Climate Change -- Cause and Mitigation
There are several ways to look at climate change because there are natural causes and there are also human-influenced causes for the global climate to change. This paper defines anthropogenic climate change and it defines natural climate change and the historic record of the earth's changing climate over the millennia. This paper also provides strategies for mitigating global climate change and speculates as to the possible stabilization of climate change vis-a-vis the business and economic fields.
What is Anthropogenic Climate Change?
The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines anthropogenic as "…relating to, or resulting from, the influence of human beings on nature"; the first use of this team was in 1923.
Meanwhile, the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research lists three ways in which the evidence points toward humans having influence over the rising temperatures on earth. The "…concentration of carbon dioxide (CO2) is rising," which is a proven fact based on empirical evidence ("direct measurement in the atmosphere dating back to the 1950s") (Rahmstorf, 2007). Scientists use data from ice core data of concentrations of CO2 that date back hundreds of thousands of years (at least 650,000 years) to point out that there have "never" been such high concentrations of CO2 -- "not even close to as high as it is at present" (Rahmstorf, 36).
Secondly, the amount of fossil fuel that has been burned is verifiable, and hence the amount of CO2 that has been "…injected directly into the atmosphere" is precisely known (Rahmstorf, 36). The observed increase in CO2 concentration over the past many decades is "…equal to 57% of our cumulative emissions," and the ocean and land biosphere "…have absorbed the remaining 43% of emissions from the atmosphere" (Rahmstorf, 36). The third part of Rahmstorf's chapter is that since carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas, doubling the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere will in fact "…warm the global climate in equilibrium by 3 degrees Centigrade plus or minus 1.5 degrees (Rahmstorf, 387).
What is Natural Climate Change?
Studies referenced by NASA show that "solar variability...
Global Warming: Cause and Mitigation There is a growing consensus among the scientific community that global warming is a reality that threatens the earth's climate in ways that will be devastating to mankind. Many analysts believe that action must be taken to mitigate the effects of global warming before it is too late to stop the process. This paper provides a discussion concerning natural and manmade sources of climate change, a
Global Warming Speech Ladies and gentlemen, issues pertaining to global warming have literally become part of our lives. Global warming is a topic that has elicited a lot of debate from the political cycles with aspiring presidential candidates, gubernatorial, and even senatorial aspirants making it their campaign gimmick. It has, in the same breath, become the subject of many scientific studies. Nevertheless, debates surrounding global warming have also been marred with
Switching to solar heating would make a profound change, for heating and hot water can be heated freely and cleanly from the sun. By switching to energy efficient heating, air-conditioning and refrigeration, the greatest power users, consumers could have a huge impact on emissions. Changing to hybrid, fuel-efficient cars, public transportation and walking, when feasible, would have a profound impact on human-created carbon emissions. Penalizing and rewarding consumers and
Every nation may have to formulate its own policies in a common effort at survival. In the face of uncertain policy trends on global warming, concerned sectors suggested five guidelines of policy to secure that survival. First, actions or decisions should be applied only in the near future so as to accommodate new knowledge on global warming still to be discovered. Second, reducing global warming will incur large costs
The concepts of "green houses," and "green jobs" are more and more utilized in everyday's conversation and the media has already made people aware of some of the benefits of using alternative sources of energy such as solar energy. The short and medium term benefits lie not only in the relatively short period of depreciation of such an investment, but also in an increase in the quality of life
Changing the climate of the earth will also impact living conditions for humanity. People will be forced to deal with the effects of living in a warmer environment, which may mean hotter temperatures and growth of mold and mildew, as well as deal with the issues surrounding home modification to adjust to the new climate variable. There may be a need for increased air conditioning; air conditioners require energy to
Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.
Get Started Now