'We have all the time in the world!' - You are so wrong, Mr. Armstrong!!

Last night I saw a program on BBC2 entitled ‘Five Disasters Waiting to Happen’ which gave a grim prognosis for the scenarios we could be faced with if what is known as a ‘CO2 tipping-point’ is reached.
The theoretical events, broadcast as news items, show how London is trying to cope with a huge sea surge on the Thames; how Paris is preparing for another heat wave similar to the one which led to 15,000 deaths in 2003; and how cities such as Mumbai and Shanghai are failing to tackle a future of erratic monsoons and the threat of typhoons.
Most disturbing for me was the fact that everyone around the globe tries to bandage the sore rather than addressing the root cause of it all.

Above: The sweet river Mithi as it is now!

Example:
In Mumbai (Bombay) the once sweet Mithi river has turned into a stinking, infested swamp due to various irresponsible human actions, such as putting up walls, etc.
After a rain disaster the authorities (under pressure) decided to dig out the riverbed to allow a better flow. Where do you think they dumped the highly toxic mud?? Onto the mangrove parks which is like the lung of that area.
Mangrove ecosystems which exist along the Mithi River and Mahim Creek are being destroyed and replaced with construction. Hundreds of acres of swamps in Mahim creek have been reclaimed and put to use for construction by builders. These ecosystems serve as a buffer between land and sea. It is estimated that Mumbai has lost about 40% of its mangroves between 1995 and 2005, some to builders and some to encroachment (slums). Sewage and garbage dumps have also destroyed mangroves. The Bandra-Kurla complex in particular was created by replacing such swamps.
And this is just one example of utter stupidity driven by poor legislation, poverty, greed and short-sightedness.

Left:

Here you see a plane landing at Mumbai on a runway which has been built, diverting the river by 90 degrees. The filth and the slums along the river are clearly visible!

Are we in Britain any better??
Hardly! As we speak developments below the Thames barrier are going up in the knowledge that these will flood in the future and cause destruction, devastation and most likely deaths.
I remember that in the year 2000 the environmental experts gave us 30 years to clean up our act or face the consequences.

Six years on and we haven’t even started to be serious about it.
T.S. Elliot put it well when he said:
“This is the way the world ends ... Not with a bang but with a whimper.”

Anyone feeling whiny already?