Earth, the only place where humans have lived ever since its creation, is also the only planet suitable for humans that we know of. Therefore, the change of the earth must be the focus of our attention because without it, we will not have another place to live. Global warming is the result of different changes in the environment and it refers to a period of time when the planet saw the phenomenon of rising in average surface temperatures and the rising of sea levels. The earth’s atmosphere is the only way of protecting us from the high temperature of the sun. This protection system is like a huge “glass greenhouse”, which allows the sun’s rays to pass through and warm the earth, but prevent this warmth from escaping our atmosphere into space and keeps the surface at a certain temperature and creates an environment suitable for the survival of humans and other living things.
As human industrialization has developed over the last century, we have seen the side effects of global warming more and more. The weather is getting more and more extreme. Many of the things we use such as cars and air-conditioners are adding to the growing amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Have people thought about the negative impacts of air conditioning? The answer is yes. The gas emitted by the air conditioner contains a large amount of methane, which is transported to the outside environment. Methane is also known as a gas that causes global warming. Therefore, it is necessary to decrease the use of air conditioners and use only in extreme situations.
Carbon dioxide also causes the surface temperature to increase. Car exhaust and factory exhaust contain a lot of carbon dioxide. Carbon dioxide is most likely to cause a greenhouse effect. Nowadays, the number of cars is gradually increasing. According to relevant statistics, by the 21st century, there are 700 million cars in the world today. A large amount of gas exhaust has seriously affected us. According to USEIA (U.S. Energy Information Administration), U.S. energy-related carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions have reached 5.14 billion metric tons, in 2017. Also the world’s largest emitter, China, has reached 10.1 billion metric tons in 2017. Because the environment around us is changing badly, it’s time to take action immediately.
More importantly, global warming has seen forests sharply reduced, the water resources destroyed, and the ecological chain has been seriously damaged. Those effects have become serious problems, at the same time, due to the large amount of minerals been used, it turn into carbon dioxide causing the air pollution, and damaging the Ozone. Such a vicious cycle will eventually lead to serious impacts on people’s lives.
What are these things happening? The answer is obvious. The weather is warming, sea levels are rising, glaciers in the Arctic are melting, and coastal cities such as New York, Miami or Orlando are being flooded. All of this has seriously affected human survival. Based on research, the data shows that sea levels will rise by more than half a meter in the next 300 years. This is still the most optimistic estimate. Global warming will continue to be irreversible in the next seven years. Even more frightening is that as the Arctic ice melts, rainfall increases and a large amount of fresh water will flow into the North Atlantic. The flow will destroy the Gulf Stream of Mexico, one of the strongest ocean currents in the world. It is driven by surface wind patterns and differences in water density. Surface water in the north Atlantic is cooled by winds from the Arctic. It becomes saltier and denser and sinks to the ocean floor. The cold water then moves towards the equator where it will warm slowly. To replace the cold equator-bound water, the Gulf Stream moves warm water from the Gulf of Mexico north into the Atlantic. The Gulf Stream brings warmth to the UK and north-west Europe and is the reason we have mild winters. Once the Gulf Stream of Mexico destroyed, the temperatures in Northwestern Europe will fall by 5-8 degrees. There are so many movies about disaster that we have seen; the scene in the movies is a true portrayal of our planet, for example, tornadoes, icefalls, temperature drops, ice storms, freezing rains, earthquakes, floods, and tsunami. This is not a crazy fantasy. If we don’t stop destroying the environment, this will become a reality. Global warming is not only hot weather, but also has many negative effects.
In order to save the planet, there are so many things we can do. Such as use recycled paper, public transportation, not to use plastic bags, and so on. In fact, practicing environmental protection is not difficult and as long as we all do that, it is the best gift you give to this planet. Nowadays, China, the United States, Japan, the United Kingdom and other major emitter countries have taken action, which known as United Nations Climate Change conference. In the 2016 climate conference, the Paris Agreement was signed by most of the worldwide nations. The Paris Agreement builds upon the Convention and for the first time brings all nations into a common cause to undertake ambitious efforts to combat climate change and adapt to its effects. The long term goal of Paris Agreement is to improve the global response to the threat of climate change and to keep a global temperature from rising more than 1.5 degrees Celsius. At least 55 countries signed on to the Paris Agreement because they, together, procedure 55% of the total global greenhouse gas emissions and they have accepted to set boundaries regarding the future production of greenhouse. Moreover, they will meet together every 5 years to assess the collective progress towards achieving the purpose of the agreement.
Therefore, being wary of global warming is the only way for all mankind to save the planet. However, if we have been procrastinating, the end result is that our planet will unrecognizable.
