Al Gore and David Letterman – An Eco-friendly Master Class Part 3
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We are continuing with David Letterman’s interview with former Vice-President who was promoting his new book Our Choice: A Plan to Solve the Global Climate Crisis and an eco-friendly master class ensued.This is the third installment of our ever-continuing coverage of this fascinating interview; the next subject of conversation was coral.
David Letterman asked a well formulated question, which I will paraphrase. He had heard that coral in general is dying and cannot be saved as it now exists in the sea. As a result it is being moved out of the sea so it can be saved – like an eco-friendly intervention of sorts. Gore replied that Dave’s comments/question was primarily true as coral is in danger around the world, including the Great Barrier Reef. So why in an eco-friendly age as this is this happening? There are two main reasons the first is due to global warming. Water temperatures are rising and this is hurtful to the coral. The second reason is that there is 90 million tons of CO2 in the atmosphere, of that 25 millions tons go into the water. That CO2 becomes carbonic acid, which changes the acidity level of the ocean. The process for coral production includes taking calcium carbonate that is in the water and turning it into hard coral. When the acid level is too high, it is as if the coral has osteoporosis, meaning that the coral is dissolved/ depleted as it tries to regenerate/ form.
The ever increasing CO2 level in the ocean is dangerous not just for coral but for everything that makes/has a shell, as their production is also in jeopardy. Dave felt that this is an environmental tragedy as the manner in which humans live has eliminated or is eliminating an entire species. Gore explained that the bleaching episodes (where the coral is eroded or cannot form) have increased in frequency. He stressed that an eco-friendly solution would be to cut back on CO2 levels.
In his trademark way Gore illustrates that not all hope is lost as scientists in the field have been able to save or preserve coral so that we will not lose it forever. Former Vice-President Gore wanted to clarify that even though the coral is being saved it is not in the imaginary underwater zoos that Letterman concocted in his original question. Lighthearted and informative, this interview struck a balance unseen in the other appearances he made while doing the media circuit to promote his new book. The others were either funny OR informative but no other interview married the two so brilliantly. Well done gentlemen well done.
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