Emissions rising too fast for oceans and forests. Dr. Mike Raupach, co-chair of the Global Carbon Project and scientist at Australia’s Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), has reported that the elements of nature such as forests, grasslands and oceans have been absorbing CO2 at unprecedented rates because of a continued increase in human-caused carbon emissions. In fact, these natural carbon absorbers can no longer keep up. Dr. Andreas Fischlin of the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology explains how this situation could lead to a serious global warming tipping point.

Dr. Andreas Fischlin – Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (M): Land ecosystems, which are currently sequestering about one quarter of all emissions, will stop doing that, and they will actually switch into becoming a source of CO2, so they will add to our own emissions, which will require us even to more compensate this if we would get to this point. So they would accelerate climate change instead what they’re doing now, they are slowing it down. So we must not lose that service from land ecosystems. The point where you actually switch from being a sink and sequestering carbon and to becoming a source in emitting carbon is a tipping point.

VOICE: Knowing this, Dr. Mike Raupach stated, “Such a change would have drastic consequences for the predicted magnitude or speed of climate change occurring.”

We appreciate your insights, Drs. Raupach and Fischlin. Our prayers that this knowledge will help bring about quick and effective actions to avoid irreversible trends such as these.

In a videoconference in February with the 12th President of the Philippines, His Excellency Mr. Fidel Ramos, during his visit to our Association’s Center in Taipei, Formosa (Taiwan), Supreme Master Ching Hai described the benefits of organic farming, together with minimizing livestock production, to quickly remove harmful greenhouse gas emissions from the environment.