Except from a conversation with several people.
As for you (and my) skepticism today (or last night) the National Academy of Science, the group that both the Congressional and Executive Branches rely on, stated that man-kind’s impact to the environment is a significant contributor to Global Warming. They go on to call for rather drastic measures. You may be a skeptic, but these are professionals who’s job is non-partisan and who are experts in these fields.
I’m no expert, but checking with the U.S. Department of Energy they indicate that non-nuclear Power Plants in the U.S. alone can contribute up to 2.8 billion metric tons of CO2 a year to the environment. 2.8 billion metric tons of CO2 seems like a substantial amount for it to have no contribution to Global Warming. Of course this doesn’t include cars, which a car with an average 25 MPG at about 14,000 miles/year may contribute over 5 tons of CO2 per year each!
This still does not include the number of huge passenger jet aircraft each with 2 or more unregulated Jet-A fueled turbines; nor does it include CH4 (methane), NO2 (Nitrous Oxide), CFCs, deforestation, etc..
This still does not include other countries. Remember at 5% of the total population the U.S. (we) use 25% of all generated power/energy in the world. What if every nation consumed energy the way the U.S. does?
I have had my doubts and I too have been a skeptic. However, in light of actual data, peer reviewed science, reputable scientists, National Academy of Science among others, my doubts turned to pragmatism regarding the future of our home, earth.
This may be due to natural cycles and there’s nothing we can do about it, but most scientist tend to disagree. The temperature is rising and we are at the very least one of the major causes. We can work together to solve or mitigate this problem or we can do nothing and hope that billions of metric tons of man-made CO2 has no effect and just see what happens.