Climate change will kill billions of people this century as the Earth warms,
passing into a ``fever'' phase from which it may take 100,000 years to recover,
James Lovelock, the scientist who propounded the ``Gaia'' theory, said.
Temperatures in temperate regions such as Europe and the U.S., will soar by 8
degrees Celsius (14 degrees Fahrenheit) this century, and those in the tropics
will rise by 5 degrees as a result of man-made emissions, Lovelock wrote in
today's Independent newspaper.
``We have given Gaia a fever and soon her condition will worsen to a state like
a coma,'' Lovelock wrote. ``She has been there before and recovered, but it took
more than 100,000 years. We are responsible and will suffer the consequences.''
Lovelock's Gaia theory, advanced in the 1970s, sees the Earth behaving like a
self-sustaining organism, with a control system that keeps the environment fit
for life. By trying to take over ...