Since the "adirondacks in 2106" thread was veering in this direction. here is a new thread just for global warming debate.
Methane from sheep may contribute a tiny bit to global warming, but its not an ozone degrader. CFC's are the problem, and those have pretty much been outlawed. The problem with the ozone hole theory is that we have no baseline data. We just put up a satellite that could see the ozone layer, and there was a hole, which has been fluxuating, but very slowly expanding. The hole may or may not have always been there, and a few decades of data is not enough to draw conclusions. but with global warming, we have climate data that goes back hudreds of thousands of years. of course the margin of error gets pretty wide that far back.
the thing they are worried about is that the rate of change is so quick compared to past changes. most climate shifts took tens of thousands of years or longer. long enough for ecosystems to migrate with the climate. When it happens within a century, these plants and animals are stuck in a completely inappropriate climate. Shifting our agricultural patterns along with the climate can also be a problem because areas that develop a good climate may not have good soil, since soil takes so long to develop. Tundra soil for example is quite acidic and hard to farm, even though climate change may turn the area into a temperate zone.
Methane from sheep may contribute a tiny bit to global warming, but its not an ozone degrader. CFC's are the problem, and those have pretty much been outlawed. The problem with the ozone hole theory is that we have no baseline data. We just put up a satellite that could see the ozone layer, and there was a hole, which has been fluxuating, but very slowly expanding. The hole may or may not have always been there, and a few decades of data is not enough to draw conclusions. but with global warming, we have climate data that goes back hudreds of thousands of years. of course the margin of error gets pretty wide that far back.
the thing they are worried about is that the rate of change is so quick compared to past changes. most climate shifts took tens of thousands of years or longer. long enough for ecosystems to migrate with the climate. When it happens within a century, these plants and animals are stuck in a completely inappropriate climate. Shifting our agricultural patterns along with the climate can also be a problem because areas that develop a good climate may not have good soil, since soil takes so long to develop. Tundra soil for example is quite acidic and hard to farm, even though climate change may turn the area into a temperate zone.
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