Serious or spoof?

Unburnable Fuel (from The Herald )

I was interested to note that Anne Johnstone's thoughtful column (The Herald, August 7) was prompted by a report from the New Economics Foundation, entitled 100 Months, which I have just finished reading. This report starkly underlines recent scientific evidence which seems to predict that the headline 100 months is all the time that is left, before run-away global warming sets in, if mankind continues to pump carbon into the atmosphere at its current rate.

It intrigued me that the report raises the notion of introducing a new category of fossil-fuel reserve. In addition to the industry's concept of "proven" and "probable" reserves, it suggests we should add "unburnable". Clearly, if all fossil fuels were left in the ground the problem would immediately be alleviated. It seems unavoidable that at some time in the not-too-distant future it will be necessary to send United Nations global warming prevention troops to oil wells, gas wells and coal mines around the globe to cut-off access to the "unburnable" remainder.