As 2008 nears, our world faces unparalleled challenges. This is, once again, one of the warmest years in history. The average temperature on earth has risen almost a degree over the past 100 years. A seemingly insignificant increase, it has already unleashed hurricanes, melting glaciers, cyclones, storm surges, coastal flooding, inland droughts, wildfires and the spread of disease.
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which acknowledged that human activities are the cause of global warming, predicts that the temperature on earth will rise
an additional one to six degrees yet this century. The science is clear, global warming is happening faster, even, than the alarmists predicted.
A roasted earth is not inevitable. At NCS we kicked our work into high gear in 2007 to provide desperately needed leadership in this time of crisis and opportunity. Our Climate Protection Manual for Cities offers a step-by-step guide to enable local governments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions while creating stronger economies. In January, NCS will publish the companion Climate Protection Manual for Businesses to enable small and mid-sized companies, previously ignored actors, to integrate climate protection into every aspect of their business while increasing profits. We are making presentations to world leaders, business executives and activists around the globe.
And yet the data say we are not doing enough:
Climate scientists have long warned that for the world to avoid serious climate change we must hold our CO2 to 450 PPM CO2. In October, Dr. Tim Flannery released evidence that we are already at 455 parts per million (PPM) (counting other greenhouse gases). Dr. Flannery stated that the 4th IPCC report showed that the combined greenhouse gasses are at much higher concentrations than previously thought. Reuters quoted him:
“We thought we'd be at that threshold within about a decade. . . . We thought we had that much time. But the new data indicates that in about mid-2005 we crossed that threshold. . . . What the report establishes is that the amount of greenhouse gas in the atmosphere is already above the threshold that could cause dangerous climate change.”
The planet has not yet awakened to the danger. Coal powered electricity, responsible for ~39% of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions, is increasing, not waning. One hundred and fifty new conventional coal-fired power plants are being planned here in the U.S. today. China begins construction of a new coal plant every 4 days; India is starts a new one every 8 days. NCS’ work to bring development alternatives to such countries is thus ever more needed.
This is not new work for NCS. What has changed is the urgency, and the effectiveness of the tools we bring to the table. In the 1981 book, Least Cost Energy: Solving the CO2 Problem, I helped lay out the climate protection strategy that NCS is still implementing today. But we’re not just writing about the problem: our staff delivers the practical tools that companies, communities, universities and all levels of government are using to integrate climate protection into every facet of society.
This week the Presidential Climate Action Plan (PCAP), of which I am on the Steering Committee, released to the press its detailed agenda to guide the next President of the United States in aggressively acting to protect the climate in the first hundred days in office. The lead chapter, which I wrote, is attached to enable you to see the unprecedented opportunity now before us to unleash a new energy economy. It establishes the business case for climate protection and sets the stage for the solving the problem, at the same time that we pour the foundations for a new American prosperity.
The founder of one company with whom NCS works reacted to the chapter:
“WOW! This is an amazing compilation of facts, common sense and business opportunities. It will educate and motivate any open-minded reader. Best of all, the entire 100-day plan for the President is doable and based on benefits that business understands and needs. The public will see that the solution is not easy but that here is a plan that can be implemented with speed, economy and effectiveness.”
Every week more companies, countries and communities declare that they are ready to undertake climate protection. The world looks to NCS for leadership. We receive calls daily requesting advice, technical support and policy help. Our staff is working as hard as it can to share our skills and the tools. And still our capacity is severely limited.
Cities and local communities need hands-on technological assistance to tailor general recommendations to their specific situations. We would like to hire a new technical expert to assist these cities in 2008.
Our Climate Protection Manual for Businesses needs to be extended to include even greater industry specific guidance. This will require hiring another writer.
In an Internet-empowered age, the necessity to convert our knowledge into web served tools is overpowering. We have initiated an as yet unfunded project that is converting our expertise to interactive web-based learning. Funding this is a very high priority.
We are asked daily to guide decision makers across the globe in transitioning quickly from the climate negligence of the past into the new energy economy of tomorrow. As I hope the recent E-lert showed, we are responding.
But we need your help. Please consider NCS in your year-end giving.
I promise, your donation will make a world of difference.
