One of the major drivers of the exceptional heat building within Earth’s atmosphere has reached levels beyond anything humans have ever experienced, officials announced on Thursday. Carbon dioxide, the gas that accounts for the majority of global warming caused by human activities, is accumulating “faster than ever,” scientists from NOAA, the Scripps Institution of Oceanography and the University of California San Diego found.

“Over the past year, we’ve experienced the hottest year on record, the hottest ocean temperatures on record, and a seemingly endless string of heat waves, droughts, floods, wildfires and storms,” NOAA Administrator Rick Spinrad said in a press release. “Now we are finding that atmospheric CO2 levels are increasing faster than ever.

  • retrospectology@lemmy.world
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    5 months ago

    There is no “scapegoat”, it’s politically and financially impossible for the US to “take responsibility” for China’s grid emissions, even tankie’s should be able to understand that hard reality.

    It’s the Chinese energy production that’s driving climate change, what they are choosing to do with that energy is irrelevant, whether it’s manufacturing for other countries or running a billion surveillance cameras, it’s their unsustainable grid that creates the emissions. The US cannot force China upgrade their power grid.

    • disguy_ovahea@lemmy.world
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      5 months ago

      We could produce domestically and responsibly, outsource to a climate responsible nation, or reduce consumption of offending products. It’s on us, and pointing the finger at China for making our Walmart plastic junk doesn’t address anything. It further obfuscates the problem and justifies our current emissions as “2nd largest” contributor when we in fact lead the world in emissions.

      • retrospectology@lemmy.world
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        5 months ago

        outsource to a climate responsible nation […]

        Yup, you’re almost there, now what does that make China then? What makes producing Walmart plastic junk more acceptable in a climate responsible nation?

        What puts the actual CO2 into the atmosphere? The product itself or the process and grid powering the creation of that product?