Climate change is one of the topics raising concerns across the globe from various policymakers, leaders, and environmentalists. A lot of people are also continuously raising opinions on the actual causes of climatic changes. According to the latest Climate Science Special Report (2017), the average global temperature over the past 115 years has gradually increased. The pace of the climate change is also worrying because it has activated many more changes to the global environment. Library (2017) states that the observable changes include rising of the sea levels as well as the rapid melting of glaciers in the Arctic and Antarctic. Others include increased humidity, the severity of drought and changing rainfall patterns. Humans are responsible for too much carbon in the atmosphere from the use of coal, oil, and gas responsible for the global warming.
Indeed, it is true to state that the natural patterns of climate are not the same as they were a few years ago. In the past, there were minimal factors that determined the changes in climate such as variance in the sun’s intensity and heat-trapping gases in the air. However, what is happening today in the environment is entirely new and different. Cooke (2017) states that most scientists cite the growing population and urbanization as a significant contribution to global temperature changes. Govorusho (2017) also argues that human beings are getting involved in activities that put so much carbon in the atmosphere which is the primary heat-trapping gas that is responsible for the warming effect on the environment. The Climate Science Special Report (2017) further cites that interfering with the carbon content causes a reversal in the way the earth is naturally supposed to operate. This reversal throws the entire world into an uncertain view of the future environmental and human condition.
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According to Labrecque (2018), human activity is a valid threat to the modern climatic conditions because most of the human activities like farming, machine operations; deforestation and pollution not only interfere with the atmospheric carbon cycle but also into the atmosphere. This study highlights in details the practices that justify that humans are the primary reason for the climatic change.
Human activity has led to the increase in carbon dioxide concentration by 36% since the industrial revolution. Before the industrial revolution, CO2 levels were between 200 and 300 parts per million (Cooke, 2017). The carbon dioxide levels have risen to over 400 parts per million, and yet carbon emissions keep increasing at a rate of two-part per million annually. Industries across different sectors use coal, oil, and gas to releasing more greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. The owners of the industries are not making an effort to incorporate clean and renewable energy because oil and gas are readily available.
Carbon dioxide is a common greenhouse gas (GHG), but there are other GHGs that are harmful to the environment. Library (2017) explores the effects of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N20) on the environment. Human beings are responsible for the 60% of methane production from agriculture and farming. The concentration of methane in the atmosphere has not been increasing rapidly as the concentration of CO2 because after the industrial revolution agriculture was no longer the leading sector of the economy. The increase in GHGs is not only responsible for global warming, but they are also, absorbed into the oceans thus increasing the acidity levels of the oceans.
The GHGs are not just produced by manufacturing industries as there are many other sectors such as electricity generation, motorized transport, and space exploration among other human activities that rely on fossil fuel. Developed nations such as China, USA, India, and Russia have the highest GHG levels because they are densely populated, and they also have many industries. In densely populated nations, transportation, space heating, and domestic households use a lot of energy leading to the production of more GHGs.
Another human activity that has led to climate change is the changes in land use, mainly deforestation and urbanization (Labrecque, 2018). After the industrial revolution, a more significant percentage of the population moved to urban areas in search of better opportunities. Urban dwellers use fossil fuel for their everyday use creating urban heat island effects. Urban areas cover less than 2% of the earth’s surface, yet they consume 78% of the world’s energy and produce over 60% of carbon dioxide (VUSGCRP, (2017). The GHG emission from urban areas keeps rising annually as the urban population increases.
Alternatively, the rate of deforestation has increased rapidly. According to Govorusho (2017), approximately 46 to 58 thousand square miles of forest cover is lost to deforestation annually. Agriculture is the leading cause of deforestation as farmers cut down trees in search of new farming lands. Cattle ranching as a form of agriculture is another significant reason for deforestation. Cattle ranchers, particularly fast food chain companies that keep large numbers of cattle clear vast tracks of land to support animal agriculture. Loggers and investors in real estate also contribute to deforestation by cutting down trees for commercial purposes and construction of houses.
In conclusion, human activity plays a significant role in climate change. Since the industrial revolution, the climate has changed drastically as the population, and the number of industries increased. Human beings have to acknowledge their role in climate change and put in preventative measures before it is too late. It is impossible to eliminate all the GHGs, but there are measures to reduce GHG emission to safeguard the environment for the future generations.
References
VUSGCRP, (2017). Climate Science Special Report. Fourth National Climate Assesment, Volume1 , p. 470.
Cooke, T. (2017). Mapping human activity. Ontario: Crabtree Publishing.
Govorusho, S. (2017). Human impact on the environment. Switzerland: Credo Reference.
Labrecque, E. (2018). Climate Change. Cherry lake publishing.
Library, C. E. (2017). Human Activity and the Environment. Ottawa: Statistics Canada.
