It may be too late to save the ice caps.
An article from Guardian Unlimited reports that there is a 50 percent chance that a widespread loss in the world’s ice sheets “may no longer be avoided.” The consequences of such a loss would be devastating, a fact that is articulated well by the article:
A critical meltdown of ice sheets and severe sea level rise could be inevitable because of global warming, the world’s scientists are preparing to warn their governments. New studies of Greenland and Antarctica have forced a UN expert panel to conclude there is a 50% chance that widespread ice sheet loss “may no longer be avoided” because of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.
Such melting would raise sea levels by four to six metres, the scientists say. It would cause “major changes in coastline and inundation of low-lying areas” and require “costly and challenging” efforts to move millions of people and infrastructure from vulnerable areas. The previous official line, issued in 2001, was that the chance of such an event was “not well known, but probably very low”.
It is becoming clearer everyday that the problems our planet is facing are more serious than previously thought. Prompt action is required by all industrialized nations in order to prevent this crisis from escalating even further. It must become widely accepted among nations, and the citizens of those nations, that an economic system based strictly on the burning of fossil fuels is environmentally unsustainable and exporting such an economic system is dangerous to the planet.
The future of the developing world, paired with the actions of the United States will perhaps play the largest role in determining the path of our species in the future. Development must be promoted in the most environmentally friendly way, thus phasing out the current economic system that emphasizes the exploitation of the planet and the burning of fossil fuels. It is my belief, that the United States must take the lead in order to make such a transition.
The chances of such a change are unknown at the moment, given the fact that the current American administration chooses to ignore the problem of climate change altogether. We will find out in the future whether or not the American people and their leaders are willing to make the necessary sacrifices to save the planet (or limit the destruction of the planet) for future generations. This will most likely take place in 2008, when this issue will most likely be at the forefront of the Presidential election.