From Wales On Line
Climate change – is it really that dire?
by Paddy Rooney, Western Mail
CLIMATE change is typically discussed in terms of foreboding and predictions of catastrophe: droughts, famines, hurricanes and floods – even plagues of jellyfish!
The threat of climate change” has become a political cliché, justifying innumerable and often onerous regulations.
The claimed threat rests on two key propositions deriving from United Nations reports: that global temperatures are determined mainly by carbon dioxide concentrations in the atmosphere, and that human activity, especially the use of fossil fuels, is increasing these to historically high and dangerous levels. But as research continues and understanding grows, things look less straightforward – and less dire.