Global greenhouse gas emissions will rise by 52% by 2030, unless the world takes action to reduce energy consumption, a study has warned.

The BBC just reported this regarding the impact of current practices regarding greenhouse gasses. What is the effect of greenhouse gasses? Global warming.

I like how Jack Williams of USA Today puts it:

To understand how the natural greenhouse effect can impact the climate of a planet, we can look to our two heavenly neighbors, Venus and Mars.

Venus, with a thick atmosphere of carbon dioxide and a “runaway greenhouse effect”, has an average surface temperature of 900 degrees Fahrenheit. Mars, with a thin atmosphere of carbon dioxide and virtually no greenhouse effect, has a mean surface temperature of -80 degrees Fahrenheit.

So the Earth is poised in on a life-sustaining tightrope of temperature, maintained in part by the composition of the atmosphere. Our building, development activity has two impacts: reducing green space, which absorbs CO2, and releasing more C02 through fossil fuel usage in material production, transportation, construction, and building operation. This one-two punch is pushing us toward higher greenhouse gas levels, which will impact our climate.

I just read “The Journey of Man” which suggests that the Ice Age allowed and forced modern humans to adapt to changing conditions, spreading from sub-saharan africa to the rest of the world. This expansion was allowed by ample resources for humankind and the creative intelligence they carried in their skulls. Can we today handle such a climate change? I’ll bet not. Our gifts today include greater intelligence and tools for communication but our natural resources and population are not the same.

Let us apply that greater intelligence to development and building, and work toward lower greenhouse gas emission and reliance on fossil fuels. In addition, call your legislators to urge them to promote the same.