Next month, a third panel will report on what can be done. While most scientists agree that global warming is real, human-caused and a threat, the Bush administration is not so sure. It has negotiated a two-month delay on international talks to limit greenhouse gas emissions. There is still disagreement as to the causes and the long-term future. Global warming is not necessarily bad, Paynter added.
Carbon dioxide is a plant nutrient.
It is not a pollutant. The more carbon dioxide most plants get some plants don't react as well as others the more efficient they are. Scientists from other countries, particularly Europeans pressing the United States to cut back emissions, say the evidence of a real problem is overwhelming. Southern Europe, where episodic flooding but generally declining rainfall will cause farmland to deteriorate. Asia, where deserts will increase in size and scope while more and more serious monsoons devastate low-lying areas.