Global Warming Reality - My Final Answer

In case you haven't noticed it gets a little hot in Louisiana this time of year. How hot does it get? It gets so hot that birds pull worms out of the yard using tongs. It's so hot people might pour coffee on their lap to cool off. It's so hot that a farmer in Texas is feeding his chickens shaved ice to keep them from laying boiled eggs. I sure hope this global warming isn't real.

The debate has heated up lately regarding global climate change requiring us to ask whether global warming is really happening and what can we do about it. There are those who absolutely believe that global warming is caused by human actions and that a crisis is looming. There are others that absolutely believe that human actions could not affect global climate and that such change is part of a natural cycle for this planet. The report issued earlier this year by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change documents evidence of global warming.

As a scientist I reject the political or moral aspects of this debate and prefer to draw conclusions based on what is observed, tested, and questioned. Therefore, I have reached a conclusion as to whether global warming is a human-influenced condition as an ongoing process that threatens life on this planet. After nearly 30 years of documented study on this subject the absolute, definitive, and scientific conclusion I have reached is ...possibly. However, while studies and debates continue certain steps should be taken to address what we can about global warming.

Here are a few strategies.

• Reduce emission of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide, nitrous oxides and methanes.
• Develop a diversity of energy sources that will reduce use of fossil fuels.
• Reduce energy in homes using more efficient lights, appliances, or using the "off" switch.
• Plan trips in your car to minimize miles driven.
• Recycle or reuse materials.
• Plant a tree or plant lots of trees.

Finally, if this is a global problem it requires a global solution. The Kyoto Protocols and other geo-political instruments that exclude huge polluters is dysfunctional. It does not help to reduce greenhouse gases one ton in the USA and increase them 10 tons in an excluded and developing country by driving industry out of this country. Nevertheless, we should all do our part to reduce our impact on this planet.