The Science Behind Global Warming: Hearing Before the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, United States Senate, One Hundred Sixth Congress, Second Session, May 17, 2000U.S. Government Printing Office, 2003 - 100 pages |
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20th century aerosols agriculture Answer areas assessment report atmosphere BRADLEY carbon cycle carbon dioxide CHAIRMAN Change Research Program changes in climate CHRISTY climate change climate models climate system clouds cooling coral crease decades decrease developing countries droughts Earth's climate ecosystems effects El Niño energy environmental estimates factors forests fossil fuel global average Global Change Research global climate global mean global warming going greenhouse gases heat human activities human-induced ice core impacts important improved IPCC issue JERRY MAHLMAN JOHN MCCAIN Kyoto Protocol land LANE MAHLMAN measurements ment million natural observations ocean ozone Panel on Climate past potential precipitation predict problem processes projected questions radiosonde rainfall range regional satellite record scientific sea level rise sectors Senator BROWNBACK Senator KERRY significant surface temperature technologies temperature changes Thank tion TRENBERTH trends tropical troposphere U.S. Global Change uncertainties understanding USGCRP warmer warmest water cycle WATSON
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Page 64 - Decisions taken during the next few years may limit the range of possible policy options In the future because high nearterm emissions would require deeper reductions In the future to meet any given target concentration. Delaying action might reduce the overall costs of mitigation because of potential technological advances but could Increase both the rate and the eventual magnitude of climate change, hence the adaptation and damage costs.
Page 56 - IPCC was established in 1988 by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). The role of the IPCC is to assess the scientific, technical and socio-economic information relevant to understanding the scientific basis of risk of human-induced climate change, its potential impacts and options for adaptation and mitigation.
Page 64 - ... programs and negotiated agreements with industry; utility demand-side management programs, regulatory programs including minimum energy efficiency standards; market pull and demonstration programs that stimulate the development and application of advanced technologies; and product labeling. The optimum mix of policies will vary from country to country; policies need to be tailored for local situations and developed through consultation with stakeholders. Estimates of the costs of mitigating climate...
Page 10 - Potential management strategies for maximizing carbon storage will be studied, including evaluation of the variability, sustainability, lifetime, and related uncertainties of different managed sequestration approaches. Finally, enhanced long-term monitoring of the atmosphere, ocean, forests, agricultural lands, and range lands, using improved inventory techniques and new remote sensing, will be used to determine long-term changes in carbon stocks. Integration of new observations and understanding...
Page 59 - The overwhelming majority of scientific experts recognize that scientific uncertainties exist, but still believe that human-induced climate change is inevitable. The question is not whether climate will change in response to human activities, but rather where (regional patterns), when (the rate of change) and by how much (magnitude).
Page 12 - ... clear that the program is to have a broad scope and consider the full set of issues dealing with actual and potential global environmental change. This approach recognizes the profound economic, social, and ecological implications of global changes and the need to maintain US leadership in this area. Since its inception, the USGCRP has been directed toward strengthening research on key scientific issues, and has fostered much improved insight into the processes and interactions of the Earth system....
Page 10 - Interior, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the National Science Foundation, the Department of Commerce's National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and the Smithsonian Institution will all play important roles in this effort, guided by a science plan that has been drafted with participation by many of the leading scientists in this field. The Carbon Cycle Science Initiative will employ a wide variety of research activities in a comprehensive examination of the carbon cycle...
Page 59 - In addition there is evidence of changes in sea level, glaciers are retreating throughout the world, and the incidence of extreme weather events is increasing in some parts of the world...
Page 60 - In fact, the observed changes in climate cannot be explained by natural phenomena alone (eg, changes in solar output and volcanic emissions). Future emissions of greenhouse gases and the sulfate aerosol precursor, sulfur dioxide, are sensitive to changes in population and gross domestic product, the rate of diffusion of new technologies into the market place, production and consumption patterns, land-use practices, energy intensity, and the price and availability of energy. Most projections suggest...
Page 60 - These projected global-average temperature changes would be greater than recent natural fluctuations and would also occur at a rate significantly faster than observed changes over the last 10,000 years. These long-term, large-scale, human-induced changes are likely to interact with natural climate variability on time-scales of days to decades (eg, the El Nino-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) phenomena). Temperature changes are expected to differ by region with high latitudes projected to warm more than...