As you know, I’m a student, working towards my BA in Environmental Studies.

Today I finished a sample policy brief, which is a summary of information that can help people understand and make decisions about government policies. This was an assignment in one of my classes, and is my first try at this sort of thing, so it’s likely not perfect, but hopefully a good first effort. This particular brief was about accepting the fact of climate change and taking action to reverse it.

When I was writing it, I pretended I was writing it for you - my audience here, people who care about gardens and insects and homegrown food and nature.

So, I thought I would also share it here. If this is not your thing, then please feel free to exit out of this post and come back when I post pictures of kale or bees. But if you’re at all on the fence about this issue, or if you’ve never truly understood it, then you might enjoy reading my little effort to clarify it.

We’re all going to vote soon. The first presidential debate is Tuesday night. The topic of climate change will not be, as far as I know, part of the evening’s agenda, which is reprehensible in my opinion. I believe climate is the large umbrella under which everything else resides - issues of civil justice, health, money, education, our very well-being - everything is affected by climate change. We, as humans, will be impacted. We are already being impacted. Voting for candidates who will squarely face this issue is imperative. We simply cannot ignore it any longer.

“CLIMATE CHANGE: Acceptance and Action

There is compelling evidence for the existence of rapid climate change on our planet. In the last century, and particularly during the last 20 years, we have seen global temperatures rise, glaciers and sea ice melt, sea levels and temperatures elevate, oceans acidify, and the frequent occurrence of extreme weather events such as hurricanes and wildfires. These can all be traced to the meteoric rise of greenhouse gases in our atmosphere since the Industrial Revolution. Urgent action must be taken if we are to continue living on Earth. Along with reducing carbon emissions, reducing the use of and increasing the efficiency of energy and materials, and improving agricultural practices, we must also increase the resiliency and sustainability of our planet by reducing poverty, promoting equity, eliminating hunger, and providing education. Only by immediate and drastic actions can we save our planet and ensure the continuation of our species.

Scope of the Problem:

Greenhouse gases, consisting mostly of carbon dioxide (CO2) (81% of the total), and methane (10% of the total), are released as a consequence of human activity, and are generated by the production of fossil fuels (gas, coal, and oil, through the processes of mining and fracking) and the burning of said fuels (in combustion engines and power plants). The gases form a thick layer in our atmosphere, acting like a blanket and trapping heat (through refracted infrared radiation). This has caused the temperature of the lower atmosphere to rise to unhealthy levels. In 2017, the temperature reached 1 ℃ above pre-industrial levels. We are rapidly warming and may soon approach 1.5 ℃, which will have dire consequences for every living thing on our planet.

It will take centuries for the excess gases to be removed from our atmosphere by natural processes, so even if we are able to stop all emissions now, we will still experience climate inertia and a continued rising of atmospheric temperatures. The impact of these rising temperatures will continue to be experienced. This is why immediate action must be taken; so that we do not reach the tipping point of no return.

The impacts of greenhouse gas, and the resultant warming, are numerous and detectable now, and will become more so in the future. Physical impacts include extreme weather, which we are experiencing at present in the summer of 2020, on both coasts, as wildfire rips through the West; the East is confronting a horrific hurricane season. According to the NOAA, “the August contiguous U.S. temperature was…. 2.6℉ above the 20th century average and ranked third-warmest August on record.” Sea level rise is imminent as we experience more sea ice melt.

There are also numerous impacts on our ecosystems, with species migration and extinction due to destruction, changing temperatures, and lack of food and water. With marine environments acidifying, there will be hugely harmful consequences to the aquatic ecosystems.

The impacts of this warming to humans include reduced crop production, a greater incidence of infectious disease, and reduced supply of fresh water. We also cannot ignore the mental and emotional threat of climate change. According to the American Psychiatric Association, “Exposure to climate- and weather-related natural disasters can result in mental health consequences such as anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder.” And according to the Centers for Disease Control, “Climate change poses many risks to human health,” including heat stroke and respiratory events.

Human migration is also a very real consequence of climate change. As an example, the 1998 monsoon floods in Bangladesh devastated infrastructure and agriculture, leaving 21 million people homeless.

Current Approaches:

In December of 2015, the COP 21 (Conference of Parties) met in Paris for a climate conference. The IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) was invited to produce a special report for the event. IPCC’s “Special Report on Global Warming of 1.5℃” was written by 74 scientists from 40 countries, and took two years to produce. The assessments and recommendations set forth in this report were adopted by the countries represented at the Paris conference, in an historic consensus (“The Paris Agreement”). Nearly all of the major greenhouse-gas emitting countries ratified the Agreement, which accounts for about 90% of global emissions (the United States has since pulled out of the Agreement, a decision which was made by President Trump in 2017). The Agreement’s aim was (and is) to keep global warming below 2℃. The IPCC recommended that, in future, “cumulative emissions are kept within a budget by reducing global annual CO2 emissions to net zero.” Mitigation pathways include producing power by renewable resources only (hydro, wind, solar, and bioenergy), reduced energy consumption, increased energy efficiency, and land-use changes. The report also included suggestions for sustainable development, because poverty eradication and reducing inequalities improves the well-being of humans, particularly in a warming world. The report states, “… sustainable development has the potential to significantly reduce systemic vulnerability, enhance adaptive capacity, and promote livelihood security for poor and disadvantaged populations.”

A further current approach being used by all humans on Earth at the moment, and that will be used even more in the future, is adaptation. As the climate warms, escape from the impacts caused by increased carbon emissions is impossible, so we will need to learn how to live with them. Planning for these impacts, and implementing measures to combat them, is crucial. Both local and indigenous knowledge can play a part in helping us to prepare. Bracing for more extreme weather events, and learning how to make our living spaces safe, is something we are already doing. The recent wildfires in the West have shown us that the ancient knowledge of prescribed burns can help keep our forests healthy, and less vulnerable to extreme firestorms. The planting of trees can help provide shade to neighborhoods that are experiencing extreme heat. The mitigation of soil erosion can help prepare coastlines for hurricanes. Likewise, we are already taking steps to improve our supply chains with the increased use of local farms and producers. The implementation of regenerative soil practices can increase the health of our crops and provide water capture in the face of drought. Further adaptation will be important as we move steadily into the future of climate change.

Recommendations:

The most immediate need is to reduce carbon emissions. A multi-tiered approach is recommended. This includes halting the production and burning of fossil fuels, with a move to clean, renewable energy (solar, wind, hydro); halting the deforestation of the World’s largest forests such as the Boreal and the Amazon; and implementing regenerative agricultural practices such as no-till, cover cropping, and eliminating the use of chemical pesticides and fertilizers.

Simultaneously, we need to increase the amount of carbon sinks on the planet. According to Ocean & Climate Platform, “A carbon sink is a natural or artificial reservoir that absorbs and stores the atmosphere’s carbon with physical and biological mechanisms.” The ocean acts as a natural carbon sink, holding carbon in the deep waters. Humus-rich environments such as peatlands, and vegetative areas such as forests, also sequester carbon. Soil is a tremendous carbon sink, so the implementation of no-till agriculture is important to hold on to that carbon.

Artificial carbon sequestration is also being considered. These are processes in which carbon emissions are captured at the point of product and buried. Proposed methods include pumping carbon dioxide deep into the ocean, piping it into underground chambers such as oil reservoirs and coal seams, and injecting it into layers of magnesium- or calcium-rich rock.

Adaptation will also need to increase as the planet warms and impacts are felt. Education is important here, as well as compassion, as we all emotionally and physically come to accept the fact of climate change. Ignorance will no longer be an acceptable choice.

Summary:

The studies produced by the international team of scientists for the IPCC have shown clearly that climate change is occurring now, and that it has been created by human activity, primarily by the production and burning of fossil fuels. The evidence of climate change continues to grow and awareness is ever-present as we begin to feel the effects of its impacts in the rise of global temperatures and extreme weather events. Urgent action is required to mitigate the continued rise of greenhouse gases, and to adapt to the effects of them on our planet. Complacency and willful ignorance are no longer permissible. Humans in all nations must join together to present a strong and unified front, creating new solutions and bravely facing the changes we face. Only by working together can we survive, and thrive, in a new world.

Sources:

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change: https://www.ipcc.ch/sr15/

World Meteorological Organization: https://public.wmo.int/en/resources/united_in_science

World Resources Institute: https://www.wri.org/blog/2020/02/climate-change-mitigation-adaptation-strategies

Ocean & Climate Platform: https://ocean-climate.org/?page_id=3896&lang=en

Carbonify: http://www.carbonify.com/articles/carbon-sequestration.htm

United Nations: https://unfccc.int/process-and-meetings/the-paris-agreement/what-is-the-paris-agreement

American Psychiatric Association: https://www.apa.org/monitor/2016/07-08/climate-change

Centers for Disease Control: https://www.cdc.gov/climateandhealth/pubs/EXTREME-HEAT-Final_508.pdf

International Organization for Migration: “Migration and Climate Change,” No. 31 https://www.iom.int

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association: https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/sotc/national/202008”