Arctic Tipping Points

”Climate researchers just quarrel – they cannot agree on anything.  Basically we do know too little about the climate.”

The old Thule, a settlement that was moved northward when the US Thule air base was bulid in 1953. The Dundas mountain to the right. Take note of the pink flowers. Photo P. Wassmann”Climate researchers just quarrel – they cannot agree on anything. Basically we do know too little about the climate.”

Climate researchers do quarrel over details of their research and interpretation of results, but the majority does not quarrel about climate change and global warming.  In fact most congresses involve quiet and peaceful procedures.  Most of the quarrelling is not between active scientists, but between scientists and laypersons or politicians.  The quarrelling is clearly visible in media because they wish to have a ”balanced” debate.  A statement from a committee or scientists cannot remain alone.  It has to be contradicted to obtain at least a debate.  Anybody who contradicts a scientific position is then welcome.  If the scientific statement is supported by a large majority and contradicted by a small minority is not so important for the press.  Many journalists have too little time or too little specific education to launch weighted debates.  The quarrels addressed in the above statement are practically not visible in international journals and at conferences.

But, off course, there is a lot of uncertainty.  And there are alternative interpretations for which good data and arguments are always welcome.  Uncertainty should support the case of nature, not the man-made world, our culture.  At the end of the day we all depend on the good and services that Mother Nature provides us with.  The sustainability of nature must be our ultimate goal and all action that undermines sustainability is a threat to mankind.

The Dundas (left) and old Thule (right) settlements as seen from Mount Dundas. Photo P. Wassmann

The US air base Thule, famous for its role in the Cold War. After a plane crash plutonium from an atomic bomb entered the marine environment. Thule is still an active airbase. In the background: the Greenland inland ice cap. Photo. P. Wassmann

Comments are closed.