Is global warming a real threat?
By Mulu Johnson(Me)
There is a bit of controversy over the statement that global warming is being caused by humans and not a natural occurring situation. Global warming is really happening, and it is nowhere near natural.
Have you ever found yourself asking if global warming is caused by humans? Well, the answer is yes. Since the industrial revolution, carbon emissions have increased and so have global temperatures. You could just as easily ask yourself, “Couldn’t this be a coincidence? Wouldn’t this warming have occurred anyway?” Well, it is possible, but it’s very very very unlikely. Human activities like the burning of fossil fuels create more greenhouse gases that build up in the atmosphere. The greenhouse effect is where the radiation from a planet's atmosphere heats up the planet's surface to a temperature higher than what it would be without its atmosphere. If an atmosphere holds active gases (greenhouse gases) the atmosphere will shoot energy in all directions. Some of this radiation is directed towards the surface, warming it. The strength of the greenhouse effect, will solely rely on the atmosphere's temperature and on the amount of greenhouse gases that the atmosphere contains.
The fossil fuels such as oil, coal, and natural gas are loaded with carbon, and when burned, emit lots of carbon dioxide which is bad. Just one gallon of gasoline when burned, will produce 19 pounds of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.
In the past, before the industrial revolution, our planet’s climate was affected by natural causes not related to human activities. Naturally, global warming has increased or decreased based on the difference in the amount of sunlight hitting the Earth which changes the amount of solar energy the Earth is receiving. These instances of natural causes are still in effect today, but their effects are too small or occur too slowly to have the drastic effect on climate change that we are seeing today. Right now, you are probably thinking that the Earth and the atmosphere are so big that humans could not change it, right? Yes, we can. The United States, along with many other countries, are contributing to global warming. China has a population of 1.3 Billion people and emits more carbon dioxide than the US and Canada combined. The amount that the Chinese emit is up 171% since 2000. India, on the other hand, has a population of 1.2 Billion people and is the 3rd biggest contributor after the US and China.
We don't have much time before the effects of global warming are permanent. On the other hand, there are many ways to reduce C02 levels in our atmosphere. The most effective way of reducing C02 levels, in my personal opinion, is the carbon tax. A carbon tax is a fee for making users of fossil fuels pay for climate damage their fuel imposes by releasing carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Not many people like fees, but there is an upside to a carbon tax. On a carbon tax, the money that is made off the tax goes back to the people. This means that people will get paid if they do not use fossil fuels. For example: let’s say Nick walks or bikes to work instead of driving or taking city transportation. If the carbon tax was in effect, he would be paid to walk or bike to work. On the contrary, let’s say Nick does not walk or bike to work; he uses his car which needs a lot of gas to run or he uses city transportation which would use a lot more than his car. Nick would be taxed for using his car or city transportation to get to work.
Global warming is a serious issue. If we don't find out a way to either stop or reduce the carbon emissions by a significant amount, then we may end up as a thing of the past. When making decisions regarding global warming, we need to be decisive and fast before the choice of how to deal with global warming is decided for us. I would rather avoid mankind be wiped out because of a fixable problem that we created. Wouldn’t you?
Bibliography:
http://www.conserve-energy-future.com
https://climate.nasa.gov/evidence/
http://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/climate-change-2/?scrlybrkr=e9dafab0
http://www.nwf.org/wildlife/threats-to-wildlife/global-warming/global-warming-is-human-caused.aspx
http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Features/GlobalWarming/page4.php
https://nnsa.energy.gov/sites/default/files/nnsa/08-14-multiplefiles/DOE%202012.pdf --------For the 1 pound of gasoline to 19 pounds of co2
Congratulations @cosmic.wonder! You received a personal award!
You can view your badges on your Steem Board and compare to others on the Steem Ranking
Vote for @Steemitboard as a witness to get one more award and increased upvotes!
Well described