Global Warming as a Justice Issue

Science says...

There is a broad scientific consensus that the earth's climate is heating up, and will continue to do so through this century. By 2100, the temperature could climb by 5-9 degrees Fahrenheit. Imagine the average temperatures in an area 1000 miles south of you, and transport them to your present location.

Humans may be able to temporarily deal with the effects of a warmer planet by turning up the air conditioner a few notches--or emigrating to the next country north. Other living things won't be so lucky. A recent study reported in the journal Nature predicted that millions of species, perhaps a quarter of all living things, may perish by 2050 if the warming continues at its present pace.

Charlie confirms…

We need not rely on scientific study for all our information about this phenomenon. New Community Project delegations to Arctic Village, Alaska have observed it first-hand. Charlie Swaney of this Gwich'in community lamented, "In the wintertime, it hardly gets down to 60 below anymore."

Rather than celebrating, native people see this kind of change as disconcerting. It has meant an increase in the growth of underbrush on the previously open tundra and changes in the migratory patterns of wildlife upon which native people depend. And the permafrost, which acts as a frozen foundation for life in the Arctic--and repository of tons of global warming gases that will be released if it ever melts--is beginning to thaw ominously. Indeed, studies predict that in the coming years, warming at the poles will be more rapid and more severe than at lower latitudes.

Deaths by warming: 160,000

Even with these warning signs, it's still tempting to see climate change as a problem to be dealt with in the future. However, for 160,000 of the world's people, there is no future--thanks to global warming. That's how many people the World Health Organization says are dying each year as a result of the effects of a warming globe. More frequent and more severe storms killed thousands out-right and polluted already-tenuous water supplies for tens of thousands more. Disease-carrying insects found their ranges expanded thanks to milder temperatures. Upwards of 20,000 people died in an unprecedented heat wave in Europe in the summer of 2003.

One of the most troubling aspects of the damage being wrought by global warming is that those who suffer the most are rarely responsible for the actual warming--except for the oil drillers in the Arctic who now have a 100 day window of frozen tundra to do their work rather than the 200 days of 30 years ago. Of course it's burning fuels like petroleum that behind global warming in the first place. That's poetic justice for you!

Look in the mirror

Lest the rest of us be too smug, we are the ones actually consuming the fuels that are warming the globe. In the US, with 4 percent of the world's population, we emit 25 percent of the CO2.

Auto Travel

We each drive an average of 9,000 miles annually, 50 percent more than 20 years ago. We'll travel in vehicles that on the whole get no better gas mileage than 1980 models, with every gallon of gas sending 20 pounds of carbon dioxide--the most common global warming gas--into the atmosphere. And it has recently been discovered that soot from forest fires and diesel engines carried aloft and deposited on polar ice may be behind as much as one-quarter of the global warming that is occurring, as it dims the reflectivity of the ice.

Home Heating

A typical US home's annual energy consumption creates about a ton of CO2. Would we be willing to don a sweater, or come home after work to a home that's had the heat turned down all day?

Eating Habits

The common item of food on the dinner table traveled over 1200 miles to get to us--and not by magic carpet, but by emissions-emitting vehicles. We each eat over a pound of beef every week, even as your average cow belches about 640 quarts of methane every day--one of the most potent global warming gases. And raising a ton of corn to feed cattle creates over 1300 pounds of CO2.

Paper Use

Again, we lead the world with a per capita consumption rate of 760 pounds per year. Every pound of paper made from trees (as opposed to recycled content) creates three pounds of CO2 and requires 3.5 pounds of wood. All told, the world is losing about 25 million acres of CO2-absorbing forests each year, about a third of which is harvested to produce paper.

Beat the Heat

Simple things you can do to curb global warming

• Get out of that car! Every mile you don't drive is a pound less CO2 emitted. See driving as a last resort rather than ready option.
• Be a good housekeeper! Cut heating and cooling demands, and turn the water heater down.
• Let your light shine! Let the local media know that you're having an energy audit for your church facilities and a walk/bike/carpool to worship Sunday.
• Think about the food you eat! What is the energy cost of producing, transporting, storing, and preparing it? Is there space for a community garden on your church property? Check out What's for Supper page for more on the eco-cost of our diets.
• Speak out! Let your government know that you think global warming is an issue that demands action. Call for an increase in CAFE standards (mandating higher average fuel efficiency for US autos--a few more miles per gallon and we wouldn't need oil from the Arctic--or Iraq!), more spending on renewable energy, and more attention to mass transit. (U.S. Senate, Washington, DC 20510; President, 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., Washington, DC 20500)