The data for human-induced climate change is quite convincing because the global temperature has risen about 0.9 degrees Celsius since the late 1800s (NASA, 2020). This resulted in shrinking ice sheets, which occurred at 286 billion tons per year between 1993 and 2016 in Greenland (NASA, 2020). Moreover, the ocean temperatures also increased by more than 0.4°C as they absorbed the increased temperature in the atmosphere (NASA, 2020). The current climate change models predict specific impacts. With the rise in temperature comes the melting of ice from glacial retreats. This is evidenced by the Hintereisferner Glacier that retreated 2.8 km since 1880 (University of Washington, 2016). The melting of glaciers then contributes to the global rise in sea level evidenced by the eight inches rise over this century (NASA, 2020). Oceans have a vital role in the climate change scenario as they store solar radiation from the atmosphere in tropical waters (NOAA.gov). This then helps to distribute the heat and moisture when the water evaporates from the oceans across the globe through ocean currents. Oceans currents help with the transportation of cold water from the poles to the tropics, and warm precipitation and water from the equator to the poles, thus modifying global climate (NOAA.gov). If the climate change models are correct, Colorado could be facing very dire impacts of climate change. Colorado is expected to be faced with a water crisis as it might be unable to manage the existing water systems (Kennedy, 2014). All the current change models showcase a rise in temperature of between 2.5°F to 5°F, which may result in major heatwaves, droughts, and wildfires by the mid of this century (Kennedy, 2014). The US government and other world governments have taken different approaches to the climate change issue. The Paris Agreement of 2015 was set up to bring all nations to a common cause of combatting global climate change. While 186 countries have ratified the agreement, the US government under Donald Trump withdrew from the agreement stating the agreement was a hoax by China to waning the country’s manufacturing power (UN, n.d; Zhang et al., 2017). The government saw the economic burden imposed on the country as unfair as it reduced its air pollutants by 74% between 1970-2018. The government, however, explained that it would continue to reduce emissions, foster research, and innovation on climate change, and help its partners and friends across the globe combat climate change (Pompeo, 2019).
References
Kennedy, C. (2014). Future Temperature and Precipitation Change in Colorado. https://www.climate.gov/news-features/featured-images/future-temperature-and-precipitation-change-colorado
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NASA. (2020). Facts. https://climate.nasa.gov/evidence/
NOAA.gov. (n.d). https://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/facts/climate.html
Pompeo, R., M. (2019). On the U.S. Withdrawal from the Paris Agreement. https://www.state.gov/on-the-u-s-withdrawal-from-the-paris-agreement/
UN. (n.d). Climate change. https://www.un.org/en/sections/issues-depth/climate-change/
University of Washington. (2016). Mountain glaciers are showing some of the strongest responses to climate change. https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/12/161212084912.htm
Zhang, Y. X., Chao, Q. C., Zheng, Q. H., & Huang, L. (2017). The withdrawal of the US from the Paris Agreement and its impact on global climate change governance. Advances in Climate Change Research, 8(4), 213-219. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1674927817300849
