Unfortunately, we are sitting in a saucepan – and we ourselves turned on the stove

class=”sc-97fd9fa8-0 jNFKxv”>

Almost no one in politics denies that climate change no longer exists. However, some suggest that our emissions are only part of it. In fact, the latest IPCC report shows that anthropogenic emissions are responsible for all observed global warming.

We have already achieved global warming of 1.1°C over the past decade and are approaching the dangerous 1.5°C limit set by the Paris Agreement. But are we really responsible for this change? And if so, to what extent?

The latest report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change/IPCC provides a clear answer to this question (Figure 1). The best estimate of human contribution to global warming over the past decade (2010-2019) is 1.1°C. So we are responsible for all of global warming, not just some of it. The decisive factor is the emission of greenhouse gases, especially CO.₂ (Combustion of oil, gas and coal). Without reductions in warming from air pollution, also caused by human activity, warming from greenhouse gas emissions would already be as high as 1.5°C. As for non-human factors (solar and volcanic impact, internal climate variability), their contribution is simply zero.

But how to explain such a clear causal relationship? It’s actually easy. If you put a pot of water on the stove and turn it on, you won’t be surprised if the water starts to heat up. It is useless to try to come up with some outlandish explanations. But that’s exactly what we do with the air conditioning system. Every CO₂– Exhaust is equivalent to turning the handle of the stove a little more to the right, and so irreversibly for hundreds and thousands of years. Sooner or later, the water in the pot will boil and overflow, but now it warms up and begins to boil.

Has it affected Switzerland? The last few years have provided the answer to this question. Whether it be in the form of a lack of snow, heat waves, drought, heavy rains or melting glaciers. Therefore: Yes, unfortunately, we are sitting in a saucepan – and we ourselves turned on the stove.

Source: Blick