Capturing carbon dioxide and turning it into commercial products

The dramatic loss of ice on Greenland, combined with the melting of the polar ice cap, is putting global greenhouse gas emissions under unprecedented scrutiny.

What is wrong with us? Will we face flooding, droughts, rising sea levels, and even extinction? As two UN climate scientists said Wednesday, the answer to all those questions is no. The scientists said the answer is that greenhouse gas emissions are too high.

Yet they insist that the world can cut greenhouse gas emissions to get to a level that might help the global economy transition away from a fossil fuel economy, without the current buildup of global greenhouse gas emissions, and without a carbon tax that would undercut the “virtually unlimited” sale of fossil fuels.

Most recently, the International Monetary Fund has made clear that there is no tax on carbon. In other words, the kinds of research for tackling global warming is still underway. It is too early to say whether any of the above will achieve a significant goal — but the idea that the next available forum will be in the year 2025 — and whether that will be the global goal will be one to watch.