A very pressing topic that has for some time now gained prominence on various platforms throughout the world is the issue of global warming. Most campaigns these days are on the problem of global warming that the Earth has been exposed to since the inception of the industrial era.
Global warming is referred to as the increase in the atmospheric temperature of the Earth which is being brought about by the effects of the greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide and CFCs. The temperature of the Earth’s atmosphere is being caused to increase at a very alarming rate and this is being caused by the very activities of man that are aimed at making the execution of tasks like embarking on very long journeys very easy. Through the use of gas-powered machines like vehicles and airplanes, gases like CO2 are released into the atmosphere as the fuel is burnt to produce energy for the particular machine. Burning substances like fossil fuel to provide the needed energy for certain machines results in carbon dioxide and other harmful pollutants being emitted into the atmosphere. These harmful gases, when released into the atmosphere, punctures holes in the ozone layer allowing all the harmful ultraviolet rays from the sun to make direct contact with humans on the Earth. Puncturing of holes in the ozone layer is just a part of the effects of these harmful gases. The other part is that these gases also form a thin veil in the atmosphere and its main function is to let in heat from the sun whilst also preventing the heat from escaping from the surface of the Earth. This means that they trap the heat and by doing that the temperature of the Earth’s atmosphere rises to very high levels. This has led to the coining of the term ‘’global warming’’. It has been seen that with such uncontrolled release of harmful gases into the atmosphere a time will come when it will be very unbearable for living things to live on the Earth. Looking at the effects of global warming is something that really gives one the chance to see what this Earth will be like in years to come.
It should not be seen as if the whole world is looking on without doing anything as the activities of man leads the world to its doom. Various groups and individuals have all joined in the campaign aimed at restoring the Earth to a state that helps in sustaining the survival of all living things without any adverse effects. This has made it necessary for certain measures to be introduced to help curb the problem of global warming. Below are some of the measures;
Mitigation
This is the process of putting in place necessary measures to help reduce the severity of global warming. There are various ways through which climate mitigation can be achieved and these include the use of energy sources that emit very low quantities of CO2 and the insulation of buildings.
Adaptation
This simply refers to changing certain aspects in one’s life so as to become perfectly suited for that particular environment. There has been constant education on the need for man to change the way things are done so as to ensure that the damage on the environment is kept well under control. Some of the ways through which man has decided to adapt to the global warming issues include;
- The use of sources of energy that are known to emit very small amounts of carbon dioxide like the electricity and solar energy
- Planting of enough trees in order to increase the number of carbon sinks to use up the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere
- The use of energy efficiency methods like insulating buildings
All these are geared towards helping man to adapt to the recent global warming issues in order for the environment to be able to sustain living things for a very long time.
Climate engineering
This is also known as geo-engineering and it is seen as being an option to tackling the issue of global warming aside mitigation and adaptation. Climate engineering is the intervention purposely aimed at the climatic system of the Earth with the intention of helping to reduce the threat posed by global warming. Climate engineering can be achieved through two main ways and these are;
- Through the removal of carbon dioxide: This is putting in place measures like reforestation to help reduce the quantity of CO2 in the atmosphere
Solar radiation management: This is the process of causing the Earth to reduce solar radiation intake in order to reduce the impacts of global warming. This involves the use of measures like cool roofs and iron fertilization