Query: A fast transition away from fossil fuels in the next few decades could be enough to put off rapid sea-level rise for centuries.

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Sustainable energy <=SEP=> Sustainable energy is energy that is consumed at insignificant rates compared to its supply and with manageable collateral effects , especially environmental effects . Another common definition of sustainable energy is an energy system that serves the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs . The organizing principle for sustainability is sustainable development , which includes the four interconnected domains : ecology , economics , politics and culture . Sustainability science is the study of sustainable development and environmental science .   Technologies promote sustainable energy including renewable energy sources , such as hydroelectricity , solar energy , wind energy , wave power , geothermal energy , bioenergy , tidal power and also technologies designed to improve energy efficiency . Costs have fallen dramatically in recent years , and continue to fall . Most of these technologies are either economically competitive or close to being so . Increasingly , effective government policies support investor confidence and these markets are expanding . Considerable progress is being made in the energy transition from fossil fuels to ecologically sustainable systems , to the point where many studies support 100 % renewable energy .

Nuclear power <=SEP=> Nuclear power is the use of nuclear reactions that release nuclear energy to generate heat , which most frequently is then used in steam turbines to produce electricity in a nuclear power plant . The term includes nuclear fission , nuclear decay and nuclear fusion . Presently , the nuclear fission of elements in the actinide series of the periodic table produce the vast majority of nuclear energy in the direct service of humankind , with nuclear decay processes , primarily in the form of geothermal energy , and radioisotope thermoelectric generators , in niche uses making up the rest .   Owing , fundamentally , to the delayed critical fission process , Fission-electric power stations are one of the leading low carbon power generation methods of producing electricity , and in terms of total life-cycle greenhouse gas emissions per unit of energy generated , has emission values lower than `` renewable energy '' when the latter is taken as a single energy source . Since all electricity supplying technologies use cement , etc. , during construction , emissions are yet to be brought to zero . A 2014 analysis of the carbon footprint literature by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change ( IPCC ) reported that the embodied total life-cycle emission intensity of fission electricity has a median value of 12 g eq/kWh which is the lowest out of all commercial baseload energy sources , and second lowest out of all commercial electricity technologies known , after wind power which is an Intermittent energy source with embodied greenhouse gas emissions , per unit of energy generated of 11 g eq/kWh . Each result is contrasted with coal and fossil gas at 820 and 490 g eq/kWh . With this translating into , from the beginning of fission-electric power station commercialization in the 1970s , having prevented the emission of about 64 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent , greenhouse gases that would have otherwise resulted from the burning of fossil fuels in thermal power stations .   There is a social debate about nuclear power . Proponents , such as the World Nuclear Association and Environmentalists for Nuclear Energy , contend that nuclear power is a safe , sustainable energy source that reduces carbon emissions . Opponents , such as Greenpeace International and NIRS , contend that nuclear power poses many threats to people and the environment .   Far-reaching fission power reactor accidents , or accidents that resulted in medium to long-lived fission product contamination of inhabited areas , have occurred in Generation I and II reactor designs , blueprinted between 1950 and 1980 . These include the Chernobyl disaster which occurred in 1986 , the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster ( 2011 ) , and the more contained Three Mile Island accident ( 1979 ) . There have also been some nuclear submarine accidents . In terms of lives lost per unit of energy generated , analysis has determined that fission-electric reactors have caused fewer fatalities per unit of energy generated than the other major sources of energy generation . Energy production from coal , petroleum , natural gas and hydroelectricity has caused a greater number of fatalities per unit of energy generated due to air pollution and energy accident effects . Four years after the Fukushima-Daiichi accident , there have been no fatalities due to exposure to radiation , and no discernible increased incidence of radiation-related health effects are expected among exposed members of the public and their descendants . The Japan Times estimated 1,600 deaths were the result of evacuation , due to physical and mental stress stemming from long stays at shelters , a lack of initial care as a result of hospitals being disabled by the tsunami , and suicides .   In 2015 :  Ten new reactors were connected to the grid .  Seven reactors were permanently shut down .  441 reactors had a worldwide net capacity of 382,855 megawatts of electricity .  67 new nuclear reactors were under construction .  Most of the new activity is in China where there is an urgent need to control pollution from coal plants .   In October 2016 , Watts Bar 2 became the first new United States reactor to enter commercial operation since 1996 .

Global warming <=SEP=> Global warming , also referred to as climate change , is the observed century-scale rise in the average temperature of the Earth 's climate system and its related effects . Multiple lines of scientific evidence show that the climate system is warming . Many of the observed changes since the 1950s are unprecedented in the instrumental temperature record which extends back to the mid 19th century , and in paleoclimate proxy records over thousands of years .   In 2013 , the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change ( IPCC ) Fifth Assessment Report concluded that `` It is extremely likely that human influence has been the dominant cause of the observed warming since the mid-20th century . '' The largest human influence has been emission of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide , methane and nitrous oxide . Climate model projections summarized in the report indicated that during the 21st century the global surface temperature is likely to rise a further 0.3 to for their lowest emissions scenario and 2.6 to for the highest emissions scenario . These findings have been recognized by the national science academies of the major industrialized nations and are not disputed by any scientific body of national or international standing .   Future climate change and associated impacts will differ from region to region around the globe . Anticipated effects include warming global temperature , rising sea levels , changing precipitation , and expansion of deserts in the subtropics . Warming is expected to be greater over land than over the oceans and greatest in the Arctic , with the continuing retreat of glaciers , permafrost and sea ice . Other likely changes include more frequent extreme weather events including heat waves , droughts , heavy rainfall with floods and heavy snowfall ; ocean acidification ; and species extinctions due to shifting temperature regimes . Effects significant to humans include the threat to food security from decreasing crop yields and the abandonment of populated areas due to rising sea levels . Because the climate system has a large `` inertia '' and greenhouse gases will stay in the atmosphere for a long time , many of these effects will not only exist for decades or centuries , but will persist for tens of thousands of years .   Possible societal responses to global warming include mitigation by emissions reduction , adaptation to its effects , building systems resilient to its effects , and possible future climate engineering . Most countries are parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change ( UNFCCC ) ,  whose ultimate objective is to prevent dangerous anthropogenic climate change . Parties to the UNFCCC have agreed that deep cuts in emissions are required and that global warming should be limited to well below 2.0 C-change relative to pre-industrial levels , with efforts made to limit warming to 1.5 C-change .   Public reactions to global warming and concern about its effects are also increasing . A global 2015 Pew Research Center report showed a median of 54 % consider it `` a very serious problem '' . There are significant regional differences , with Americans and Chinese ( whose economies are responsible for the greatest annual CO2 emissions ) among the least concerned .