ecological discussion, particularly of things like weather and other natural phenomena (especially if they're not breaking news).

See also our Nature and Gardening community for discussion centered around things like hiking, animals in their natural habitat, and gardening (urban or rural).

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We might be closer to changing course on climate change than we realized (www.vox.com)

submitted 7 months ago by remington@beehaw.org to c/environment@beehaw.org

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[–] CadeJohnson 11 points 7 months ago (1 children)

Tthis is perhaps good news, but it does not amount to a change of course, unfortunately. If we have passed peak emissions, it is still a long way from net-zero emissions. Like if you pass your peak rate of overspending your salary, but you are still continuing to go farther into debt. Even when you get to parity between salary and expenditures, you will STILL have the accumulated debt and in the case of CO2, that debt is wreaking ecosystem destruction. Do not cheer this news.

[–] remington@beehaw.org 2 points 7 months ago (4 children)

...that debt is wreaking ecosystem destruction...

I'm curious as to where you are getting your information from. Would you mind providing credible sources for your claims?

[–] t3rmit3@beehaw.org 8 points 7 months ago* (last edited 7 months ago)

From the article:

Still, this means that humanity is adding to the total amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere — and doing so at close to its fastest pace ever.

It’s good that this pace is at least not accelerating, but the plateau implies a world that will continue to get warmer. To halt rising temperatures, humans will have to stop emitting greenhouse gases, zeroing their net output, and even start withdrawing the carbon previously emitted.

[–] Zworf@beehaw.org 3 points 7 months ago* (last edited 7 months ago)

The problem with the ecosystems is that evolution can't adapt fast enough.

When it takes 500-5000 years for 1 degree rise, then yeah nature adapts pretty smoothly. When it's 50 years then things get really screwed.

Obligatory XKCD but I think this one explains the problem extremely well: https://xkcd.com/1732/

[–] CadeJohnson 2 points 7 months ago (1 children)

you want proof that accumulated carbon dioxide is causing environmental destruction?! https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/syr/downloads/report/IPCC_AR6_SYR_SPM.pdf

[–] remington@beehaw.org 1 points 6 months ago

Thanks.

[–] apotheotic@beehaw.org 2 points 7 months ago

I'm curious, what part of that statement needs substantive proof? I feel like you can come to this conclusion from first principles, as long as you have some level of understanding of the greenhouse effect and knowledge of how it has affected ecosystems in the past.