In our world today, one of the
most pressing scientific controversies that our generation must confront is the
warming of our atmosphere, more commonly referred to as climate change or global
warming. Politicians continue to argue about the future effects of global warming
and whether humans are really to blame, but the general consensus in the
scientific world is that global warming is indeed happening, and that humans
are playing a large role in this change. Some facts that are very certain about
the change so far include a 2 degree Fahrenheit increase in average temperature
in the United States over the past 50 years, as well as a 5% increase in
precipitation. Also, the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is at its
highest level in the past 650,000 years and has increased by 11% since 1950.
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Graph of correlation between temperature and CO2, http://zfacts.com/metaPage/lib/zFacts-CO2-Temp.gif
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A much more uncertain fact from
the EPA is that it is not too late to have a significant impact on future
climate change and its effects on us. While the models would indicate this to
be true, we cannot know this with complete certainty as the future is a very
uncertain thing. On top of that, the models have very large error ranges when
predicting future effects of climate change, so stating that we can have a “significant”
impact may be a little too ambitious at this point in time. On the other hand,
it is much more likely that if we implement regulations now, as opposed to
doing nothing, we can have some type of impact on how severe the effects of a
warmer earth will be.
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| Model predictions of possible temperature rise, credit for this picture goes to Professor Perry Samson |
In my opinion, I think that they
key to dealing with this problem is being able to adapt. While ideas like stopping
our carbon dioxide pollution and reducing the population of the earth would
surely help, these ideas are not very feasible. To help our future generations,
we need to begin taking small steps now, like taxing carbon emissions and
planting more trees, to ensure that we limit the magnitude of possible negative
consequences. Lastly, I believe that as we move forward, we need to consider
other forms of adaptation, such as building storm surge walls, starting
agriculture in new areas, or even simply moving further inland to avoid rising
sea levels. Although we never know how the future will turn out, we need to
address climate change with the belief that our earth is going to continue to
get hotter, because if we don’t, it could cost the human race dearly in the
near future.
Sources:
Andrew,
ReplyDeleteI really like your post! I especially like when you said, "on top of that, the models have very large error ranges when predicting future effects of climate change, so stating that we can have a “significant” impact may be a little too ambitious at this point in time". I have never thought of this before! It is so interesting that the models may even be misleading since we cannot predict the future. Also, I do agree that it is imperative to teach the public to take baby steps. We often become too overwhelmed when we are told to take drastic measures so informing the public of how to do this slowly yet efficiently is a great solution. I also agree that it is important to build energy-efficient buildings. The more of these buildings that become available, the more people will be able to do live in these homes.
Check out these energy-efficient homes: http://energy.gov/energysaver/articles/ultra-efficient-home-design
http://home.howstuffworks.com/home-improvement/construction/green/10-cutting-edge-building-materials.htm
Again,
GREAT POST!
Interesting post Andrew. I really appreciate the fact that you point out how we need to start taking smaller steps now in order to really start to make a change. On top of beginning to make subtle changes to reduce carbon emissions as you mentioned, I feel it is also essential that we begin drawing back on political moves that encourage extended use of oil and similar natural resources. The last few years, especially in the heat of elections, have seen a lot of talk about pipelines and expanded drilling and not as much rhetoric on alternative options. Generally this issue seems to fall right on party lines, but I do not really understand why. Green technology creates jobs, gives us cleaner air, and can actually help us develop some pretty cool stuff. For some of the top current green technologies visit the site below.
ReplyDeletehttp://content.time.com/time/specials/packages/0,28757,2030137,00.html
I completely agree Matt, we really need to start working on alternative ways to fuel our energy needs. We simply are going to run out of oil in the near future, and prices are going to skyrocket. Green technologies can lead us to a cleaner AND cooler atmosphere, which is something we desperately need right now.
ReplyDeleteI agree, which is why we are moving to alternative energy now such as solar, wind as natural gas for example. I believe natural gas will be the next future fuel because of the low carbon exhaust and its cheap price. Hopefully the government can give enough subsidy for companies to build CNG cars and together we can solve this problem!
ReplyDelete