Chicken Little and the Environmental Movement

Don't get me wrong, the sky really is falling. That doesn't mean that Nicholas Kristof's critique of the environmental movement in today's New York Times isn't valid. We were all startled to see holes in the earths ozone layer and as a result we phased out Freon (chlorofluorocarbons, CFC) in the 1980's. Was Freon to blame? We now have a better understanding of the earths magnetic field and it would appear that we are entering a period when it will reverse. This is something that has happened over and over again. During this reversal process the magnetic field, which is responsible for the ozone layer, loses strength. Although CFC's may have contributed the real cause of the ozone layer depletion was probably the very natural reduction in the strength of the earths magnetic field. This collapse of the ozone layer is a problem. Increased ultra violet radiation has been related to species extinction but it's not something we can prevent so we should be looking at how we can adapt.

The same is true for global warming. Periods of warming and cooling are a reality and while CO2 from human activities may play a part in the current warming cycle it is not the primary cause. Global warming is real, it's here and we can't stop it. The sky is falling, but we shouldn't be trying to fix blame, instead we should be working on ways to adapt to the inevitable. Increased UV radiation and global warming are going to happen. The environmental movement should be concentrating on ways to adapt and not just continue to point fingers. That doesn't mean we should not try to reduce CO2 emissions, there are plenty of good reasons to do so.