Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reach Record High: U.N.

The amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere reached a record high in 2010, the United Nations weather agency, the World Meteorological Organization, reports.

The report particularly noted the levels of nitrous oxide.

The report also spoke about the levels of gases lingering in the atmosphere and affecting the climate for decades.

In general, a number of reports, apart from the U.N.'s recent one have pointed out the increase in levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide, which has increased by 39 percent since the start of the industrial period in 1750.

The atmospheric burden of greenhouse gases due to human activities has yet again reached record levels since pre-industrial time, stated WMO Secretary-General Michel Jarraud. Even if we managed to halt our greenhouse gas emissions today - and this is far from the case - they would continue to linger in the atmosphere for decades to come and so continue to affect the delicate balance of our living planet and our climate.

Greenhouse gases, particularly carbon dioxide, are major causes of global warming and drivers of climate change since they increase ambient temperatures by trapping radiation within the earth's atmosphere. These gases are, among other reasons, emitted by activities like the burning of fossil fuels and the practice of agriculture. The three most common and long-lived greenhouse gases, after water vapor, are carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide.

In what can only described as worse news, The Telegraph, in the UK, published a report on Monday that suggested concentration levels in the WMO report were more severe than the worst of seven possible emission scenarios predicted by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change in 2001.

There will be a conference, later this month to address this issue. The global meeting will attempt to find solutions to prevent any further and drastic alterations in the Earth's climactic and environmental patterns.