Chinese person. If nothing is done to decrease the rate of CO 2 emissions, by 2030, CO 2
emissions are projected to be 63% greater than they were in 2002.
Figure 17.35: Global CO 2 emissionsare rising rapidly. The industrial revolutionbegan about
1850 and industrialization has been accelerating. ( 9 )
How much CO 2 levels will rise in the next decades is unknown. It depends on how much
CO 2 emissions in developing nations increase. It also depends on how much technological
advances or lifestyle changes increase or decrease emissions in developed nations. If nothing
is done to control greenhouse gas emissions and they continue to increase at current rates,
the surface temperature of the Earth can be expected to increase between 0.5°C and 2.0°C
(0.9°F and 3.6°F) by 2050 and between 2° and 4.5°C (3.5° and 8°F) by 2100, with CO 2 levels
over 800 parts per million (ppm)(Figure17.36). On the other hand, if severe limits on CO 2
emissions begin soon, temperatures could rise less than 1.1°C (2°F) by 2100. Whatever the
temperature increase, it will not be uniform around the globe. A rise of 2.8°C (5°F) would
result in 0.6° to 1.2°C (1° to 2°F) at the equator, but up to 6.7°C (12°F) at the poles. So
far, global warming has affected the North Pole more than the South Pole.
ChangesintheEarthandorganismsasaresultofglobalwarmingarealreadybeingobserved.
While temperatures have risen since the end of the Pleistocene, 10,000 years ago, this rate of
increase had been more rapid in the past century, and has even risen even faster since 1990.
The eight warmest years on record have all occurred since 1998, and the 14 warmest years
have occurred since 1990 (through 2007) (Figure17.37).
As a result of these high temperatures, glaciers are melting and ice caps are breaking apart at