PART 5 Humans are the Primary Cause of Global Warming

Some Reasons We Know Humans are the Main Cause T HERE IS A GOOD CORRELATION BETWEEN THE RISE IN HUMAN - CAUSED EMISSIONS OF GREENHOUSE GASES, THE RISE IN ATMOSPHERIC GREENHOUSE GASES, AND THE RISE IN TEMPERATURE. T HE RATE OF INCREASE IN EACH IS UNPRECEDENTED. T HERE IS A GOOD CORRELATION BETWEEN THE GROWTH IN THE HUMAN POPULATION AND THE RISE IN GREENHOUSE GASES AND TEMPERATURE. C OMPUTER SIMULATIONS INDICATE THAT ONLY HUMAN - CAUSED EMISSIONS OF GREENHOUSE GASES CAN CAUSE THE OBSERVED RISE IN TEMPERATURE OF THE ATMOSPHERE AND OTHER E ARTH SYSTEMS (O CEANS, C ONTINENTS AND I CE ). N O OTHER NATURAL CAUSES CAN ACCOUNT FOR THE PRESENT RAPID RISE IN TEMPERATURE AND CO 2. T HE PRESENT RATE OF CO 2 INCREASE IS ABOUT 20,000 FASTER THAN NATURAL RATES. C ARBON ISOTOPES DUE TO BURNING FOSSIL FUELS ARE THE MAIN CONSTITUENT OF THE INCREASED CO 2 CONCENTRATION ( FALLING 13 C TO 12 C RATIO ).

Annual Growth Rate of CO 2 Emissions 1990s1.3 % % % %

Country CO 2 Emissions for 1990, 2000 and 2010

Per Capita CO 2 Emissions for 1990, 2000, and 2011

Coal: The Worst CO 2 Emitter One mid-sized coal-fired power plant (500- megawatts) emits about 3.5 million tons of CO 2 annually. This is equivalent to 625,000 additional cars on the road traveling 12,000 miles per year. In the U.S. utility companies have proposed building 185 new coal-fired power plants (10 in operation, 32 under construction, and 90 in early development). China is building, on average, 2 coal-fired power plants each week.

How Right They Were!

Intensity of Climate Drivers (2006)

Radiative Forcing from Various Causes (Black Carbon is not included and the sunlight-reflecting potential of Aerosols may be overestimated 1 )

Temperature, CO 2 Concentrations and Human- Caused Carbon Emissions

Only Human-caused Greenhouse Gas Emissions Can Account for Global Warming The black line is the observed temperature rise. The orange area is computer simulations of all emissions, including human. The blue area is computer simulations of only natural emissions and the increase in solar activity.