1881: First signs of acid rain detected in Norway

1952: 4,000 people die in London during the Great Smog of December

1980: 200km of River Rhine left lifeless in 1980 after a chemical spill in Basle, Switzerland

1985: Hole in the Ozone layer detected in 1985

1986: Chernobyl nuclear reactor meltdown in 1986. True cost unknown

1989: Exxon Valdez spills 11 million gallons of crude oil in 1989 and contaminates miles of pristine Alaskan coastline

1990: One fifth of the world's tropical rainforest destroyed between 1960 and 1990

2003: Research in 2003 suggests that the supply of large fish in the seas has diminished by 90% in 50 years.

2025: Two thirds of the the world population expected to be without access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation services by 2025 due to global water shortages.

NOW: Scientists warn global warming could lead to an increase of up to 4C by the end of the century, leading to rising sea levels, greater tropical storms and the creation of environmental refugees on an epic scale.