Carbon Monoxide
The growing momentum on global warming in the US
Introduction
The United States accounts for a quarter of human caused emissions of air trapping greenhouse gases like Carbon dioxide(CO2). These gases are from burning fossils such s gas, coal and oil, build up in te atmosphere which traps the heat causing global warming. Since prehistoric times , the concentration of carbon dioxide in the air has increased by approximately 30%. This has already caused harmful effects in the natural world. Warnings have been given in regard to total amount of warming exceed 2 degree C. This will cause severe harm to human and wildlife community. In order to ensure warming stay below this mark CO2 emissions has to be reduced in the most immediate fact.The US has a responsibility to play in reducing CO2 emission , this can be done by putting in place meaningful policies to guarantee near term reforms.
Global surface temperatures are likely to rise further in the 21st century. Many authors have written various books and articles on global warming; its cause, effects and the future of global warming. Some have written on the predicted impacts and how detrimental effects can be reduced. However, other authors, journalist and academicians have refuted the whole issue of global warming. Some say global warming does not is inexistent while others say that the earth is currently at cooling effects.This paper will present some of these sources that will describe whether the authors are in support of the issue of global warming and its existence or not.
Literature review
Every time an individual breathes, he risks inhaling thousands of chemicals that are all over the atmosphere. In this text, I look at the environmental hazard of air pollution and its consequences in the environment. I will also look at what is being done to address this hazard as well as the effect of politics on reducing their risk. All contaminants that find their way into the atmosphere are regarded as air pollution. These contaminants could be either gaseous or particles. Although sources of air pollution can be natural, human beings have been cited to be the main contributors to air pollution (Melas et al. 2003). Air pollution has become a global concern with its leading causes being nitrogen oxides, organic compounds as well as carbon monoxides. In the U.S alone, more than 90% of air pollution has been attributed to automobiles combusting fuels as well as power plants burning fossil fuel. Effects of air pollution to the environment are serious and have the capability of affecting future generations.
Their harmful effects on natural ecosystems can result on destruction of plant’s leaves hence killing plants as well as trees. Pollution of rivers has also resulted to the death of fish and other water creatures.With these adverse effects of air pollution in mind, policy makers, governments as well as scientists have come up with various approaches to try and remedy the situation. In the U.S this has lead to enactment of air pollution control laws that require industries to shift to production methods which will minimize emissions (Melas 2003). It should however be noted that a lot needs to be done to fully mitigate the effects of air pollution. Melas et al. (2003) argues that the answer to air pollution issues should not be left to the political leadership alone this is because once in office, political leadership tends to take a look warm approach to the issue of air pollution. It should be noted that to fully deal with the issue of air pollution, more innovative and responsive measures need to be taken. These efforts should not be left only to those countries experiencing the effects of air pollution. Rather it should be a joint effort bringing along various stakeholders.
The Issue of Global warming in the United States
Politicians have played a great role in determining the future of global warming in this country. As we can remember when Bush administration took over office, the leaders had constantly rejected taking a responsible e approach to mitigate climate change. In fact it preferred to increasingly support sectors in the economy that are high in carbon emissions with the hope that future technology will hand and address te problem of climate change. The Kyoto Protocol has many elements which designed and requested by US industry to promote clean air and energy bill policies that would extend the country’s reliance on coal. the US however rejected this protocol an d the administration continues supporting short term gains of big business at the expense of long term planet sustainability. This approach has since then placed the US at a position of ensuring that it participates in global action to see into climate change . many countries are now weighing on whether they should lower the re standards on environment al conservation or have the US behind and continue with meaningful emission reductions.
Controversial issues
Many have seen the need to support meaningful emission reduction as a way of mitigation the negative effects of global warming. Some have however refuted s the whole ideal of global warming claiming that it is a non existent phenomena. Studies have shown that there has been an increase in average temperature of the earth near surface of the ocean and air. This is condition that started in the mid 20th century and is still continuing. The increase of surface temperature has risen from 0.74 ± 0.18 ° C (1.33 ± 0.32 °F). There has been an increase in temperatures due to concentration of human activity fossils , and fuel burning like deforestation. Greenhouses gases have also contributed to this. The panel also concludes that isolations in natural phenomena such as vocalic eruptions and solar radiation have some cooling effect after 1950 (Hegel et.al, 2007). The IPCC repost defines climate change as a state that can be identified by the use of statistical tests, or changes in the variability or mean of its properties which may persist for an extended period of time such as through decades. These changes are caused by human activity and greenhouse gases.
Temperature increase is widespread all over the globe which is evident in the increase of sea level, decrease in ice and snow, unpredictable climate changes and increased in intense tropical cyclone activity in the North Atlantic since 1970. Various sectors like the agriculture, human health tourism energy, water sector, infrastructures and settlement zones are the crucial sectors for adaptations that will amends mitigation options( The IPCC Fourth Assessment Report ,2007). Evidence of global warming has been felt in the Amazon forest and the Gulf Stream. Other areas are wildlife, agriculture and the coastal region. The causes to this are mainly the changes caused by the human activities. However, efforts being made to solve the effects of global warming and ways which we can adopt the approaches (Maslin, M (2007, p 50-7). Scientist as have to interact with publics and political systems to address s the issue of global warming. The nature of modern scientific work is to confront difficult questions concerning the earth surface since global warming as a complex topic that threatens human survival (Spencer,2004, p 145).We are responsible to take an alternative to reduce and even eliminate the predicted effects that global warming has to the rising water level, marine life, and on desertification.
There is a growing danger as we continuously dump ninety million tons every twenty four hours in to the air that poses global warming pollution various regions of the world are now experiencing different temperatures that make it had to predict the weather. The heavy snowballs that occur in winter months is no longer a predictable occurrence yet people still insist that global warming is a myth (Gore, 2010 p 1). Global warming has increased the rate of evaporation from the oceans leading to heavy downfall as both snow and rain, for example what is experienced in the Northeastern region of the United States. However, some have refuted this whole idea of climate change saying that the forecasters of climate are out there to scare and frighten people in the society. They say that the scientific methods that have been used to predict climatic change have been unrealistic and crude, for example in the case of Mt Kilimanjaro according to Botkin he acknowledges that it is melting away but not because of global warming. The melting pattern of the mountain according to him is due to change of air temperature around this mountain.
Conclusion
This shows the different notion of Botkin towards the realty and existence ofGlobal warming which is a skeptical way of persevering environmental reality. The last two materials by Botkin and Ball will assist in the research for they refute the first three articles. The researchers will therefore deal with the controversy that exists on the environmental topic- global warming.)
Reference
Hegerl, G .et. Al (2007). Understanding and Attributing Climate Change. Retrieved from.
http://www.ipcc-wg1.unibe.ch/
On May 21, 2010
WSJ opinions archive (2008) Global warming delusions by Daniel Botkin. Retrieved
from
http://www.opinionjournal.com/
On May 21, 2010
Ball, T (2007) GLOBAL warming: the cold, hard facts, Canada press, retrieved from
http://www.canadafreepress.com/2007/global-warming020507.htm
On May 21, 2010.
New York Times (2010) we can’t wish away climate change by Al Gore. Retrieved from
http://www.nytimes.com/
On 31st March 2010
Liverman, D.M. (2008) conventions of climate change: the construction of danger and
the dispassion of the atmosphere, p 12–14. Retrieved from
http://www.eci.ox.ac.uk/~dliverma/CV/JHGE07-17.pdf.
On May 21, 2010
Maslin, M (2007) Global warming: causes, effects and the future, world life library,
Voyageur Press, p 50- 72.
Spencer R (2004) the discovery of global warming, Harvard University press, p145
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