Carbon Dioxide And The Effects Of Climate Change

Good morning members of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization. My name is Frances Cheng, a student studying environmental science at UC Berkeley, and today I will discuss the appropriate solutions to address climate change. The complexity of this dire issue requires a closer investigation of the interactions between the biotic and abiotic worlds. Popular media heavily emphasizes human actions as the cause

Climate change has affected us in many ways, but it was even more influential on organisms and their community. The Earth is gradually heating and we are left to deal with the consequences. Homes are being destroyed, organisms are dying, and resources are running low. Since 1880, Our Earth’s temperature had increased by about 0.8 degrees Celsius. Climate change is affecting the Earth and scientists say that one more degree will greatly affect people from all over the world. There are many consequences of climate change and each one has a great impact on all of us, but organisms’ homes are being destroyed and thousands of species are dying out. These organisms are imperative to our world and how it functions.

Global warming has become an undisputed fact about our current livelihoods; our planet is warming up and we are definitely part of the problem. However, this isn’t the only environmental problem that we should be concerned about. All across the world,

“Scientists’ overwhelming conclusion is that climate change is happening and human activity is the primary culprit,” (“Climate Change”). The world we live in is falling apart more and more every day. Pollution; Global Warming; Climate Change; These are all problems that caused by people who have come forward in recent years, one of the biggest issues is climate change. The United States government needs to take aggressive steps to combat climate change because scientist have warned that if the climate changing progresses at its current rate, it could have disastrous consequences for life on Earth. Data shows that climate change is linked to rising sea levels, droughts, an increase in the risk of extinction of many species, and the increase in severe storms. With all the issues that are connected to climate change we are not doing enough to try to counteract the lasting effects it has on our environment.

Damon Matthews, a professor in Concordia University’s Department of Geography, found a direct connection between carbon dioxide and global warming. Matthew’s studies show that same global temperature increase, regardless of when or over what period of time the emission occurs. The effect of adding more carbon dioxide is predicted in the theory of greenhouse gases. Swedish scientist, Syante Arrhenius, first proposed the theory in 1896, based on earlier work by Fourier and Tyndall. At the same time, many scientists have reached the same conclusion. If we increase the amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, the Earth’s temperature will increase. Energy is absorbed from the sun in the form of visible light and ultraviolet radiation. The earth then releases some of this energy as infrared radiation. Greenhouse gases in the atmosphere captures some of this heat, then re-emit it in all directions. During this process, carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases keep the Earth’s surface 33 degree Celsius warmer than it would be without them. According to an ongoing temperature analysis conducted by a scientist at NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS), the average global temperature on Earth has increased by about 0.8 degree Celsius. Since 1975, two-thirds of the warming has occurred at a rate of roughly 0.15-0.20 degree Celsius per decade.

The greatest social antagonism we as a living, loving, thinking species are currently facing--global climate change--is continuing to cause drastic alterations to our planet’s ecology. California’s already four-year-long drought is worsening by 27% as a result of higher temperatures, which are causing more moisture to evaporate from plants and soil, reports a recent study in the journal named Geophysical Research Letters.

Shifts in temperature and precipitation will be a shock to fragile ecosystems which depend on specific climatic conditions. Many species will be unable to adapt as fast as their environment changes and face sharply reduced numbers or extinction. Scientists estimate that a warming of just 2 degree will put as many as 30% of the world's species at risk of extinction. Plants and animals aren’t the only ones feeling the pressure of changing ecosystems. Many regions will face severe water shortages in a warmer world, creating the potential for conflict. It is believed that the genocide in Sudan’s Darfur region is at least in part a response to water shortages resulting from global warming.

As life scatters for its survival in a new world devoid of anything living, human extinction is soon to be imminent. The once lush Earth will either dry up or bury by immense snowfall; therefore, turning these places inhabitable by life. Don't fret, though. They are only predictions of what will happen in the near future so you can worry later. Climate change is arguably one of the most important threats that endanger life on Earth. This was the concern covered in my nonfiction reading, Six Degrees: Our Future On A Hotter Planet, by Mark Lynas. The increased use of fossil fuel and continue industrialization have caused many of the problems we faced in the 21st century in the form of Global Warming. It has created raging storms, drought, famine, and fluctuating temperatures across the globe. Although this is not a problem I face personally, it might be problems in my lifetime in terms of mounting air conditioning bill and lacking any water. Unfortunately, plants and animals are incapable of quick adaptation like us humans, and they are prime targets for climate change. By hurting the plants, we are decrementing our chance of cleansing the plagued atmosphere created by us. We are damaging the

“Climate change is a terrible problem, and it absolutely needs to be solved. It deserves to be a huge priority,” genius businessman and billionaire Bill Gates, once said (Brainy Quote). Although many doubt the severity and even possibility of climate change, there is no evidence contradicting the fact that the national average temperature has increased by more than 1.4 degrees over the last century (EPA). Additionally, record-breaking temperatures appear yearly, and the weather has become much more drastic and tumultuous in all regions across the globe. Sadly, the land is not the only part of Earth experiencing these changes. The planet’s oceans and glaciers are experiencing changes as well. For example, ice caps are melting, sea levels are

Thesis: According to National Geographic Average temperatures have climbed 1.4 degrees Fahrenheit around the world since 1880 and by 2050, rising temperatures could send more than a million of Earth's land-dwelling plants and animals down the road to extinction.

The IPCC Status Report on Climate Change Summary for Policymakers is an assessment of the current scientific understanding of the impacts of climate

The world continuously faces a variety of threats every day, from natural disasters to terrorist, but one threat that society predominately contributes to all on their own, is climate change. There are many feasible explanations for the global threat of climate change. These explanations include but are not limited to, the act of deforestation to the rainforest and other trees, green house gas emissions, and sulfate aerosol, which cause poor air quality.

Climate change is a growing concern in today’s world. We often hear about worldwide temperature rises, and how they are caused by pollution. We are warned about some of the potentially catastrophic consequences of rising temperatures in the future. However, climate change has already begun to occur. (NASA, “Climate Change Effects: The consequences of Climate Change”). Therefore, there is significantly more talk about solutions to climate change. These solutions will reduce the causes of climate change, and also prevent any future damage or destruction caused by climate change. However, we must first understand how climate change is caused, and how it affects the Earth, in order to see how these solutions will help solve it.

Climate change is one of the major issues surfacing earth over the past century. The earth’s temperature has increased over the years leading to detrimental effects on the economic and life sources of people, especially that of agricultural production and livestock. The Merriam-Webster online dictionary (2014), defined climate change as a change in global climate patterns apparent from the mid late 20th century. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, IPCC, (2007) predicts that by 2100 the increase in global average surface temperature may be between 1.8° C and 4.0° C. With increases of 1.5° C to 2.5° C, approximately 20 to 30 percent of plant and animal species are expected to be at risk of extinction. Moreover, the IPCC (2007)

Climate change otherwise known as global warming has been an ongoing issue for decades. Beginning in the 19th century, climate change has increasingly affected Earth and its atmosphere. Rising levels of carbon dioxide are warming the Earth’s atmosphere, causing rising sea-levels, melting snow and ice, extreme fires and droughts, and intense rainfall and floods. Climate change has and will continue to affect food production, availability of water, and can add to many health risks in humans and animals. In fact, in an article by Justin Gillis titled, “Scientists Warn of Perilous Climate Shift Within Decades, Not Centuries” he focuses on a paper written by a former NASA climate scientist, James E. Hansen, explaining the effects of climate change on Earth today. Although many believe Hansen’s theories in the paper are quite far-fetched, the author mentions, “Despite any reservations they might have about the new paper, virtually all climate scientists agree with Dr. Hansen’s group that society is not moving fast enough to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases, posing grave risks” (Gillis). Gillis validates the fact that climate change has been rapidly expanding throughout Earth and society has not been able to reduce it fast enough. Many negative risks are being posed and will continue to mount if the issue of climate change is not taken seriously. Although climate change negatively affects nearly all aspects of Earth, it poses a big