December 28, 2008
The Public Interest Research Centre in the UK is an interesting body. It sits between research organisations and campaigning groups translating technical research into engaging material that helps to facilitate lasting change. We do not have such a body in Australia.
It has just launched a 52-page advocacy report Climate Safety“Climate Safety”, based on the Australian book Climate Code Red. The former says that:
Following the record 2007 melt in Arctic summer sea ice extent, 2008 saw a record low in sea ice volume. Arcticclimate scientists are now predicting an Arctic ocean ice-free in summer by 2011-2015, eighty years ahead ofpredictions made by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). Contrary to what the media
coverage suggests, the significance of an earlier-than predicted Arctic melt extends beyond displaced polar
bears and easier access to oil and gas.
It says that:
An early Arctic melt will cause additional heating, as a shrinking ice cap reflects less sunlight into space; additional greenhouse gas emissions, as the ensuing regional warming melts frozen permafrost; and additional sea level rise, as the Greenland ice-sheet comes under increased temperature stress. Furthermore, the Arctic melt is taking place in the context of faster change in the climate than the IPCC have predicted. It is clear that the IPCC’s predictions of future sea-level rises are underestimates.
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