Antarctic Peninsula ice sheets melting at worrying rate

US Geological Survey (USGS) researchers who have been conducting a first ever survey of Antarctica’s entire coastline coasts are now reporting that the southern portion of the Antarctic Peninsula, which is its coldest, has been retreating for sixty years, with the biggest changes occurring since 1990.

The scientists report that this condition is likely suggestive of the situation across all of Antarctica, whose ice sheet contains 91% of the world’s glacial water and could cause a 60 to 73 meter sea level rise if all the land-based ice were to melt.

As noted by environmental experts, even one meter of sea level rise would jeopardize food supplies across the world. USGS scientist Jane Ferrigno stated, “The loss of ice shelves is evidence of the effects of global warming.

We need to be alert and continually understand and observe how our climate system is changing." We thank Dr. Ferrigno and associate scientists at the US Geological Survey for your careful monitoring of the Antarctic.

Let us act now to restore the planet-cooling balance of our world’s ice caps by choosing lifestyles in greater harmony with nature.

As mentioned on previous occasions, Supreme Master Ching Hai spoke again during a November 2009 videoconference in Washington, DC, USA of the most direct way to avert the potentially catastrophic consequences of global warming.

Supreme Master Ching Hai: Greenland is shedding 85 million tons of icebergs each day due to warming, and at a rate that is increasing by 7 percent each year. The West Antarctic Ice Shelf is also melting, with 3.3 meter sea level rises forecast that would threaten cities like New York, Washington, D.C., and San Francisco.

And if all of Antarctica and Greenland were to melt – meaning the ice – then the sea levels could rise to as much as 70 meters, which would be deadly or disastrous to most lives on Earth.

You may ask, what is the main cause of this damage and destruction to the environment?

It’s methane, which is produced primarily by the livestock industry.

NASA announced that methane actually contributes much more to global warming than previously understood and it traps 100 times the atmospheric heat over 20 years. And the largest source of methane is? You know - livestock.

So, to solve this, we do need to move quickly, and of course we know what to do, right?

Yes? Be vegan.

http://news.mongabay.com/2010/0223-hance_antpen.html
http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/enviornment/ice-shelves-on-antarctic-peninsula...
http://www.earth-policy.org/index.php?/books/pb4
http://www.springerlink.com/content/h28l707685463333/
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2009/may/31/cattle-trade-brazil-greenpeace...

Dislodged Antarctic iceberg causes scientists concern.

An iceberg the size of the country Luxembourg was recently knocked loose from the Antarctic continent by an older iceberg known as B9B, which had split off in 1987. The new iceberg contains approximately one-fifth the total water used worldwide.

Climate experts are now concerned for the ice-free area that used to be protected by the now-displaced ice. As this area provides 25% of the Antarctic’s bottom water, changes in its environment could impact ocean currents that distribute heat and oxygen to waters around the globe.

Such disruption could be devastating, as noted by German oceanographer Dr. Mario Hoppema, who said, “There may be regions of the world’s oceans that lose oxygen, and then of course most of the life there will die.”

We are grateful Dr. Hoppema and all scientists for your comprehensive assessment of these unsettling and large-scale changes in the Antarctic.

May we all foster lifestyles that restore harmony to our shared ecosphere. In a July 2008 videoconference with Supreme Master Television staff in California, USA, Supreme Master Ching Hai emphasized once more our need to act in ways that enhance the survival of all life on Earth.

Supreme Master Ching Hai: If people change to a more benevolent lifestyle that is respecting all lives, then we will beget life and our lives be spared. And nature will restore the balance and repair all damages.

I wish to see that day soon, in my lifetime. It’s still repairable. But people have to realize this, and they have to know it’s urgent and they have to cooperate. The more vegan people join the circle, the more chance we have to save the planet.

http://www.france24.com/en/20100225-mammoth-iceberg-could-alter-ocean-circulation-study
http://www.hindu.com/2010/02/27/stories/2010022757422000.htm
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=124105970

Antarctic melting could trigger mass extinction

Following the release of reports that our planet is on track to experience a 6-degree Celsius temperature rise by the year 2100, new studies from the University of Texas, USA show that since 2006, eastern Antarctica has been shedding around 57 billion tons of ice each year. This study coincided with the recent sighting of hundreds of Antarctic icebergs that have broken away and are now floating towards New Zealand, an event that has caused officials to issue warnings for ships in the region.

Another study by the British Antarctic Survey states that past records, current temperature indications and total Antarctic ice volume measurements all point toward a 6 meter sea level rise in the coming years.
This finding has caused a revisiting of the 2007 report by UK’s Guardian news science journalist Mark Lynas, which describes the effects of such devastating climate-related change.

The report stated, “It would cause a mass extinction of almost all life and probably reduce humanity to a few struggling groups of embattled survivors clinging to life near the poles. Very few species could adapt in time to the abruptness of the transition.” Mr. Lynas, UK Guardian, University of Texas and British Antarctic Survey scientists, we are grateful for your work in revealing these findings, despite their disturbing nature.

Let us act swiftly in loving stewardship of our ecosphere while there still is time. Supreme Master Ching Hai has often emphasized the urgency of our planetary crisis while encouraging people to take action, as during an interview for the July 12, 2009 edition of the Irish Sunday Independent.

Supreme Master Ching Hai: The truth is that, scientifically speaking, we have a short time left because we have already waited too long to act. Leading scientists and organizations are now saying this as well, especially as they find that the tipping points, which indicate irreversible damage to the Earth, are being reached much faster than anyone had previously thought and calculated.

Supreme Master Ching Hai: There are truly too many confirmations of the urgency of our planetary situation to even name. It is better we concentrate on the solution to save the Earth. We can still do it.

See, We need the solution, which is organic life-saving vegan diet, then our future is transformed. Life will quickly become better than what you could even imagine. So, let us all act now to ensure the future that we want, and the one we want for our children. That is Be Veg, Go Green, Save the Planet.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/earthnews/6597757/Rising-CO2-will-cause-catastrophic-sea-level-rise-finds-Antarctic-study.html
http://www.france24.com/en/node/4931234,
http://www.france24.com/en/node/4931468,
http://www.france24.com/en/node/4931459
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/environment/news/article.cfm?c_id=39&objectid=10610140
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2007/apr/23/scienceandnature.climatechange
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/earthnews/6597757/Rising-CO2-will-cause-catastrophic-sea-level-rise-finds-Antarctic-study.html

Antarctic shows more warning signs of climate change

At the recent 2009 Annual Antarctic Conference in Auckland, New Zealand, Dr. Peter Barrett of the Antarctic Research Center at Victoria University said that Antarctic’s rate of ice loss had increased 75 percent since 1996. He went on to say that when Greenland and other glaciers are included in this evaluation, a rise in sea level of 80 centimeters to 2 meters by 2100 is expected. Marine life would also be adversely affected by the resulting warmer and more acidic oceans.

Another study conducted by fellow Antarctic Research Center colleague and Director, Dr. Tim Naish, found that if the West Antarctic ice sheet melts, sea levels could rise by a full five meters.

We appreciate this crucial information, Drs. Barrett, Naish and colleagues. May we quickly heed the urgent call for sustainable lifestyles to halt global warming and save our ecosphere.

Supreme Master Ching Hai has frequently expressed her concern about the dangerous rise in sea levels that is already affecting coastaland island countries. In an August 2008 videoconference with our Association members in New Zealand, she responded to a question about political leaders, conveying her confidence in governments to act on
behalf of fellow citizens.

Supreme Master Ching Hai: What encouragement can we give them to stand up and spread the message to the people to be vegetarian?

I think they will have to, in time. And I hope they do it soon, so that we still have
a chance to save millions, billions of people or the whole planet. What is the useof having economy or political power when everybody is dead?

Even if the leader is still alive, whom would he or she rule if there’s no citizen left? I am worried about your country; it’s a small island surrounded by water. And if the water level
rise then…I don’t want to talk about it.

But I’m sure your leader will realize it sooner or later, that survival is number one. Political position, economic power is number ten, very low, low, low, low down there. First we have to survive.

References:
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10582441
http://conferenceworks.co.nz/2009-annual-antarctic-conference/
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-07/02/content_11640463.htm
http://www.victoria.ac.nz/antarctic/people/tim-naish/index.aspx

Study of ancient coral reef shows catastrophic rise in sea levels.

According to a recent study by Dr Paul Blanchon, marine scientist from the National Autonomous University of Mexico, rapid ice melt of the Antarctic and Greenland ice sheets could lead to sea level rises of several meters, which would inundate international cities like London in the United Kingdom; New York, USA; Tokyo, Japan, and Calcutta, India. With research that focused on fossilized Gulf of Mexico coral reefs dating back 121,000 years, Dr. Blanchon found that warmer temperatures at the time led to the disintegration of the same ice sheets now concerning scientists, causing a rapid jump in sea level at that time. With today’s fast melting of ice in the Antarctic and Greenland, this study on ancient coral reefs warns of the current potential for a disastrous sea-level rise if climate change is not mitigated.

Our sincere thanks, Dr. Blanchon and colleagues for your study that confirms humanity’s precarious situation and the need for all of us to act now to save our planetary home.

In a December 2008 videoconference held in California, USA, Supreme Master Ching Hai called on all global citizens to adopt a more caring lifestyle that halts devastating consequences such as these, thus conserving our lives and the planet.

Videoconference with Supreme Master Ching Hai
California, USA – December 12, 2008

Supreme Master Ching Hai: So many islands have sunk under water already. Many coastal cities’ land has been eroded. Two thousand more islands are sinking, and 18 islands–for what we have known, maybe more, but we don’t know—18 islands including small nation islands already gone, disappeared under water, sometimes 6 meters under water already, and another 40 are or at risk of sinking, or uninhabitable or begins to be uninhabitable because they cannot cultivate anymore because the land became inundated with salty water already.

I want to plead with all the planet people. Please stop killing animals. Please have compassion. Please turn to vegetarian diet. Please be vegan. That is to save yourselves and your children.

Supreme Master Ching Hai: So, organic vegan diet is the answer.

West Antarctic ice sheet could melt – again

West Antarctic Ice Sheet collapse. Teams of New Zealand, American and European researchers recently completed two studies that show that the West Antarctic Ice Shelf has periodically collapsed in the past. With just a 5 degree Celsius rise in ocean temperatures, the corresponding sea levels would rise some 5 meters and inundate entire nations. The scientists state that human-caused climate change is accelerating this natural collapse cycle, with co-author Dr. David Pollard at Pennsylvania State University warning, “…It is something to be concerned about; you cannot just ignore it because it is happening in thousands of years time.”

Thank you, international scientists, for expanding our knowledge of the dire state of our planet. Let us quickly turn toward much-needed eco-conscious changes in our lifestyles to ease the consequences of global warming and save all precious life on Earth.

In a videoconference with our Association members in Canada, on August 24, 2008, Supreme Master Ching Hai spoke of the ice melt as being an urgent signal for humans to take swift action.


Videoconference with Supreme Master Ching Hai Vancouver Center Canada
August 24, 2008

Supreme Master Ching Hai: Mostly the time of disappearing of the ice means also the spelling of trouble for our planet. Of course it would be better if we already saved the planet before the ice melted. But as it is, we can only do the best we can and trying to inform everybody to save themselves by being vegetarian.

If the ice melts quicker, then, of course, we have shorter time to save the planet. But nevertheless because people are joining the vegetarian diet, so we’re going to get it somehow fixed somewhere so that the time would be a little bit more lenient to us. Then we still can manage to save the world. Not complete, and not as much as we wanted if we have more time, but still better than nothing.