Serious Threat From 'Global Warming'
Carbon dioxide levels today are nearly 30% more than they were prior to the industrial revolution. What is truly unprecedented about current carbon dioxide levels is the speed in which they have risen. In the millions of years of known geological history, the Earth has never experienced such a rapid rise. There is no doubt that we have caused this change to the atmosphere from burning fossil fuels.
And the planet is getting hotter. Although local temperatures do fluctuate naturally, the average global temperature over the past 50 years has increased at the fastest rate in recorded history. And experts think the trend is accelerating: the three hottest years on record have all occurred since 1998. Scientists say that unless we curb global warming emissions, average temperatures could be 3 to 9 degrees higher by the end of the century.
Global warming is already causing damage. In 2003, extreme heat waves caused more than 20,000 deaths in Europe and more than 1,500 deaths in India. And in what scientists regard as an alarming sign of events to come, the area of the Arctic's perennial polar ice cap is declining at the rate of 9% every decade.
In the U.S.A. in 2002, Colorado, Arizona and Oregon endured their worst wildfire seasons ever. In the same year drought created severe dust storms in Montana, Colorado and Kansas, and floods caused extensive damage in Texas, Montana and North Dakota. Since the early 1950s snow accumulation has declined 60% and winter seasons have shortened in some areas of the Cascade Range in Oregon and Washington.
"An increasing body of observations gives a collective picture of a warming world and other changes in the climate system." - Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), 2001
What causes global warming? Carbon dioxide and other air pollution that is collecting in the atmosphere like a thickening blanket, trapping the sun's heat and causing the planet to warm up. Aeroplanes - primarily U.S. planes burning high-octane oil - are the largest source of pollution. Coal-burning power-plants are the second largest source of carbon dioxide pollution - they produce 2.5 billion tons every year. Cars, the third largest source, create nearly 1.5 billion tons of Co2 annually.
Manifestations of global warming include
- Heat waves
and periods of unusually warm weather. Severe droughts causing dramatic
water shortages.
Arctic and Antarctic warming, melting glaciers, raising the sea-level and causing coastal flooding. Many areas, and some entire countries, will disappear underwater.
Massive tidal waves like the tsunami of Boxing Day 2004 which devastated areas around the Indian Ocean causing the loss of over 150,000 lives.
Incidence of many diseases will surge as the earth’s atmosphere heats up.
Forests, farms and cities will face troublesome new pests and more mosquito-borne diseases.
Disruption of habitats such as coral reefs and alpine meadows could drive many plant and animal species to extinction, with knock-on ecosystem effects.
And as the Arctic warms, huge amounts of methane now frozen under the ocean and land could escape into the air. Methane is a greenhouse gas that traps heat in the atmosphere and these added emissions could cause the Earth to warm even faster than expected. Parts of the Antarctic ice sheet rest precariously on the sea floor and, as the sea warms, the ice could become destabilised, break up, and melt. Sea level would rise even faster than currently predicted.
Warmer water temperatures will lead to changes in the course of major ocean currents. Their paths determine the distribution of ocean temperatures and nutrients that sustain marine life. If the currents were to change direction, entire marine ecosystems could be disrupted.
Climate change is with us now. A decade ago, it was conjecture. Now the future unfolds before our eyes.
Canada's Inuit peoples see this happening in disappearing Arctic ice and permafrost. The shantytown dwellers of Latin America and Southern Asia see it in lethal storms and floods. Europeans see it in disappearing glaciers, forest fires and fatal heat waves. Scientists see it in tree rings, ancient coral and bubbles trapped in ice cores. These reveal that the world has not been as warm as it is now for a millennium or more. The three warmest years on record have all occurred since 1998; 19 of the warmest 20 since 1980. And Earth has probably never warmed as fast as in the past 30 years - a period when natural influences on global temperatures, such as solar cycles and volcanoes should have cooled us down.
It
is happening now
Today
few scientists doubt the atmosphere is warming. Most also agree that
the rate of change is accelerating and that the consequences of this temperature
change could become increasingly disruptive. Regions suitable for farming
will shift. Weather patterns should also become more erratic and storms
more severe.
Yet less familiar effects could be equally detrimental. Computer models
predict that global warming, and the climate changes it induces, will expand
the incidence and distribution of many serious medical disorders. Disturbingly,
these forecasts seem to be coming true.
Global warming is a complex phenomenon, and its full-scale impacts are
hard to predict far in advance. But each year scientists learn more about
how global warming is affecting the planet, and most agree that dire consequences
are likely to occur if current trends continue.
Researchers - even the recalcitrant U.S. Defence Department - have investigated
the possibility of abrupt climate change, in which gradual global warming
triggers a sudden shift in the earth's climate, causing parts of the world
to dramatically heat up or cool down in the span of a few years. They know
that global warming could make large areas of the world uninhabitable and
cause massive food and water shortages, sparking widespread migrations
and war.
Many of global warming's effects are already being observed and felt. And
the idea that such extreme change is possible underscores the urgent need
to start cutting pollution right now.
What country is the largest source of global warming pollution?
Without doubt the United States. Though Americans make up just 4% of the
world's population, they produce 25% of the carbon dioxide pollution from
fossil-fuel burning - by far the largest share of any country. In fact,
the United States emits more carbon dioxide than China, India, and Japan
combined so clearly America has a great responsibility towards helping
solve the problem. And as a developer of new technologies, they are well
positioned to do so because they already have the know-how.
What
can we do?
Here's
the good news: Technologies exist today to make cars that run cleaner and
burn less gas, modernise power plants and generate electricity from non-polluting
sources, and cut our electricity use through energy efficiency.
The challenge is to be sure these solutions are implemented before the
point of no return.
Is it possible to cut power plant pollution and still have enough electricity? Yes it is. But first we must use more efficient appliances and equipment in our
homes and offices to reduce our electricity needs. We must also phase out the decades-old, coal-burning power-plants that generate most of our electricity and replace them with 'cleaner' plants.
We need to put existing technologies for building cleaner cars and more
modern electricity generators into more widespread use. We can increase our
use of renewable energy sources such as wind and sun and geo-thermal. And
we can manufacture more efficient appliances to conserve energy. Stricter
efficiency requirements for electrical appliances will help hold back pollution.
One example is the 30% tighter standard now in place for home central air
conditioners and heat pumps.
Solutions to global warming are available to us today and it's time we
put them to use. These solutions will reduce the amount of heat-trapping
gases that we emit into the atmosphere. Among the solutions are ways of
reducing the amount of fossil fuels we use to power our vehicles and generate
our electricity, and protecting threatened forests, which store carbon
in their biomass.
There are many simple steps you can take right now to cut global warming
pollution. Make conserving energy a part of your daily routine. Each time
you choose a compact fluorescent lampbulb over an incandescent bulb, for
example, you'll lower your energy bill and keep nearly 700 pounds of carbon
dioxide out of the air over the bulb's lifetime. By opting for a refrigerator
with the Energy Star label - indicating it uses at least 15% less energy
than the norm - over a less energy-efficient model, you can reduce carbon
dioxide pollution by nearly a ton.
Above all, send a message to the American president - because, overall,
the U.S. is the world's biggest polluter - urging him to get serious about
stopping his country's global warming activities.
Alternative
Energy Sources
Do high energy costs have
you down? Do you feel trapped by the big oil companies? Do you need another
source for your energy? If so, here are some alternatives to petroleum
energy sources.
Wind Energy - http://www.AWEA.org.
American Wind Energy Association is the official American wind energy website.
There is a lot of good information here if you look hard enough. Try the
Factsheets and FAQ/Tutorial links on the right side column.
Solar Energy - http://www.solarelectricpower.org.
This is the Solar Electric Power Association's website. A couple of things
to check out on this website is a solar video on the left side called Solar
Interactive and a link to FindSolar.com which gives you an idea of how
much a solar system would cost (I found out that it would cost me twice
as much for solar energy).
Ethanol - http://www.E85Fuel.com.
Ethanol is alcohol which is made from grain, like corn (a renewable fuel
source). Most gas stations carry E10 which is regular gasoline with 10%
ethanol in it and can be used in almost all cars. E85 is gasoline made
up of 85% ethanol and can only be used in specially designed cars. 9 car
manufacturers make E85 compatible cars and more are sure to come in the
future. This website tells about E85. Check out the links under E85 101
on the left side. Find out if your car is E85 compatible and where E85
is sold in your area.
Biodiesel - http://www.Biodiesel.org.
BioDiesel is made totally from field crop oils (like, that from soybeans)
and can be used in almost all diesel engines with little or no modification.
Another way of making biodiesel is by using cooking oil from restaurants
that normally would dump the oil in landfills (for more information go
to www.biodiesel.com). It is specially processed so that it can be used
like diesel fuel. BioDiesel is safer to handle, less toxic, and more environment
friendly than petrodiesel.
Nuclear - http://www.World-Nuclear.org
- Nuclear energy has changed. It has become safe and has great potential
for the future. Check out this website for more information on nuclear
energy. Scroll down towards the bottom of the page for answers to controversial
questions, like, What About Chernobyl? What About Waste? What About Nuclear
Arms? and What About Renewables?
Hydrogen - http://www.eere.energy.gov/hydrogenandfuelcells/.
Hydrogen and fuel cells have the potential to solve several major challenges
facing us today: dependence on petroleum imports, poor air quality, and
greenhouse gas emissions. Even though this site is a US government site
telling about the Hydrogen, Fuel Cells & Infrastructure Technologies
Program, it is a good source for information about hydrogen fuel.
The above websites are good places to start in learning about alternative sources of energy, but there is much more. To learn more, try doing a search on the internet for the term that you are interested in. Who knows, you may just end up with a wind mill in your front lawn or solar cells on your roof.
With thanks and acknowledgements to Ray's Computer Tips
FURTHER
READING
National
Resources Defence Council (NRDC)