Books

Alan’s most recent work is a book with Durwood Zaelke and Stephen O. Andersen, Cut Super Climate Pollutants Now!, published by Changemakers Books.

The authors describe the urgent need to reduce several climate pollutants including methane and HFCs (widely used as refrigerants) with short atmospheric lifetimes (unlike carbon dioxide). Slowing the rate of warming is critical to avoid feed backs and tipping points, irreversible and potentially catastrophic changes in climate. Because of their short atmospheric lifetimes, these super pollutants can be reduced much more quickly — a “climate sprint” — to complement the more widely understood “marathon”, the more gradual reduction in CO2 emissions from burning of fossil fuels and deforestation. This marathon will require several decades to slow the rate of warming as reducing CO2 will also cut sulfates, pollutants which fall out of the atmosphere relatively quickly but offset some warming. The authors outline the actions needed and describe how this can be accomplished with the necessary speed based on lessons from the successful Montreal Protocol, the international agreement to protect the ozone layer.