Myth Busters – Fact on Climate and Energy
Climate change is a hot topic – with myths and falsehoods circulating widely.
FACT: Climate Change is already happening
Climate change is already affecting every region on Earth. Changes in rainfall patterns, rising sea levels, melting glaciers, a warming ocean, and more frequent and intense extreme weather events are just some of the changes already impacting millions of people. Climate change can affect our health, ability to grow food, housing, safety and work. Some of us are more vulnerable to climate impacts, such as people living in small island developing countries.
FACT: Climate Change is caused by human activity
Natural changes in the sun’s activity or large volcanic eruptions have caused ancient shifts in the Earth’s temperatures and weather patterns, but over the last 200 years, these natural causes have not significantly affected global temperatures. Today, it’s human activities that are causing climate change, primarily due to the burning of fossil fuels like coal, oil, and gas. Burning fossil fuels creates a blanket of pollution trapping the sun’s heat on Earth and raising global temperatures. (Global warming then leads to other changes like droughts, water scarcity, severe fires, rising sea levels, flooding, melting polar ice, intense storms and declining biodiversity.)
FACT: Scientists agree that humans are responsible for climate change
Multiple independent studies over the past 19 years have found that between 90 and 100 per cent of scientists agree that humans are responsible for climate change, with most of the studies finding a 97 per cent consensus.
FACT: Every fraction of a degree of warming matters
With every increment of global warming, extreme heat and rainfall events become more frequent and more intense. Greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide, from human activities are responsible for approximately 1.1°C of warming since 1850-1900. This has already caused significant changes in the climate, including more extreme weather events, which have caused widespread harm to people and nature.
FACT: The climate is changing faster than humans, plants and animals can adapt
If global temperatures keep rising, adapting to climate change will become increasingly difficult, especially for poorer countries. A small island, for example, may become uninhabitable due to sea level rise and lack of sufficient freshwater. In that case, inhabitants may have no other option than to abandon their homes. Adaptation is crucial for saving lives and livelihoods, but humans’ ability to adapt to climate change is not limitless.
FACT: Climate change is a major threat to people’s health
The impacts of climate change are harming human health – through air pollution, disease, extreme weather events, forced displacement, food insecurity and pressures on mental health – and will only get worse with every fraction of a degree of warming. (WHO) The main cause of climate change – the burning of coal, oil and gas – also causes air pollution which in turn can lead to respiratory diseases, strokes, and heart attacks. Estimates vary for how many millions of people die every year due to fossil fuel air pollution, with some studies citing up to 8.7 million. (REN21)
FACT: Natural gas is a fossil fuel, not a clean source of energy
Natural gas is a fossil fuel like oil and coal – formed from the remains of plants, animals, and microorganisms that lived millions of years ago. When burned, it releases carbon pollution into the atmosphere.
FACT: Clean energy technologies produce far less carbon pollution than fossil fuels
Clean energy technologies – from wind turbines and solar panels to electric vehicles and battery storage – do require a wide range of minerals and metals (IEA) and produce thus some emissions, but still far less than fossil fuels. (IEA)
FACT: Entire countries already rely on nearly 100 per cent renewable electricity
Costa Rica, Norway, Iceland, Paraguay and Uruguay power their grids with hydro, geothermal, wind and solar energy. Some provinces and sub-national states also use nearly 100 per cent renewables-based electricity: South Australia, Quebec (Canada) and Qinghai (China), as well as the islands of Ta’u (American Samoa), Eigg (Scotland) and El Hierro (Spain).
FACT: Renewable energy will soon be the world’s top source of electricity
Renewable energy sources – such as water, geothermal, wind and solar – are available in every country, and their potential is yet to be fully harnessed. Almost 30 per cent of global electricity comes from renewables today.
FACT: There are alternatives to petroleum-based products
Many everyday products are still produced using oil or other fossil fuels. The process of extracting and transporting those fuels, then manufacturing the products creates lots of carbon emissions. Most plastics, clothing, tires, digital devices, fertilizer, laundry detergents and countless other everyday items are made from petrochemicals. But there are alternatives. Plastic can be made fully or partially from plant materials, such as cellulose, potato or corn starch, sugar cane, maize and soy, instead of petroleum or natural gas. Bio-based plastic can be engineered to be biodegradable or compostable. UNEP
