We Are Already Teetering on the Brink of Tipping Points for Abrupt Climate Change

A December 4, 2013 report indicates that the world is already beginning to pass tipping points that could rapidly augur catastrophic, and irreversible changes. According to a new 200-page report released by the US National Academy of Sciences, we appear to be headed for abrupt climate change which could cause rapid changes to physical, biological, and human systems in a matter of years or decades. This would make adaptation far more difficult.

The beginning of the collapse of the Arctic’s summer sea ice has already been documented and appears to be accelerating.  Some scientists have predicted the collapse of the West Antarctic ice sheet this century. There is some good news in the report, like the finding that the melting of arctic permafrost is unlikely to occur anytime soon.

The report concedes that there are significant uncertainties, however, they conclude that the world is not doing enough to address these threats. The report calls for more research and the development of an early warning system. “This should be a wake-up call for the world,” stated Durwood Zaelke, President of the Institute for Governance & Sustainable Development. “No amount of continued warming can be considered safe when we have no idea when we’ll pass these thresholds for irreversible and abrupt climate change.”

Click here to see the report (PDF).

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