{"id":16661,"date":"2014-07-03T08:10:50","date_gmt":"2014-07-03T14:10:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/wordpress-367309-1145705.cloudwaysapps.com\/?p=16661"},"modified":"2014-07-03T08:10:50","modified_gmt":"2014-07-03T14:10:50","slug":"climate-change-facts-sheet","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sustainablog.org\/articles\/climate-change-facts-sheet\/","title":{"rendered":"Climate Change Facts Sheet"},"content":{"rendered":"
Stabilizing the earth\u2019s climate depends on cutting carbon emissions fast. Here are some of the most alarming climate change facts.<\/em><\/p>\n Global emissions of carbon dioxide<\/strong><\/a> (CO2<\/span>)\u2014the principal climate-altering greenhouse gas\u2014come largely from burning coal, oil, and natural gas.<\/p>\n Coal<\/a><\/strong>, mainly used for electricity generation, accounts for 44 percent of global fossil-fuel-related CO2<\/span> emissions.<\/p>\n Oil<\/a><\/strong>, used primarily for transportation, accounts for 36 percent of CO2<\/span> emissions.<\/p>\n Natural gas<\/strong><\/a>, used for electricity and heating, accounts for the remaining 20 percent of CO2<\/span> emissions.<\/p>\n Worldwide<\/strong>, fossil fuel subsidies<\/a> topped $620 billion in 2011, while renewable energy received just $88 billion in subsidies.<\/p>\n Since the Industrial Revolution<\/strong>, the planet has warmed<\/a> by roughly one degree.<\/p>\n 2013<\/strong> marked the 37th consecutive year<\/a> of above-average temperatures. Fully 4 billion people alive today have never experienced a year that was cooler than last century’s average.<\/p>\n If we continue with business as usual<\/strong>, burning ever more oil, coal, and natural gas, the global average temperature is projected to rise some 11 degrees Fahrenheit (6 degrees Celsius) by the end of this century.<\/p>\n In addition to more widespread drought<\/a><\/strong> and more numerous wildfires<\/a>, climate change brings more extreme heat waves<\/a>.<\/p>\n In the last decade<\/strong>, daily record high temperatures outnumbered record lows in the United States two to one, and that ratio is increasing.<\/p>\n Crop ecologists<\/strong> have a rule of thumb that each 1-degree-Celsius rise<\/a> in temperature above the norm during the growing season lowers wheat, rice, and corn yields by 10 percent. Field tests show that this may be conservative.<\/p>\n This century<\/strong>, as waters warm and ice continues to melt<\/a>, seas are projected to rise some 2 meters (6 feet), inundating coastal cities worldwide, such as New York, London, and Cairo, and agricultural hotspots, like rice-growing river deltas.<\/p>\n Earth Policy Institute\u2019s Plan B<\/a><\/strong> shows the steps needed to cut global carbon emissions 80 percent.<\/p>\n Cutting carbon emissions<\/strong> involves shifting from fossil fuels<\/a> to renewable sources of energy<\/a>, dramatically ramping up efficiency, and protecting and restoring forests<\/a> and other natural systems.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n