FXSTD – Alternative Energy Center

By: Anil Tandon
Global warming over the next half-century could put more than a million species of plants and animals on the road to extinction, according to an international study

Thomas, lead author of the study published in the science journal Nature, said emissions from cars and factories could push temperatures up to levels not seen for 1 million to 30 million years by the end of the century, threatening many habitats. The sweeping new analysis, enlisting scientists from 14 laboratories around the globe, found that more than one-third of 1,103 native species they studied in six regions around the world could vanish or plunge to near extinction by 2050 as climate change turns plains into deserts or alters forests.

Global warming is widely blamed on rising concentrations of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere linked to emissions of gases from burning fossil fuels in cars, factories and power plants. We can cut global warming pollution by reducing pollution from vehicles and power plants.

We can increase our reliance on renewable energy sources such as wind, sun and geothermal. And we can manufacture more efficient appliances and conserve energy.

But all this will take time, instead we should think of alternatives which can be done immediately like doing ridesharing or carpool, using clean fuel like CNG. There is no reason to wait and hope that hydrogen fuel cell vehicles will solve the problem in the future. Right away, we should put existing technologies for building cleaner cars and more modern electricity generators into widespread use.

If current trends continue Global warming will have catastrophic effects like:

• Melting glaciers, early snowmelt and severe droughts will cause more dramatic water shortages in the American West.

• Rising sea levels will lead to coastal flooding on the Eastern seaboard, in Florida, and in other areas, such as the Gulf of Mexico.

• Warmer sea surface temperatures will fuel more intense hurricanes in the south-eastern Atlantic and Gulf coasts.

• Forests, farms and cities will face troublesome new pests and more mosquito-borne diseases.

• Disruption of habitats such as coral reefs and alpine meadows could drive many plant and animal species to extinction.

Such alarming facts call for some serious action on each one's part and we can contribute by sharing our vehicles and making carpools in our cities.