Bush aide says warming man-made

[Matt-hurricanewatcher]

Bush aide says warming man-made
By Roger Harrabin
Environment analyst, BBC News



Professor John Marburger (left) is Mr Bush's top science advisor
The US chief scientist has told the BBC that climate change is now a fact.

Professor John Marburger, who advises President Bush, said it was more than 90% certain that greenhouse gas emissions from mankind are to blame.

The Earth may become "unliveable" without cuts in CO2 output, he said, but he labelled targets for curbing temperature rise as "arbitrary".

His comments come shortly before major meetings on climate change at the UN and the Washington White House.

There may still be some members of the White House team who are not completely convinced about climate change - but it is clear that the science advisor to the President and director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy is not one of them.

In the starkest warning from the White House so far about the dangers ahead, Professor Marburger told the BBC that climate change was unequivocal, with mankind more than 90% likely to blame.

The CO2 accumulates in the atmosphere and there's no end point, it just gets hotter and hotter



Marburger interview
Despite disagreement on the details of climate science, he said: "I think there is widespread agreement on certain basics, and one of the most important is that we are producing far more CO2 from fossil fuels than we ought to be.

"And it's going to lead to trouble unless we can begin to reduce the amount of fossil fuels we are burning and using in our economies."

Trouble ahead

This is an explicit endorsement of the latest major review of climate science from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

Professor Marburger said humanity would be in trouble if we did not stop increasing carbon emissions.


The US sees technologies such as biofuels as the way ahead
"The CO2 accumulates in the atmosphere and there's no end point, it just gets hotter and hotter, and so at some point it becomes unliveable," he said.

Professor Marburger said he wished he could stop US emissions right away, but that was obviously not possible.

US backing for the scientific consensus was confirmed by President Bush's top climate advisor, James Connaughton.

The chair of the White House Council on Environmental Quality told BBC News that advancing technology was the best way to curb the warming trend.

"You only have two choices; you either have advanced technologies and get them into the marketplace, or you shut down your economies and put people out of work," he said.

"I don't know of any politician that favours shutting down economies."

'Arbitrary' targets

Mr Bush has invited leaders of major developed and developing nations to the White House later this month for discussions on a future global direction on climate change.

It will follow a UN General Assembly session on the same issue.

Last week the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation forum in Sydney backed the UN climate convention as the right body for developing future global policy.

The European Union wants such a policy to adopt its own target of stabilising temperature rise at or below 2C.

But Mr Marburger said the state of the science made it difficult to justify any particular target.

"It's not clear that we'll be in a position to predict the future accurately enough to make policy confidently for a long time," he said.

"I think 2C is rather arbitrary, and it's not clear to me that the answer shouldn't be 3C or more or less. It's a hunch, a guess."

The truth, he said, was that we just do not know what the 'safe' limit is.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/6994760.stm


Horse, I believe it would need looking at much warmer periods of earths history and life. I would say it need to warm at least 10-12c to become unfavorable for life. In humans can build things to stay alive any ways. I don't expect it to happen any time soon.

Also where is the soild proof after we found out the temperature record is not to good? I would love soild data to support a warming trend. Because if I seen a warm trend then I would change my tune fast.

[HURAKAN]

I'm 90% sure that Washington D.C is the capital of the United States. Global Warming is a reality that some governments just don't want to accept because taking precaucions to slow the process will hurt the economy of the country. That's not a secret. We're seeing the effects of Global Warming in the northern and southern latitudes, around the arctic and antarctic circles.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Maun ... ioxide.png

THE QUESTION IS:
IF WE MAKE EARTH UNINHABITABLE, WHERE ARE WE GOING TO LIVE?

[Matt-hurricanewatcher]

I'm 90% sure that Washington D.C is the capital of the United States. Global Warming is a reality that some governments just don't want to accept because taking precaucions to slow the process will hurt the economy of the country. That's not a secret. We're seeing the effects of Global Warming in the northern and southern latitudes, around the arctic and antarctic circles.

THE QUESTION IS:
IF WE MAKE EARTH UNINHABITABLE, WHERE ARE WE GOING TO LIVE?

I seriously don't get where the 90 percent comes from. We don't even have a good record of temperatures over the united states, with no temperature warming trend for the United states at all. The 30s now are the hottest decade in our nations history. In believe me we don't went to put much stock into the rest of the world, because the temperature record could be even worst. Yes there is some signs that it is happening, but how can we be sure? Portland, yes we do have a good temperature record showing warming...But you have to think about the heat island and the fact that much of the world has bad temperature measurements.

The thing is we don't have a strong temperature data set to say yes or no. Some people might say yes we do, but can you show me one that is not being refixed and has huge errors?

I believe we should work to become clearer and clear our planet up. But I highly don't think we have a very good handle on whats going on. Yes seriously the Arctic is melting(Sea ice). While the sea ice around Antarctica is growing, I do believe its because Antarctica is much colder and with more moisture=more ice and snow over land masses. So its not going against global warming.

I can't believe how bad our global temperature record is; because this may be something serious.

[HURAKAN]

I seriously don't get where the 90 percent comes from.

"Professor John Marburger, who advises President Bush, said it was more than 90% certain that greenhouse gas emissions from mankind are to blame."

[Matt-hurricanewatcher]

I seriously don't get where the 90 percent comes from.

"Professor John Marburger, who advises President Bush, said it was more than 90% certain that greenhouse gas emissions from mankind are to blame."

Partly yes because we do put a lot into the Atmopshere. But look at China that is now number one for a growing percentage of the CO2 growth against the rest of the developed world. Its going to get worst much worst... I personally would not be suprized Co2 levels hit 400 by 2010, because of the added kick china is given. But there is also melting of perma frost and warming of the sea's that can not hold as much Co2; releasing it into the Atmosphere. So its not all man releasing it.

[HURAKAN]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Carb ... Flux-2.png


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Glob ... y_Type.png