Among the conclusions that came out of the 2009 US Global Change Research Program’s study, there are several that are worth noting. Among those are:

“Humans have adapted to changing climatic conditions in the past, but in the future, adaptations will be particularly challenging because society won’t be adapting to a new steady state but rather to a rapidly moving target. Climate will be continually changing, moving at a relatively rapid rate, outside the range to which society has adapted in the past. The precise amounts and timing of these changes will not be known with certainty.”

Another one says that, “The climate effects of reductions in emissions of carbon dioxide and other long-lived gases do not become apparent for at least several decades.”

The truth is that even if start reducing emissions right now, the effects would not be immediate or felt five years from now when it comes to extreme weather events. The eventual payoff would occur decades into the future.

Read more here.

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