If you pick the right headline, it sounds as if the G8 made terrific progress on global warming.
The leaders of the world's richest nations have agreed that global green house gas emissions that are warming the planet must be cut substantially. The leaders, meeting at G-8 sessions in Germany, agreed that the increase in greenhouse gas emissions must be reversed.
Doesn't that sound impressive? But note the order of words -- there was an agreement that something must be done. That doesn't mean there was an agreement to do something.
At first glance, it might seem like agreeing there was a problem was itself progress, but everyone knew it was a problem. The other G8 participants long ago acknowledged that warming was a problem and began to take actions. Even Bush has previously acknowledged there is a problem even if he does continue to rank profits of his corporate pals far above environment, stability, and security.
Agreeing that there is indeed a dead skunk on the table does not diminish the smell. You still have to pick the dang thing up and move it.
All that was really accomplished today was a small PR Band-Aide, designed to keep the whole affair from ending in an embarrassing row.
The agreement reached Thursday does not include a mandatory 50 percent reduction in global emissions by 2050, a key provision sought by Chancellor Angela Merkel, nor does it commit the United States or Russia to specific reductions.
Nevertheless, Mrs. Merkel, the host of the Group of 8 meeting, proclaimed it a major victory. She had placed climate change at the top of the agenda for the gathering, and put heavy pressure on Mr. Bush in recent days to relax his opposition to mandatory cuts in emissions, though he ultimately did not.
In fact, the agreement is only an agreement to discuss the problem. The US is still refusing to consider any hard limits, much less the sizable cuts proposed by Germany.
The insular nature of the Bush administration is such that we've become amazed when they are forced to concede that the sky is blue (for now). We all live with such lowered expectations, that an agreement to talk, with no real concessions at all, is "a big success."
As the most recent NASA report details, our climate situation is already at a 'tipping point,' where only a few more years of same-old same-old will lead to irrevocable changes. Congress and the public must take bold actions to restrict greenhouse gases, and do so quickly. If we allow Bush to spend the remainder of his administration dithering over the shape of the table, or accept legislation that puts the start of regulation out to 2020 or beyond, it will be too late to halt disastrous change.
Climate changes are so large with the business-as-usual scenario, that Hansen concludes "business-as-usual would be a guarantee of global and regional disasters."
The business-as-usual scenario specifies additional global warming of 2 to 3ºC (3.6 to 5.4ºF).
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