Worldwatch urges US action as time runs out for preventing climate catastrophe

Mumbai: The rising consumption of energy and other critical resources is disrupting the climate and undermining life on the planet, Worldwatch Institute said in its latest report, Vital Signs 2007-2008.

WorldWatch identified 44 trends that indicate the world is on a course toward irrevocable and damaging global warming, and that climate change is not the only serious environment issue confronting the global community.

"The world is running out of time to head off catastrophic climate change, and it is essential that Europe and the rest of the international community bring pressure to bear on US policymakers to address the climate crisis," Erik Assadourian, Vital Signs project director, said in a statement.

"The United States must be held accountable for its emissions, double the per capita level in Europe, and should follow the EU lead by committing to reducing its total greenhouse gas emissions by 80 per cent by 2050," he said.

The US accounted for over 21 per cent of global carbon emissions from fossil fuel burning in 2005. Europe, already feeling the effects of climate change, should pressure the US to join international climate negotiations, he added.

Raging fires in Greece and the Canary Islands, flooding in England and intense heat waves across southeastern Europe are early warning signs of climate change that should be headed, the non-profit group said.

Assadourian urged European leaders to push the US to engage more constructively with the international community on climate change, starting at the United Nations late this month and in the Bali Climate negotiations at the end of the year.

With a global population of 6.6 billion and growing, Worldwatch said, the ecosystem services upon which life depends are being stretched to the limit due to record levels of consumption:

* In 2006, the world used 3.9 billion tonnes of oil. Fossil fuel usage in 2005 produced 7.6 billion tonnes of carbon emissions, and atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide reached 380 parts per million.

* More wood was removed from forests in 2005 than ever before.

* Steel production grew 10 per cent to a record 1.24 billion tonnes in 2006, while primary aluminum output increased to a record 33 million tonnes. Aluminum production accounted for roughly 3 per cent of global electricity use.

* Meat production hit a record 276 million tonnes (43 kg per person) in 2006.

* Meat consumption, one of several factors driving soybean demand, could drive South American expansion of soybean plantations displacing 22 million hectares of tropical forest and savanna in the next 20 years.

* Global seafood consumption rose even as many fish species become scarcer: in 2004, 156 million tonnes of seafood was eaten; an average of three times as much seafood per person than in 1950.

* The rising consumption of everyday items from eggs to major consumer goods such as automobiles is helping to drive climate change, which is endangering organisms on the land and in the sea.

The warming climate is undermining biodiversity by accelerating habitat loss, altering the timing of animal migrations and plant flowerings, and shifting some species towards the poles and to higher altitudes.

The oceans have absorbed about half of the carbon dioxide emitted by humans in the last 200 years. Climate change is altering fish migration routes, pushing up sea levels, intensifying coastal erosion, raising ocean acidity, and interfering with currents that move vital nutrients upward from the deep sea.

Despite a relatively calm hurricane season in the US in 2006, the world experienced more weather-related disasters than in any of the previous three years. Nearly 100 million people were affected, the Worldwatch report said.

The world is running out of time to head off catastrophic climate change, and it is essential that Europe and the rest of the international community bring pressure to bear on US policy makers to address the climate crisis. While US carbon emissions continue to grow, the fastest growth is occurring in Asia, particularly China and India.

But without a US commitment to emissions constraints, persuading China and India to commit to reductions is unlikely. "The only hope for reducing the world''s carbon emissions is for the US to begin reducing its emissions and cooperating with other nations immediately. The EU may be the only entity that can make that happen," said Assadourian.