[Essay] Global Warming, Global Problem

Spring has arrived and the temperature is on the rise everywhere. Many people across the nation think nothing of the recent change in climate over the past few decades, but this problem should be something everyone should be worried about. The cause and effects of global warming are nothing to take lightly. This issue started out as a political debate but has snowballed into a moral problem. The future of our planet is at stake and depends on us limiting the use of potentially harmful items to assure this problem remain controlled. We rely on energy to sustain life and to grow our economies, but it seems as though that energy consumption is also our downfall.

The layers of the atmosphere are directly effect by one specific gas given off by many of today’s automobiles, greenhouse gases. One specific element given off by greenhouse gases is carbon dioxide. As Richard E.J. Kelly and Olav Slaymaker have discussed in the book “The cyrosphere and Global Enviromental Change,” carbon dioxide enters the lowest level of the atmosphere, called the troposphere; it absorbs radiation from the earth and then gives it up as heat. As the carbon dioxide rises it gradually raises the temperature of the troposphere which causes the surface temperature of the earth to rise as well (Slaymaker and Kelly 178). It should be to no one’s surprise that the carbon level in our atmosphere is at an all time high and is still on the rise. The unusual variations in seasons, constantly rising sea levels, and more recently, the harsh weather such as hurricane Katrina prove this to be right. A majority of our earth’s energy comes from burning fossil fuels. This alone has been proven to cause more climate destruction than any other activity.

The world’s growing population has had a negative affect on the earth. The relationship between humanity and our planet has been altered. “We have quadrupled the earth’s population in less than one century” (Guggenheim n.p.). The population in the United States alone during the 1900s was about eighty million, but has now climbed to nearly three hundred million. This increase is bad because as the population on earth increases, the chances of bad environmental decisions also increase. Our irresponsible human activities have altered the earth’s ecosystem for the worst. Along with job decrease comes job increase; this affects our planets dilemma of global warming in a way that is quite obvious. An increase in employment is almost directly related to an increase in pollutants. The hiring of more employees means that more people will be needing transportation to their jobs causing more fuel emissions and pollutants to be released into the atmosphere. Fred S. Singer and Dennis T. Avery commented on the fact that “some pollutants augment the earth’s natural greenhouse effect…” (66), the increase in the carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere, causing a rise in global atmospheric temperatures. Although the birth and death rates are stabilizing, our rapid growth within the last century has already caused enough damage.

Global warming has caused more worldwide disasters in the past decade than recorded previously. One cannot blame the severity of Hurricane Katrina solely on global warming, but there is significant evidence supporting the idea that Katrina would not have been nearly as strong if the levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere were not so high. “Studies have shown that hurricanes may become more destructive as sea surface levels warm due to the influence of humankind on the natural world” (Avery and Singer 112). Hurricane Katrina is only one of many natural disasters that have been blamed on global warming. People living in the west can vouch for the devastating fires raging across the nation. The warming temperatures will be cause for both severe droughts and increase heavy rainfall events in the near future. The movie “Inconvenient Truth” by director Davis Guggenheim summarizes that the severe droughts will provide more dead and dry vegetation to build up in the west, leaving more fuel for potentially devastating wildfires. The natural disasters around the world cannot all be blamed on global warming, but it is clear that the rising temperatures have had a huge impact on our planets environmental changes.

In addition to the severe natural events happening all over the world, human health is strongly affected by the phenomenon of global warming. “Climate change can cause an increase of infectious diseases such as limes disease, which thrives in moist warm environments” (Avery and Singer 189). Due to the increase in temperature, not only is the risk of infectious disease increased but also the likelihood of getting a respiratory disorder. The air quality over the past decade has plummeted. Singer and Avery inform their readers that warming temperatures induce smog or ground level ozone and air pollution (191). Ground level ozone is also known as smog. It is a secondary pollutant caused by sun light reacting with vehicle and industrial emissions (Avery and Singer 191). Ground level ozone can permanently damage lung tissue and is especially dangerous to individuals that have asthma or other chronic respiratory diseases. Particle pollution also affects our health. Particle pollution is a mix of liquid droplets and small pollutants, which, when breathed in can cause a variety of significant health problems. In addition to lung damage, particle pollutants have also been known to cause visibility impairment in many of our nation’s bigger cities and national parks. Given the complexity of the factors that influence human health, measuring health impacts related to climate change poses a difficult challenge and is something that everyone should be aware of.

There are many ways in which even the busiest person can help to reduce the risk of global warming. Changing light bulbs from the conventional bulb to compact fluorescent bulbs will save the environment while saving money on energy bills (Sole-Smith 168 and Litke 233). “Compact fluorescent bulbs use 65 percent less energy than conventional ones, granted they may cost an average of 30 percent more than regular bulbs…but they have been proven to last 10 time longer” (Sole-Smith 168). If everyone changed just one conventional bulb, it would prevent major pollution.

The second largest source of greenhouse gases is transportation. Motor vehicles are responsible for about one third of all greenhouse gas emissions in not only the United States but also in Canada. By paying attention to vehicle maintenance and style of driving, one can greatly increase their automobiles fuel efficiency. “Speeding increases the consumption of fuel by about twenty percent” (Litke 234). By simply paying attention to speed limits gas mileage can increase by nearly fifteen percent. After accelerating past the speed of sixty miles per hour a cars fuel efficiency drops rapidly. In addition to driving style, the proper inflation of tires can greatly impact the amount of fuel consumption. Under inflated tires can cause fuel consumption to increase. Tire pressure should be checked at least once a month. Always use a tire gauge for consistent results because radial tires can be under inflated and still appear normal.

Everyone everywhere has heard it a billion times; reduce, reuse, recycle. Avoid making garbage in the first place, that way less time is spent worrying about trying to dispose of it or recycle it. It takes nearly “twenty times more energy to make an aluminum can from scratch than from a recycled one” (Sole-Smith 170). Recycling plastic, glass, paper, and cans keeps landfills emptier and saves both energy and trees. Along with recycling many household items, people should also begin to prevent food waste by composting organic foods. Food is wasted in many ways such as preparing too much, buying too much, or letting fresh food go bad. By simply composting leftover fruit and vegetable food waste with excess yard waste helps to create a compost pile high in nutrients. Compost piles can be used as a fertilizer to cover any type of garden, but rotting fruits or vegetables should not be put into the compost if the compost remnants will be used on a vegetable or fruit garden.

Today most the energy used to run many factories and common households is a major source of global warming. The infinite emission of carbon dioxide from energy use is a direct result of three things: our wasteful use of energy, our choices about when and how to use energy and the amount of carbon in the fuels we use (Guggenheim n.p.). To control the threat of global warming, we need to condense each of these. It is a common myth that only industries are using energy uneconomically, but individuals also have a huge role to play in making sure that energy is used efficiently. Due to the always changing technological advances we have been exposed to many different ways to prevent global warming from getting any worse than it already is. Architects around the world have been able to provide people with more energy efficient homes with solar panels to not only power their electronics but also to heat and cool their homes.

The environmental choices we make also affects the global warming crisis we face today. Most of the time we have the choice to walk or to take a public transportation to work or school, but instead we choose to drive which, most times, not only costs more, but also increases the harmful emission of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. People can do the smallest things inside their own home just to decrease the negative affects of global warming. Simply turning off a light switch after leaving a room or unplugging an appliance after use results in less carbon dioxide emissions let into the atmosphere (Litke 232).

How we use and produce energy is just as important as any other energy reducing strategy. As long as we are using energy fueled by fossil fuels we are still producing carbon dioxide that gets expelled into the environment. To achieve a healthier cooler future we need to switch to a more “global warming friendly” energy source; renewable energy. Renewable energy is fueled by the wind, sun, rivers, and oceans. The use of this renewable energy is not fueled by carbon dioxide therefore it does not emit carbon dioxide. Additionally, these renewable sources will not ever run out nor produce air pollutants that the burning of fossil fuels does. As of right now, “six percent of all the energy used in the United States comes from renewable sources” (Litke 233). Although it may seem like nothing, this small amount saves close to half a ton of carbon dioxide emissions a year.

Carbon dioxide emissions are a major threat to the health and well being of our environment. Things like driving our cars when it is not necessary, speeding, and leaving lights turned on when we aren’t using the light for anything and small things that, when a lot of people do them, have a huge impact on how we live. Global warming is a huge problem and people complain about it but do not want to take the small steps to help reduce it. People should walk twice a week instead of taking their cars, or obey the posted speed limits to help save their gas and our air. Also, finding an alternative source, like renewable energy, will keep us able to use all of the luxuries that we have today, while keeping our environment healthy and keep us from worrying about our resources running out. People need to start taking notice that global warming and carbon dioxide emissions are a big problem in our world, and that, if everyone changes one or two small habits, this world will still be healthy for generations to come.