At the end of 2011, the Global Carbon Project reported that carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuel combustion grew by nearly 6% in 2010—the highest annual growth on record. If these rates continue, temperatures could increase far beyond 2 degrees Celsius by the year 2100.
That 2 degrees is an important figure. Governments have pledged to stay below that mark “to avoid the most dangerous aspects of climate change such as widespread water stress and sea level rise, and increases in extreme climatic events.”
About three-quarters of that increase comes from developing countries anxious to catch up with their wealthy cousins in the West, implying that those of us sucking up most of the resources are starting to get a handle on our myopic habits, despite the zealot naysayers who argue that greenhouse gases and rising temperatures are the stuff of science fiction and of little consequence to our everyday lives.