Climate change can be solved once we are willing to adopt certain changes to our everyday lives. In our society, the burning of fossil fuels, deforestation, and the nations decaying infrastructure, are all reasons as to why climate change has become such a subject of great importance. If we are able to change these three parts of our society we can help the environment and slow down the gradual changes of our climates. The burning of fossil fuels has greatly harmed our environment and is a leading cause as to why climate change has become such a threat to our way of living. In May of 2013, the carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere reached 400 parts per million, an increase of more than 40 percent since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. This could cause the Arctic Ocean to be nearly ice-free during the summer by 2020(Overland and Wang, 2013). The problems associated with climate change are mainly due to the combustion of fossil fuels. It is difficult however to stop this problem. The solutions of being more energy efficient, and improving emissions-control technology, can help lessen the environmental damage done by fossil fuel use they ultimately only alleviate the pressure of increase of pollution and affluence(Delucchi, Jacobson 31). In the search for alternatives to fossil fuels, scientists and policy makers have focused on three options: nuclear power, energy from biomass; and a combination of wind, water, and solar power. Nuclear power, however, is much more costly and runs the risk of having it fall into the wrong hands where it could be turned into a weapon of mass destruction. The third option entails wind turbines, photovoltaic power plants and rooftop systems, concentrated solar thermal power plants,... ... middle of paper ... ...ay’s world. We as people will dictate whether we are able to help the environment or whether we let it continue to slide into a hopeless state. Works Cited Hardy, J. T. Climate Change: Causes, Effects, and Solutions. New York: J. Wiley, 2003. Print. Peters, Gretchen. "No Quick Solution to Deforestation in Lush Chiapas." Christian Science Monitor 14 Jan. 2002, World sec.: n. pag. Print. Thomson, Steve. "Saving B.C's Forests through the Trees." The Filipino Post 12-18 July 2012: 12. Print. Ardnt, Channing, Paul Chinowsky, Kenneth Strzepek, and James Thurlow. "Climate Change, Growth and Infrastructure Investment: The Case of Mozambique. ." Review of Development Economics (n.d.): n. pag. Print. Delucchi, Mark A., and Mark Z. Jacobson. "Meeting the World's Energy Needs with Wind, Water, and Solar Power." Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists (2013): 31-40. Web.
Since measurements began in 1958 -- and it can be assumed to have been the case since the industrial revolution -- emission of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere has risen steadily as a result of the burning of fossil fuels (Quay, pp 2344). Although there is much argument over the implications of increasing carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere, there are several points that almost all scientists would agree on: firstly, carbon dioxide acts to absorb radiated heat; if present in our atmosphere will do just that to some extent. Second, the concentration of carbon dioxide in our atmosphere is rising. Third, the temperature of the planet is rising - although the amount of this increase and the causes of this rise are subject to disagreement (Philander, pp 193).
Central Idea: Nuclear energy only contributes a small amount to the world’s electricity yet it has hazards and dangers that far out-way its benefits. There are many other alternative power producing sources that can produce energy more efficiently and more safely than nuclear power plants can.
Not only is nuclear power friendly to the environment, but it is almost always available, and many countries are starting to use it more. Renewable energy sources like solar and wind en...
In conclusion, it is critical to understand that current human activities are accelerating climate change and that the future human activities will affect their trajectories. Because fossil fuel based energy source produce a lot of heat trapping pollution, small changes to our daily activities will reduce human contribution and human behaviour. With these small changes children will be at risk to the exposure of atmospheric carbon dioxide produced by the use of fossil fuels.
Stanculescu, Alexander. "Overview Of Nuclear Energy: Present And Projected Use." AIP Conference Proceedings 1442.1 (2012): 112-123.Academic Search Premier. Web. 6 Dec. 2013.
Climate Change is an ongoing problem that continues to intensify as time goes on and not much is happening to change it. Material consumption and increasing populations are increasing the issue of climate change and ruining Earth’s ecosystems. Since the Earth’s population is growing and fast, people are using more energy and materials, which raises great concern. The human ecological footprint has grown so much over the past few years that it is almost irreversible if not changed quickly. Climate change is the most important threat to the Earth and many factors lead are to blame, fossil fuels, greenhouse gases, and carbon dioxide. It would although be ignorant to say that man has nothing to do with it, as the population increases, the need for natural resources, use of more fossil fuels, more waste is produced, the is more pollution which leads to the ozone depletion causing global warming and essentially climate change overall. Since man has the ability to cause such harm to the Earth, man should change their ways to reverse the damage.
One of the most compelling and difficult environmental problems society faces today is climate change. People do not realize how much the environment has changed for the worse in the last ten years, until they are told that the last two decades of the 20th century have been the hottest in the last 400 years, according to climate studies (Conserve Energy Future). Today, the carbon dioxide levels have reached 396.81 parts per million (ppm). “Carbon dioxide (CO2) has also increased over the last 100 years-- from about 300 ppm to 370 ppm. Interestingly, the majority of these additions have occurred in the last 50 years, when temperature increases have been the slowest” (geocraft).
Climate change is a major issue that is only going to get worse. Climate change is a change in global or regional climate patterns. It has become more apparent since the mid to late 20th century onwards and is attributed largely to the increased levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide produced by the use of fossil fuels. Climate change has been an important issue for decades that has effects on the environment and people of the world with the end result potentially being catastrophic. Although many believe that prolific use of fossil fuels is the direct cause of climate change, there are many more underlying causes including population expansion as well as irresponsible consumption of natural resources that have
Over the last two centuries, humanity has become increasingly reliant on fossil fuels. Over that time, the consequences of constantly burning fossil fuels have accumulated into a threat to industrialized cities. The burning of fossil fuels causes acid rain to shower on cities and ecosystems around the world, tormenting their inhabitants. The increasingly deadly pollution caused by the burning of fossil fuels has caused the deaths of many people around the world by causing respiratory problems. Not only has the pollution worsened, but the supply of fossil fuels is not limitless – as humanity’s reliance increases the supply decreases, and that is all the more reason to break humanity’s reliance on fossil fuels. Fossil fuels should be replaced with cleaner alternatives because fossil fuels cause environmental hazards, are non-renewable, and are detrimental to human health.
The first part of this essay discusses what the human species has done to deal with the problem of climate change. While some improvements have been made, the problem has not been addressed aggressively enough to stop the damage. What is amazing about this is the denial of so many people that problems exist. If they do realize the risks, they are simply not taking actions to contain the damage.
From the 1900’s, the Industrial Revolution saw the large-scale use of fossil fuels for industrial activities. Therefore, they created many jobs for the people. And many people moved from rural areas to cities, making the excessive cutting down of trees so as to create an area for settlement and area of construction of industries. Natural resources are being used extensively for construction, industries, transport, and consumption. All this has contributed to the rises of greenhouse gases such as methane and nitrous oxide in the atmosphere. Where as the industries operated by man and the vehicles used imply the use of fossil fuels. And the burning of fossil fuels causes the production of these harmful gases that lead to the depletion of the ozone layer. As the ozone layer is depleted the increase of global temperature known as global warming.
Throughout the years, climate change has become a topic that people are getting more concerned about as the years go by. Climate change has an effect on the temperature around the world which cause nature to change drastically. Cars, airplanes, coal and other man-made things are considered to enemies to climate change. Although it is a theory, other people think that climate change is something that is occurring naturally by nature. Mankind has been accused of causing different amounts of damage to the world in different ways. Humans ca/ sxsxxxxxxxxxxxssx;2nnot predict what nature has planned for us so we cannot jump to conclusions on the way nature works. Climate change could be affected by something on earth or may not, but it is yet to be
One of the most compelling arguments for the use of renewable energy is how many forms exist of it. Nuclear power, solar power, wind power, tidal power, hydroelectric power, pumped storage, wave power, geothermal power, biomass, and biogas are the most widely known renewable energy sources (Darvill, 2013). This large selection of fuels supports the idea of renewable fuels one day powering the entire planet. All the sources of energy have different niches and benefits. Solar energy is extremely ef...
The world that we live into today affords us the expectation that the flip a switch will turn the lights on. As populations increase and developing nations undergo dramatic economic growth, this energy demand will only continue to grow. The International Energy Agency (IEA) believes that “the world’s energy needs could be 50% higher in 2030 than they are today” (ElBaradei). Given this projected growth, it is necessary for world leaders must take action to secure the energy supply. Meaning that world leaders need to start seriously considering an alternative to non-renewable energy sources. “In 2012, the United States generated about 4,054 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity. About 68% of the electricity generated was from fossil fuel (coal, natural gas, and petroleum), with 37% attributed from coal” (U.S. Energy Information Administration). The fossil fuels that are used to supply over half of our country’s energy are in finite supply and are increasing in price to astronomical heights.
Fossil fuels are energy that is in the form of coal, oil, or natural gas that comes from organisms from millions of years ago. The cycle to create fossil fuels takes millions of years to form and is therefore considered a nonrenewable resource of energy. Fossil fuels have been the primary source of energy for man ever since the age of machines, but one of “the main problem[s] with fossil fuels is that there is a limited amount of them” (Problem with Fossil Fuel). As countries become more developed, like the United States, they too will become more thirsty and dependent for fossil fuels. “In 2004, America spent approximately $270 billion to fufill its oil need.” and “90% of all transportation is fueled by oil” (Nakaya 10). With the global rate of fossil fuels going up it is inevitable that they are going to run out, forcing countries to choose an alternative energy source. The other huge problem with dependence on fossil fuels is the effect that the emissions have on the climate. Fossil fuels are made of carbon chains and in order for the reaction...