Global warming Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Global warming - Essay Example (Nebel and Wright) As the industries produce different things, they burn fuel as a result of which pollution is created. The most common outcome of the burning of fuel is carbon dioxide. Carbon dioxide is one of the members of the green house gases which include water vapors, nitrous oxide and methane as well. These emissions of carbon dioxide raise the level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. The level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is measured in ppm (parts per million). Greg Craven book, â€Å"What’s the Worst that could happen?† illustrates the planet as a bath tub and shows carbon inflows and outflows. There, the safe level of carbon dioxide is 350 ppm which we have already crossed in 2009. Although the level of carbon dioxide was as low as 280 ppm before the industrial revolution but it then began to increase at an increasing rate and if we keep going like this, it will reach up to 900 ppm in 2100. The prime source of the dangerous carbon dioxide is burning of fossil fuels. Carbon dioxide emissions are measured in gigatons per year (gtc/yr). Although there are other sources as well which even more carbon dioxide but the emissions are cancelled some way or another, like the oceans emit 10 times more carbon than humans but they also absorb massive amounts of it. These green house gases, when present in the atmosphere, trap the heat coming from the sun which otherwise would have been reflected. This leads to a rise in the temperature of the planet and this rise in the temperature is called global warming. Global warming affects many people, plants and animals and those who are unable to tolerate this change die. Global warming nowadays has become a very big problem as it has many adverse effects on living things and the planet. (Craven) There are a lot of reasons to worry about the global warming; some of them are related to individual human beings and some are related collectively to all of us. First of all global warming is causing the snow levels at the northern hemisphere to fall as the temperature there is increasing as well and causing the ice to melt which causes the sea levels to rise. To begin with, the increase in sea level would only be an inch or two. Even a tiny climb in sea levels may well cause flooding troubles for low-lying coastal areas. On the other hand, if the West Antarctic Ice Sheet were to liquefy and fall down into the sea, it would thrust sea levels up 10 meters, and a lot of coastal areas would wholly fade away beneath the sea. According to IPCC, the sea levels rose about 17 centimeters in the 20th century. People may lose their homes and food sources as a result of these floods. (Strickland and Grabianowski) Global warming can also cause different diseases as the temperature becomes hotter it gives rise to the growth of some bacteria especially to those who cannot survive in colder climates like pathogens. In a study, authors examined how increasing temperatures already are letting insec ts and microorganisms overrun regions where they formerly were barred by ruthless recurring chills. They believed that mosquitoes are moving up mountainsides, spreading sickness amongst animals previously sheltered by temperature. They also discovered some pathogens reproduce more frequently in warmer temperatures, so there are comparatively more germs around, to cause infection. Richard S. Ostfeld, an environmental researcher at the