No kidding!

International panel agrees global warming 'very likely' caused by humans

PARIS (AP) - Officials from 113 countries agreed Thursday that a much-awaited international report will say that global warming is "very likely" caused by human activity, delegates to a climate change conference said.
Dozens of scientists and bureaucrats are editing the new report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change in closed-door meetings in Paris. Their report, which must be unanimously approved, is to be released Friday.
Two participants, speaking on condition of anonymity because the meetings are confidential, said the group approved the term "very likely" in Thursday's sessions. That means they agree that there is a 90 per cent chance that global warming is human-caused.
The last report, in 2001, said global warming was "likely" caused by human activity.
There had been speculation that the participants might try to change the wording this time to "virtually certain," which means a 99 per cent chance.
However, wording of the consensus document requires approval from all countries, including the United States and others that have rejected the Kyoto accord aimed at curbing greenhouse gas emissions.
Still, the report is considered authoritative and can influence government and industrial policy worldwide.
© The Canadian Press 2007