G is for Global Warming

G is for Global Warming

Global Warming is a topic that deserves more than just a single blog entry. To stay on track with my goal of completing this series before we move, I am going to try and condense everything I have to report on Global Warming into just one blog. ( The concluding letters in the series are likely to further address some of these topics though.) To gain an appreciation for Global Warming, I think it is essential to find a specific issue you can identify with. My sister found compassion for the hundreds of stranded polar bears who are becoming homeless everyday due to the melting glaciers in the Arctic. My husband is interested in the available scientific facts, especially the clear evidence of rising earth temperatures and rising water levels. I am motivated by the desire to leave this earth better for our future generations. Find what motivates you and act on it!

The topic of Global Warming, especially Al Gore’s documentary “The Inconvenient Truth”, truly changed the way I view my life. I was too stubborn to think that my actions could effect the entire world. In my mind, I would wonder: What difference does it make if I take a 45 minute hot shower? How can running the air conditioning all day do anything more than merely drain my wallet? Can driving my 1998 car really have an impact on the entire earth? What does happen to the smoke that is pumped out of those smoke stacks? I was always aware that humans were negatively affecting the environment but I was ignorant to the science behind this global problem and how the rising temperatures of the earth were impacting almost every aspect of our life. What had an even greater impact on me is when I realized that the current condition of our environment is almost entirely due to human activity. We are responsible for the impact and we are responsible for the solution.

Causes of Global Warming and Climate Change:

Simply stated, “Carbon dioxide and other gases warm the surface of the planet naturally by trapping solar heat in the atmosphere. This is a good thing because it keeps our planet habitable. However, by burning fossil fuels such as coal, gas and oil and clearing forests we have dramatically increased the amount of carbon dioxide in the Earth’s atmosphere and temperatures are rising.” (climatecrisis.net)

We use coal, gas and oil in just about every part of our life. 85% - 90% of the primary energy production in the world comes from burning fossil fuels. These fossil fuels fill our cars, heat our homes, transport our foods, fill the tractors that harvest our foods, and fuel our machinery to produce virtually everything we purchase. My previous post discusses some of the elements of deforestation.

The Intergovernmental Panel of Climate Change (IPCC), a United Nation appointed organization, concludes that “warming of the climate system is unequivocal and the increased temperatures are very likely (90%) due to the observed increase in greenhouse gas concentrations.” On a side note, the IPCC received the Noble Peace Prize in 2007, along side Al Gore, “for their efforts to build up and disseminate greater knowledge about man-made climate change, and to lay the foundations for the measures that are needed to counteract such change."

The Impact:

If you have seen Al Gore’s documentary, then you already know about the current and potential impacts of Global Warming. The National Geographic reports their own findings on the subject:

Present Findings:
- Ice is melting worldwide, especially at the Earth’s poles. This includes mountain glaciers, ice sheets covering West Antarctica and Greenland, and Arctic sea ice.
- Researcher Bill Fraser has tracked the decline of the Adélie penguins on Antarctica, where their numbers have fallen from 32,000 breeding pairs to 11,000 in 30 years.
- Sea level rise became faster over the last century.
- Some butterflies, foxes, and alpine plants have moved farther north or to higher, cooler areas.
- Precipitation (rain and snowfall) has increased across the globe, on average.
- Spruce bark beetles have boomed in Alaska thanks to 20 years of warm summers. The insects have chewed up 4 million acres of spruce trees.
Future Predictions:
- Sea levels are expected to rise between 7 and 23 inches (18 and 59 centimeters) by the end of the century, and continued melting at the poles could add between 4 and 8 inches (10 to 20 centimeters).
- Hurricanes and other storms are likely to become stronger.
- Species that depend on one another may become out of sync. For example, plants could bloom earlier than their pollinating insects become active.
- Floods and droughts will become more common. Rainfall in Ethiopia, where droughts are already common, could decline by 10 percent over the next 50 years.
- Less fresh water will be available. If the Quelccaya ice cap in Peru continues to melt at its current rate, it will be gone by 2100, leaving thousands of people who rely on it for drinking water and electricity without a source of either.
- Some diseases will spread, such as malaria carried by mosquitoes.
- Ecosystems will change—some species will move farther north or become more successful; others won’t be able to move and could become extinct. Wildlife research scientist Martyn Obbard has found that since the mid-1980s, with less ice on which to live and fish for food, polar bears have gotten considerably skinnier. Polar bear biologist Ian Stirling has found a similar pattern in Hudson Bay. He fears that if sea ice disappears, the polar bears will as well.

What YOU can do:

Here is a list of way we can help stop the effects of global warming… feel free to add your own personal ideas within your comments!

- Invest in and implement alternative energy sources – wind power, solar power, hydrogen produced from renewable sources, biofuels (produced from crops), natural gas, and nuclear power.
- Energy efficient cars- hybrid cars, bring back the electric car!
- Demand American automakers to manufacture more efficient cars
- Foreign automakers already possess the technology to make our vehicles more energy efficient; demand we import only import vehicles with a high efficiency level.
- Demand the government passes higher restrictions on car emissions.
- Plant trees
- Speak out and write a letter to your Congress Representative
- Elect Representatives who care about climate change (Go Obama!)
- Carpool
- Bring your own bag
- Composting
- Any activity that reduces our demand on oil and fossil fuels
- Replace an old water heater
- Control heating and cooling temperatures
- Reduce driving speed
- Put your computer to sleep
- Unplug your cell phone when it is fully charged
- Unplug all appliances when unused.
- Energy efficient washing machines
- etc, etc, etc…

"When President John F. Kennedy challenged our nation to land a man on the moon and bring him back safely in 10 years, many people doubted we could accomplish that goal. But 8 years and 2 months later, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin walked on the surface of the moon."

With your help, we can do this too…

This video was created by the National Geographic and is Global Warming 101: