The majority of researchers believe that the main cause of the rapidly changing climate, especially during the last 35 years, is our fossil fuel-burning activities, which increase the amount of carbon dioxide and other “greenhouse gases” in the atmosphere – these act like a giant blanket causing global warming.

 

Although burning of coal, oil and gas is the main contributor, other causes of greenhouse gas emissions include: deforestation, decaying material in landfill sites, cement and pesticide manufacture, growth in farm animals, rice production. The rapidly increasing world population adds to the scale of all these things.

 

Since pre-industrial times, we have added around one-third more carbon dioxide to the atmosphere and doubled the methane, plus nitrous oxide and a range of industrial gases. Around half of these emissions are believed to have occurred since 1950; they are nowadays accurately measured and are rapidly increasing.

 

The warming is believed to put more energy into the climate systems and to result in an increase in the severity and frequency of extreme weather events: floods, droughts, storms, wildfires and extreme temperatures; giving rise to growing hunger, homelessness, disease, injury, loss of life and livelihood.

 

Although there is no hard proof that our emissions are the major cause of climate change, the exceptionally high temperatures in Europe in 2003 and the regular severe flooding now experienced in the UK are likely to be part of the trend.

 

It is possible that, to date, climate change has done more good than harm in the UK and similar "northern" climes (e.g. less hypothermia in milder winters), but a great deal of extra suffering is likely to have already been caused in poorer countries. The risk is that, as global warming increases (irreversibly), the point will be reached where we in the UK experience overall negative effects and, at worst, the world climate could de-stabilise, causing a rapid uncontrollable acceleration -  "runaway warming" with catastrophic spiralling effects.

 

For those interested in the background science, an excellent and objective analysis, produced by a British independent amateur scientist, can be viewed at: http://www.brighton73.freeserve.co.uk/gw/globalwarmingfaq.htm