Tuesday, October 1, 2019
Politics and Global Warming Essay
Introduction            Every day we go about our own business. Many of us never take the time to look around and see how we are affecting our earth’s atmosphere.  Everywhere you look today you are bound to see some factory or machinery polluting our air. Just think how many times you have seen those large semi trucks or big fossil fuel factories emitting thick dark smoke into the atmosphere. We need to come to reality and realize that all that polluting we have been doing over the last half-century is finally catching up to us. It is very easy to detect through scientific research that our earth’s climate is changing, Time magazine reports in its 2004 issue that the earth’s average temperature is increasing at a steady rate. Yes, we all have heard the term â€Å"global warming†, however many people don’t know in depth what global warming is, or how our actions will affect our earth if we don’t respond to the issue. If we can educate ourselves on what global warming is and how it will affect us in the near and far future, we can then begin to change our old habits of polluting and create new habits and goals to living in a much healthier and cleaner environment. The purpose of this study is to know what global warming is and what the government is doing to resolve the issue as well as what else can be done in short term and long term. Background What is global warming?            Global Warming is an issue that concerns almost everybody worldwide: it is the primary cause for the erratic and sometimes devastating weather that is experienced around the world. Global warming is causing the rise in sea level which in turn causes the flooding of coastal areas and areas with low elevation. Global Warming and doomsday            Will global warming spell doom for our world? Scientists believe this to be so. â€Å"Much depends on what actions we take now and in the coming years.†Meteorologist Jagadish Shukla of the University of Maryland found out that deforestation would cause rainfall in the Amazon River to decline by more than 26 percent from the current 2.5 m. to about 1.8 m. a year (Bellamy, 2000).            At the same time, the burning of fossil fuels, particularly coal and oil, produces sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides which are hazardous to the atmosphere. Findings show that a single smokestack may produce as much as 500 tons of sulfur dioxide a day. When these gases combine with oxygen and moisture, sulfuric acid and nitric acid is formed. The rain will carry the acids to the ground (acid rain) which may cause the depletion of calcium and magnesium in the soil, elements needed by plants for the formation of chlorophyll and wood, or it may cause the release of aluminum in the soil, which are poisonous and can kill the roots of trees (Carwardine, 2000). Discussion            During the earliest times, the life-styles of our ancestors were very simple. The air they breathed was clean. The streams were clear and free of harmful organisms. They used natural fertilizers for their agricultural crops. The surroundings were free of household throwaways.            Today, there has been a tremendous growth in science and technology. Such advances have brought about changes in terms of new products, improved equipment, and more effective methodologies. Unfortunately, this same technology which made life easier for us produced wastes which are now affecting the quality of our surrounding air, water, and land. Factories and motor vehicles send tons of pollutants into our air. Excessive air pollution poses a danger to our health and environment. It can likewise cause stunted growth and even death to our plants. Out streams are polluted by discharges from industrial plants that use chemicals. Garbage and sink wastes are carelessly thrown in our surroundings. Synthetic fertilizers and insecticides pollute our land and farm products (Johnston, 2000).            At the same time, the burning of fossil fuels, particularly coal and oil, produces sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides which are hazardous to the atmosphere. Findings show that a single smokestack may produce as much as 500 tons of sulfur dioxide a day. When these gases combine with oxygen and moisture, sulfuric acid and nitric acid are formed (Jenner, 1999). The rain will carry the acids to the ground (acid rain) which may cause the depletion of calcium and magnesium in the soil, elements needed by plants for the formation of chlorophyll and wood, or it may cause the release of aluminum in the soil, which are poisonous and can kill the roots of trees.            Nitrous oxide or â€Å"laughing gas’ is a colorless gas with a sweet taste and odor that is used as an anesthetic in minor surgery that H2O is responsible for about 6 percent of the human contributes to greenhouse warming. Methane or â€Å"cow gas,†on the other hand, makes up about 18 percent of human contributions to greenhouse effect. Cattle, sheep, goats, and other cud-chewing animals give off methane, in burps and flatulence as they digest (Cairncross, 2002).            CFCs are estimated to account for 14 percent of global warming. Experts said that what is happening right now is not a matter of adding a few degrees to the average temperature of a community. A rise of this magnitude may cause life, for without the environment, creatures on earth cannot survive            Are we all aware of the extent of the damages brought about by modernization? Have we contributed to such environmental dilemma? What have we done to minimize such danger to our lives?            How can we take care of our environment? We must undertake measures to preserve our resources and minimize utilization of energy before it’s too late. Our fight against pollution is an initial step toward conserving our environmental resources and energy. We must all join hands for this common goal.            Furthermore, of all issues affecting humanity, climate change is the most pervasive and truly global, posing a very real and serious threat to our environment. Climate change is the alteration of the pattern of global climate that may be due to human activity that alters the composition of the atmosphere.            If present day emissions of greenhouse gases continue, it is estimated that the rate of increase in global mean temperatures will reach about 0.3o C per decade. This will mean a likely increase of 1o C above the present level by the year 2025, and 3o C before the end of the next century. Resolution            a.) Recycling and Reuse of Solid Wastes            Solid wastes are now viewed as a potential resource which must be recovered and reused whenever possible. Since disposal forest resources are rapidly being depleted, recycling solid wastes offer a solution to both.            Consider the element phosphorus. Mined from phosphate ores, it is manufactured into fertilizers. It enters the plant tissues and we obtain it when we eat plant as vegetable. This is later excreted and joins the sewage system. The sewage system sludge can be used directly as fertilizer or soil conditioner.            Used bottles can be used over and over again. Durable plastic containers can be saved for more household uses. Tires can be recapped and used again. Old clothing materials are used as kitchen towels and bags (see Environment Matters: Industry’s Guide to the Issues, the Challenges and the Solutions, 1999).            If the materials cannot be used over several times, then they can be shredded and converted into a new form. Old newspapers are repulped into new paper. Broken glasses are ground and manufactured into new ones. Tires are processed to raw rubber. Protein leftovers are manufactured into animal feeds.            b.) Conserving our Forests            Every now and then we receive alarming news about our forests being denuded. Big logging concessionaires indiscriminately cut down trees without undertaking reforestation measures. Without trees, the soil is loosened and rapid erosion occurs. As a result fertile topsoil is washed away, which makes growth of other forms of vegetation almost impossible. We suffer great loss of timber, wildlife, and other forest products. But the greatest danger is the occurrence of floods and global warming that cause losses of food, properties, and lives (Davidson, 1999). III. Conclusion            In conclusion,            of all issues affecting humanity, climate change is the most pervasive and truly global, posing a very real and serious threat to our environment. Climate change is the alteration of the pattern of global climate that may be due to human activity that alters the composition of the atmosphere.            I can personally say that as a young individual, I should do something about it before it is too late and must not only depend on our government. Global warming may affect my health, if not resolved, and may take my life at risk if nature starts to avenge of what people doing. I need to recycle and reuse my solid wastes and encourage everyone to conserve our forests by not cutting down trees without undertaking reforestation measures. In addition, burning of fuel must be avoided because it can contribute to the possibility of having a global warming. Â
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