These effects would be unfairly harsh on developing nations, who had little to do with creating the problem; this is one of the reasons that recent international talks in Copenhagen have stalled (WGW 2009). Not only would these countries not be able to develop as quickly and have healthier populations and more stable governments, but industrialized nations would also see negative economic impacts, making many wary of making any major transitions without a more certain analysis of the problem of global warming, and of a human cause behind it.
The Effects of Global Warming
Even if global warming isn't real, or if human emissions aren't behind it, the possible consequences and tangential downsides to the continued release of carbon dioxide and an increase in global warming warrant taking steps to find cleaner fuels and sources of energy. Warmer temperatures would lead directly to more frequent and more violent storms and hurricanes, as adding heat to the weather system adds both energy and moisture to it (NRCD 2009). The recent spate of especially violent hurricanes could be an early result of global warming, some scientists claim, and it is virtually undisputed that warmer overall temperatures would lead to more violent storms occurring more frequently (NRCD 2009).
Not only would existing weather grow more violent and more wet, but there could also be devastating changes to the Earth's overall weather patterns. The world's weather patterns are largely a product of the temperatures of the oceans and the surrounding air, and when these temperatures increase there could be large and somewhat unpredictable changes in these weather patterns (NRCD 2009). Some areas might actually become cooler than they are now, while temperatures would rise in others; lack of rainfall in one place or a sudden inundation in another could drastically change landscape and lead to the irreversible destruction of existing ecosystem (NRCD 2009). The weather isn't generally thought of as such a powerful force, but especially in the long-term it has the potential to completely reshape the world in which we live, and global warming has a formative effect on weather.
The rising ocean levels that are expected as a result of the melting polar ice caps are another way in which our world might be transformed by global warming (WGW 2009). Not only will this lead to the flooding of many islands and coastal areas decimating many ecosystems and large human populations, but this will also have an immediate effect on the weather of newly flooded regions (NRCD 2009). The increased flooding of islands and continents and the encroachment of the world's oceans will also mean that there is simply less land to go around, and resources will become scarcer (NRCD 2009). There are therefore very immediate physical threats and long-term political and social effects of global warming and its consequences, all of which must be fully analyzed and considered when deciding whether or not to act on the possibility of global warming.
Human beings, of course, will not be the only species affected by global warming. Many animals have already begun to shift the regions they inhabit, seemingly in response to global warming (Bryner 2006). As temperatures rise, ecosystems change, and even subtle changes can have large ripple effects. The shifting animal populations that have been noted in some regions have been correlated to global warming figures by computer models, suggesting that warming temperatures are the primary if not sole reason for certain habitat shifts (Bryner 2006). The warming would not only cause habitat shifts, but it could also cause the extinction of many species. Some simply would not be able to adjust to new temperatures and ecosystems, and others would lose in the fiercer battle for resources that would be the natural result of diminishing ecosystems and more crowded...
Global Warming: Fact Rather Than Fiction The focus of this paper is on global warming and its causes. In the introduction phase, we have given a brief overview of the problem alongside a brief look at the details of the problem itself. It is mentioned here that how much change has actually recorded in the previous decades and what the future might hold on for the planet if the trend keeps
In much of the nation, a warming of four degrees (F) could increase ozone concentrations by about 5%." As mentioned, increased pollution is one of the results of global warming; and this can also have an effect on human health. One of the health hazards is the increase of respiratory illness due to the connection between heat waves and air pollution. Another related factor is that it has been found that
Despite the harsh, cold winter, 2010 is likely to be the warmest year on record (Homer-Dixon 2010, p.1). But powerful special interest groups with an economic incentive to fight global warming legislation, such as cattlemen who raise methane-generating livestock or the oil and gas industry, may win out in the short-term, politically. Yet they cannot fight the facts. Due to global warming, the "Northern Hemisphere's jet streams… could alter
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Global Warming: Is it Really a Threat? Global warming has become a modern issue of considerable significance. It has been the subject of many debates, articles and conferences. Despite the amount of debate around the issue, there is still no clear conclusion. Yet the possible consequences that are attributed to the threat are highly concerning. As one report describes: The most recent projections of state-of-the-art computer models of the Earth's climate (GCMs)
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