I find it amazing how a team of 300 PHD's can do a 3-5 year study like the one I have posted below and without question show huge climatic changes and some still won't believe it. These same folks will take their truck into "Joe's garage" and have a mechanic with his stained t-shirt and rolled up sleeves tell them they need a new clutch and they believe every word he says!

How much data will be enough? How many biologists have to tell us that we are making huge changes on this planet for people to believe? Virtually everyday a new study comes out showing artic changes, species blinking out, ocean temperatures rising, it goes on and on. And even if you don't believe the studies one only has to take a drive through LA to see what kind of massive changes we are making to our planet.

The US is the largest consumer of oil and natural gas and the most progressive country in the world. We should be taking the lead on environmental protection and restoration issues. The fact that other countries such as China and India are huge polluters doesn't make it "ok" for us to do the same.......lead by example. It is our duty to take care of this planet the best we can and leave it like you would a hunting camp.....in better condition than which you found it.

If guys on this site of all people cannot support the need for clean air, clean water, and the protection of habitats necessary for the survival of species depending upon them then we certainly are "doomed".

"Only when the last plant has died, the last river poisoned, and the last fish caught will we realize we cannot eat money" (19th Century Cree Saying).

RM


REYKJAVIK, Iceland (11/15/04) -- A four-year study of the Arctic region, conducted by an international team of 300 scientists, concludes the region is warming at nearly twice the rate as the rest of the globe, and increasing greenhouse gases from human activities are projected to make it warmer still.

At least half the summer sea ice in the Arctic is projected to melt by the end of this century, along with a significant portion of the Greenland Ice Sheet, as the region is projected to warm an additional 4-7( C (7 to 13( F) by 2100. These changes will have major global impacts, such as contributing to global sea-level rise and intensifying global warming, according to the final report of the Arctic Climate Impact Assessment (ACIA).

"The impacts of global warming are affecting people now in the Arctic," says Robert Corell, chair of the ACIA. "The Arctic is experiencing some of the most rapid and severe climate change on earth. The impacts of climate change on the region and the globe are projected to increase substantially in the years to come."