Governor Crist's Greenhouse Directive
Governor Charlie Crist has identified climate change as one of the most important issues facing the state in this century.
For more information on what the state is doing to address this
important issue, visit the Governor’s web site
Serve to Preserve on Global
Climate Change
.
In response to Governor Charlie Crist’s directives to develop a climate action plan, the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP)
has prepared this
Greenhouse Gas Inventory
[Word - 450kb] of Florida's greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to help guide climate change planning efforts.
This inventory was developed using the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) State Inventory Tool (SIT). The GHG emission levels shown in the inventory are gross estimates. While more refined estimates may be obtainable over time, DEP believes this preliminary inventory can be relied upon to identify the major categories of GHG emission sources and the general trend of emissions in those categories since 1990. DEP, with the help of other experts in the field, will continue to improve the inventory and post the updates.
Greenhouse Effect
The greenhouse effect is a natural phenomenon that occurs when
certain gases in the atmosphere, especially water vapor, carbon dioxide
and methane, cause the Earth’s surface to heat up more than it otherwise
would, thereby maintaining a global average temperature warm enough to
support life as we know it.
Global climate change, sometimes referred to as global warming, occurs
when the amounts of carbon dioxide and other such gases in
the atmosphere increase beyond natural levels, thereby
intensifying the greenhouse effect. Increased carbon
dioxide levels can result from human activities such as the
burning of coal, oil and gas and the clearing of forests
without replanting.
The following web sites offer a
comprehensive review of climate change issues. Visit the
department's Florida Climate Change
web site for additional information.
Climate Change Resources
The following links go to external sites and are
launched in a new browser window.
-
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Climate Change
Environmental Protection Agency has compiled a comprehensive web site on climate change that explains the science, the impacts of climate change, what steps governments are taking to address the issue.
-
U.S. EPA, Climate Change - What Can You Do
Environmental Protection Agency site on actions individuals
can take At Home, At Work, At School and On The Road.
-
National Energy Technology Laboratory
This site provides key issues and mandates related to climate change.
- Pew Center on Global Climate Change
The site provides basic and in-depth information on climate policy and government and business practice.
-
National Center for Atmospheric Research,
This research web site features information on climate change: the earth’s past, greenhouse effect, and global warming.
-
PBS
Frontline/Nova: “What’s Up with the Weather?”
This site, based on a PBS Frontline/NOVA broadcast,
has excellent interviews with several leading climate change
scientists.
- WMO/UNEP
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)
This site provides access to documents used by the
United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.
The IPCC has three working groups: Group I focuses on
climate change science, Group II on climate change effects,
and Group III on climate change mitigation. Summaries of
each group’s contribution to the Third Assessment Report are
available for download.
- National
Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Goddard Institute
for Space Studies
This site is notable for its articles by well-known
climate scientist, Dr. James Hansen, one of the pioneers in
the field.
-
National
Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Paleo
Perspective on Global Warming
This site is interesting for its articles on how past
climate is reconstructed.
- U.S.
Global Change Research Program
This site is a good starting point for more in-depth
study.
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2010 State of Florida