Rising CO2 will cause catastrophic sea level rise finds Antarctic study

Sea levels could rise by up to six metres if the world fails to get pollution under control according to the latest study in the Antarctic.

By Louise Gray, Environment Correspondent
Published: 1:56PM GMT 18 Nov 2009 The British Antarctic Survey found that during past periods of high carbon dioxide, temperatures in Antarctica were up to 6C above current levels. This could cause a sea level rise of up six metres, threatening coastal cities like London, New York and San Francisco. … Louise Sime, lead of the British Antarctic Survey study, looked at ice cores to see how temperatures changed during periods of high carbon dioxide She found that during the last period of high CO2, 125,000 years ago, temperatures were up to 6C higher than present day levels. Such a hike in temperature could lead to a rise in sea levels of between 4 to 6 metres over hundreds of years as the ice sheets melt. “We didn’t expect to see such warm temperatures, and we don’t yet know in detail what caused them. But they indicate that Antarctica’s climate may have undergone rapid shifts during past periods of high CO2.” …