To the editor:

For most of our Earth’s history, carbon dioxide (CO2) levels in the atmosphere have ranged between 180 and 280 parts per million.

When CO2 levels were around 280 parts per million, the corresponding Earth temperature could sustain life. When CO2 levels were around 180 parts per million were times of ice ages.

For the first time in the history of Earth, CO2 reached 300 ppm in 1950. Today CO2 levels have reached 425 PPM. A 42% increase in just 75 years! An unheard-of rate of change to a level our world has never experienced.

Carbon dioxide in the Earth’s atmosphere acts like a blanket, holding heat in and preventing it from being released back into space. The more the CO2, the thicker the blanket. The thicker the blanket, the warmer our world gets.

And just like being under a blanket, it takes a while to warm up. Earth has just gotten under the blanket and temperatures have just started to rise.

It is very clear; as the species that is killing our planet, we must be the ones to save it. Please take action today. Our world needs you.

Ron Sadler,

Lawrence