Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Global Warming
Global Warming
Three people
were killed in a
snow avalanche
in 2008 – in
Lebanon, Middle The Antarctic ice cap has
East. 29 million cubic kilometres
of ice. If these ice sheets
melted, the world’s oceans
The Marshall Islands would rise by 60 to 65
in the Pacific Ocean
metres (200 - 210ft) –
are in danger of being
completely submerged everywhere.
by the next century
due to rising sea
levels.
Heavy snowfall blanketed the desert
region of the United Arab Emirates
Scientists predict that the (UAE), while temperatures dipped to -5
Himalayan glaciers will be gone degrees on 30 December 2004.
in 40 years. 1.3 billion people's Middle-Eastern men in long white
robes were seen throwing snowballs
water supply depends on rivers
at one another!
originating from those glaciers! Deforestation is responsible for the
loss of 50,000 species of plant,
animal and insect lives per year.
Global warming is no longer something we can take lightly. It is damaging our
environment the way malignant cancer destroys bodily tissue; slowly and silently,
unnoticed until it is too late. Every second, drastic and possibly irreversible changes are
taking place that will one day devastate our planet and the comfortable lives we once
knew. Read on to know more about the seriousness of this phenomenon.
‘All across the world, in every kind of environment and region known to man,
increasingly dangerous weather patterns and devastating storms are abruptly putting
an end to the long-running debate over whether or not climate change is real. Not
only is it real, it's here, and its effects are giving rise to a frighteningly new global
phenomenon: the man-made natural disaste’. - Barack Obama
Volcano Eruptions
Human Causes
For more than 100 years, the US has been the world’s biggest carbon emitter: producing 40% of the global
total in 1990. The Industrial Revolution in the 19th century saw the large-scale use of fossil fuels for
industrial activities. These industries created jobs and over the years, people moved from rural areas to the
cities. This trend is continuing even today. More and more land that was covered with vegetation has been
cleared to make way for houses. Natural resources are being used extensively for construction, industries,
transport, and consumption. Consumerism (our increasing want for material things) has increased by leaps
and bounds, creating mountains of waste. Also, our population has increased to an incredible extent.
All this has contributed to a rise in greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Fossil fuels such as oil, coal and natural
gas supply most of the energy needed to run vehicles, generate
electricity for industries, households, etc. The energy sector is
responsible for about ¾ of the carbon dioxide emissions, 1/5 of the
methane emissions and a large quantity of nitrous oxide. It also
produces nitrogen oxides (NOx) and carbon monoxide (CO) which are
not greenhouse gases but do have an influence on the chemical cycles in
the atmosphere that produce or destroy greenhouse gases.
Greenhouse Gases Carbon dioxide is the most important greenhouse gas dumps, and during the process
in the atmosphere. Changes in land use pattern, deforestation, land clearing, of oil drilling, coal mining and
agriculture, and other activities have all led to a rise in the emission of also from leaking gas pipelines
carbon dioxide. (due to accidents and poor
maintenance of sites).
Methane is another significant
greenhouse gas in the atmosphere. A large amount of nitrous oxide
About ¼ of all methane emissions emission has been attributed to
are said to come from fertilizer application.
domesticated animals. It is also Contributions are also made by
released from rice or paddy fields leguminous plants, such as
that are flooded during the sowing beans that add nitrogen to the
and maturing periods. As well as soil.
from landfills and other waste
All of us in our daily lives contribute our bit to this change in the climate. Give these points a
good, serious thought:
Electricity is the main source of power in urban areas. All our gadgets run on electricity
generated mainly from thermal power plants. These thermal power plants are run on fossil
fuels (mostly coal) and are responsible for the emission of huge amounts of greenhouse
gases and other pollutants.
Cars, buses, and trucks are the principal ways by which goods and people are transported
in most of our cities. These are run mainly on petrol or diesel, both fossil fuels.
We generate large quantities of waste in the form of plastics that remain in the
environment for many years and cause damage.
We use a huge quantity of paper in our work at schools and in offices. Have we ever
thought about the number of trees that we use in a day?
Timber is used in large quantities for construction of houses, which means that large
areas of forest have to be cut down.
A Final Word
Every individual in this world has a responsibility towards our planet and to fight global
warming. The Earth is our home, and will be for our children and generations to come. Let’s
ensure that they will be assured of a better future than the possible disaster that awaits
them.You can play your part to reduce global warming! Please practice the following in your
daily life:
Change a light bulb You can save 1,200 pounds of atmosphere, including the
Replacing one regular light bulb carbon dioxide if you cut down ozone-damaging CFC.
with a compact fluorescent light your garbage by 10%.
bulb will save 150 pounds of Practise the 3R’s: reduce,
carbon dioxide a year. Plant a tree reuse and recycle Separate
your trash/refuse by material
Drive less type (i.e. glass, plastics, paper)
Walk, bike, carpool or take mass and recycle what you can.
transit more often. You’ll save
one pound of carbon dioxide for
every mile you don’t drive!
For more useful information
Recycle more about global warming, please
You can save 2,400 pounds of log on to these websites:
carbon dioxide per year by
recycling just half of your 1. http://www.worldviewof
household waste. globalwarming.org/
2. http://www.climatehotma
Check your tires p.org
Keeping your tires inflated 3. http://www.unfoundation
properly can improve gas .org/
mileage by more than 3%. Every A single tree will absorb one ton 4. http://www.350.org/
gallon of gasoline saved keeps of carbon dioxide over its
20 pounds of carbon dioxide out lifetime.
of the atmosphere!
Turn off electronic devices
Use less hot water Simply turning off your
It takes a lot of energy to heat television, DVD player, stereo
water. Use less hot water by and computer when you’re not
talling a low-flow showerhead using
(350 pounds of CO2 saved per them will save you thousands of
year) and washing your clothes pounds of carbon dioxide a year.
in cold or warm water (500
pounds saved per year). Limit your use of aerosol
products, plastics and
Styrofoam
*Note: The UN Climate-
Avoid products with a lot of
Change Conference 2009 will
packaging Manufacturing these products
take place in Copenhagen from
causes the release of a lot of
December 7-18 2009.
harmful gases into the