COP15: Climate Change Conference

"Adélie Penguin
In the last 25 years, the Adélie population has dropped 65% due to a loss of sea ice and increased competition for food among other penguin species."

Since 1995, there has been an annual in Conferences of the Parties (COP) to assess progress dealing with climate change. In 1997, the Kyoto Protocol was established legally binding obligations for developed countries to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions, the United States included. This year COP will be held in Copenhagen, Denmark from December 7 to December 18. The overall goal this year is to establish a climate agreement from after 2012 when the Kyoto Protocol expires. Obama has will pledge to cut U.S. greenhouse gas emission about 17% below 2005 levels by 2020. "Though the carbon cap-and-trade bill remains up for debate in the Senate, and likely won't be acted on until next spring, the fact that the White House says it will bring emission targets to Copenhagen shows that it is confident that Congress will ultimately fall in line." Many people worry that the the Earth's oceans are hitting their carbon cap. This suggests that the level of carbon typically absorbed into the water is dwindling. Last year the ocean absorbed 2.3 billion tons of carbon,"without the action of the oceans, the CO2 we emit into the atmosphere would have flame-broiled the planet by now." "While the ocean is now absorbing more carbon in total than ever before, the waters are sucking up a smaller percentage of the CO2 emitted by humans. That could mean that there's a limit to the ocean's capacity — and that we might be hitting it." There are many consequences, ocean life can be injured specifically coral reefs which are home to many marine species. Also due to a climate change the water will warm. Unfortunately penguins are at risk too, with an overall rise in temperatures sea ice is melting reducing the are of the penguin's habitat. Concluding that the COP-15 is important and Obama's pledge to lower greenhouse gas emissions is crucial.


http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1929071_1929070_1941227,00.html#ixzz0YHj4BCQN
http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1929071_1929070,00.html
http://www.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,1938690_1988641,00.html