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A 3°C world has no safe place

economist.com

51–60 of 291 posts

Re: A 3°C world has no safe place

#51

What are they talking about? In the US this will mean more rain in many regions and longer growing seasons. A lot of plants will quickly adapt. Historically, our planet for most of its history was warmer. It’s all going to be fine, while we will need to adjust the world will continue on. Note: I’m not saying it won’t be hard, but this will be a gradual change and will actually assist some places, while others get mor…

You're far more optimistic than I about

1) how quickly agriculture can adapt to large shifts in rain and wind patterns -- for instance, what if "more rain" includes torrential downpours with massive flooding, at unpredictable intervals? 2) how quickly the world economy can adapt to most of its major cities becoming uninhabitable (even where temps stay reasonable, sea levels won't) 3) how adaptable political systems will be to unprecedented climate-driven mass migrations, both within and between states, and in the face of collapsing states?

I don't think it'll be a gradual change at all -- more a series of rolling crises, where places spared a particular crisis either are at risk of being hit directly by the next one, or have to deal with the social, political, and economic upheaval as people die or flee areas directly impacted.

Re: A 3°C world has no safe place

#52

I'm sitting in my air conditioned room, in the USA. Doing computer stuff, naturally. I look at what I can do about this. I can turn up the temp in my room, and the house. Meager difference. I can use less water - I already am, with getting showers every other day on average. I can eat less meat - which I do with purchase of the beef CSA. I'm big into the repair movement, and repair household equipment and electronics…

> So what do I do? know what we're doing is what we can and hope some rich people pull up the cause

What we do is unionize, and in a way where we can then withdraw our industrial contributions to climate change.

> I look at what I'm actually doing, and I'm at my limit.

I am willing to bet you've not yet tried to "manage up."

It's not our fellow consumers who are causing climate change, it is supply-side; it is management. Only industrial and trade unions have the leverage "stop the line," and demand a less-profitable, albeit life-saving economy.

Re: A 3°C world has no safe place

#53

I'm sitting in my air conditioned room, in the USA. Doing computer stuff, naturally. I look at what I can do about this. I can turn up the temp in my room, and the house. Meager difference. I can use less water - I already am, with getting showers every other day on average. I can eat less meat - which I do with purchase of the beef CSA. I'm big into the repair movement, and repair household equipment and electronics…

Its like a little kid making a mess of his room. He or she will never prevent the mess. But the mess will always be fixed. I have good faith that the human species will fix it. One day the entire biosphere will be controlled.

[deleted]

Re: A 3°C world has no safe place

#55

I'm sitting in my air conditioned room, in the USA. Doing computer stuff, naturally. I look at what I can do about this. I can turn up the temp in my room, and the house. Meager difference. I can use less water - I already am, with getting showers every other day on average. I can eat less meat - which I do with purchase of the beef CSA. I'm big into the repair movement, and repair household equipment and electronics…

You can try to come up with or attempt to improve an existing technical solution - whether it be a green alternative to reduce emissions or carbon capture/terraforming. If you want a place to start, alternative power sources for freighters would have a huge impact.

Re: A 3°C world has no safe place

#56
Silicon valley is safe climate wise (it's like artificial weather here), we just need to build a damn or some kind of lock system under the golden gate bridge, then a series of walls and mine fields to keep out the rifraf.

Re: A 3°C world has no safe place

#57
post #3

Canada and northern part of the US will be fine (north of the mason dixon line). Places like Albany, NY, or Minesota, or most of Canada, appart from the occasional crazy swings, are going to be more lovely places to live, with slightly milder winters. The southern part is toast, both from water level rises, and lack of fresh water. In this country, the ones that are going to be the most affected by global warming, se…

Parts of Canada, sure. I imagine places like Newfoundland not changing much.

The north will see big changes from permafrost melting, the west will see more smoke, more floods, and water shortages as the glacier melt is replaced by rain.

BC will be on fire more, and the forests will die off / need to be replanted with different species of trees

Re: A 3°C world has no safe place

#58
post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Will they adapt to the raging wildfires that ~1.2C has already induced across much of the west coast? That's some adaptin'!

The northern US and Canada were barren mud and rock 12000 years ago. They'll adapt.

Oh the world will be absolutely fine, it will be we that suffer.

Re: A 3°C world has no safe place

#59
Transportation accounts for around 30% of carbon emissions in the US. We could do a lot worse than rethinking our 'suburban experiment' where many people are forced to use an automobile for things our ancestors could walk to in 5 minutes, to paraphrase Chuck Marohn of Strong Towns.

Re: A 3°C world has no safe place

#60
post #3

Canada and northern part of the US will be fine (north of the mason dixon line). Places like Albany, NY, or Minesota, or most of Canada, appart from the occasional crazy swings, are going to be more lovely places to live, with slightly milder winters. The southern part is toast, both from water level rises, and lack of fresh water. In this country, the ones that are going to be the most affected by global warming, se…

Lack of fresh water in the US is a solvable issue. We have oceans all around us and the US has the know-how to ship fresh, desalinated water from the coast to middle america.

Not for agricultural use in the Midwest, that the current issue. I mean, this is an issue right now, not in 20 years.

BTW, this issue is solvable if everyone agree that meat should be rationned: no corn and some GMO wheat to produce carbs for human consumption only, a lot more vegetables and more forestry could do the trick.

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