Global warming over the next half-century could put more than a million species of plants and animals on the road to extinction, according to an international study
Thomas, lead author of the study published in the science journal Nature, said emissions from cars and factories could push temperatures up to levels not seen for 1 million to 30 million years by the end of the century, threatening many habitats. The sweeping new analysis, enlisting scientists from 14 laboratories around the globe, found that more than one-third of 1,103 native species they studied in six regions around the world could vanish or plunge to near extinction by 2050 as climate change turns plains into deserts or alters forests.
Global warming is widely blamed on rising concentrations of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere linked to emissions of gases from burning fossil fuels in cars, factories and power plants. We can cut global warming pollution by reducing pollution from vehicles and power plants.
We can increase our reliance on renewable energy sources such as wind, sun and geothermal. And we can manufacture more efficient appliances and conserve energy.
But all this will...