Amateur Climate Change

Once again the change of year number gives a wonderful oportunity to make a stop and evaluate the previous 12 months.

Let’s start by the important thing: climate change itself. In my opinion the news are not god because we have reached a new record in CO2 emissions and a dangerous 390 ppm level in atmosphere. We are seriously approaching the damgerous 450 ppm figure without enough reaction. After a promising year due to the crisis the CO2 emissions recovered the uphill trend in spite of the still poor economy; the reach 36,7 billion tons of CO2. So, if we fully recover the economy growth rate, where would we reach?

In spite of skeptic efforts to show that no warming is going on now last year was the tenth warmest in record as explained by world metheorogical organization and the warmest with la niña cooling effect. The artic sea ice surface was not below the 2007 record but close and 35% less than the 1975-2000 average. Extreme events were very frequent too.

But there are very good news too. Renewable energies deployed a record new amout of KWh, showing several good and impotant things at the same time:

1.- Renewables are thriving in many contexts, not only a small number of european countries.

2.- They are getting cheaper even forgeting the externalities in the cost calculation.

3.- They are growing more than any other energy source.

This has also been the year of obtaining the figure of 7 billion humans, and the year of Durban and the COP17, a conference with mixed interpretations, maybe a subtle step forward but clearly not a firm change of direction.

And for this blog? It is not thriving in visits or post even. But I am quite happy, I have publish almost twice post compared with 2010 (23 to 12) and it still gives me the oppportunity to read, think and order some ideas to write them down. Maybe the biggest challenge for next year will be to define better this blogs “voice”, what do I want to talk about? with which objective? I will think about it. I have some ideas but not ripe enough. The blog is not important, the important thing is if I am able to help in this big problem we are facing: Climate Change.