StudentShare
Contact Us
Sign In / Sign Up for FREE
Search
Go to advanced search...
Free

Are Human Activities Contributing to Climate Change - Research Paper Example

Cite this document
Summary
Natural forces like volcanic eruptions and solar output alone cannot be held responsible for global warming. So it is safe to say that human forces have had their share of contributing to the…
Download full paper File format: .doc, available for editing
GRAB THE BEST PAPER96.4% of users find it useful
Are Human Activities Contributing to Climate Change
Read Text Preview

Extract of sample "Are Human Activities Contributing to Climate Change"

Introduction: The earth’s climate has seen a drastic change since the industrial revolution. Natural forces like volcanic eruptions and solar output alone cannot be held responsible for global warming. So it is safe to say that human forces have had their share of contributing to the climate change the world is now facing.Human activities that are causing climate changes come mainly from the burning of fossil fuels. After the 19th century Industrial revolution, the world saw a rise in the burning of fossil fuels.

They were burnt in order to generate energy for the industrial activities to take place. Since then, man has been moving forward in terms of technological advancement but overlooking the damages it is causing to the Earth’s atmosphere.Green House gases:The greenhouse gases, which occur naturally, absorb the thermal infrared and warm the Earth’s temperature by 63 degrees Fahrenheit. This whole process is known as the Greenhouse Effect. The main greenhouse gases that are present in the Earth’s atmosphere are carbon dioxide, water vapour, methane, nitrous oxide and the ozone.

(Maslin, 2007)Carbon dioxide and other green house gases such as methane are added to the earth’s atmosphere by the burning of fossil fuels. Previously, the carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere were in balance but today, human activities are releasing carbon dioxide into the atmosphere at an increasingly high level. The earth’s vegetation has not been able to take in and absorb the excess of carbon dioxide and thus, the atmospheric level of CO2 has increased. Fossil fuels are burnt to create energy for humans in the form of heat, electricity and gas.

Apart from making our lives easier, it has also emitted enough carbon dioxide into the atmosphere to cause climate changes. Through the Earth’s natural cycle, large amounts of carbon dioxide are released in and out of the atmosphere annually and so the CO2 levels remained in balance throughout. However; scientists have confirmed that human activities add around 7 billion tonnes of CO2 into the earth’s atmosphere which ends up upsetting the balance. According to research, the trees and the oceans only absorb half of the carbon dioxide present in the atmosphere.

The remainder stays in our environment for as long as 100 years.Carbon Dioxide:Carbon dioxide is created from fossil fuels through the form of heat and gas. It is also released in natural processes like decay of organic matter. Apart from that, trees release CO2 into the atmosphere but due to deforestation, the absorption of this gas has reduced. Methane:Human activities which are related to cultivation, landfills and the distribution of natural gas all contribute to the release of Methane into the environment.

Nitrous Oxide:This greenhouse gas in mainly emitted during agricultural as well as industrial activities such as the burning and combustion of fossil fuels along with solid waste. Aerosols:Aerosols are basically small particles present in the atmosphere. They vary in shape, size and chemical composition. Most of these particles are released into the environment through human activities such as the use of Aerosol sprays and leaded petrol.Deforestation:The Earth’s ability to deal with the excess carbon dioxide present in the atmosphere has decreased due to deforestation.

The deforestation is mainly caused by the increased world population. As the world population increases, the demand for land and a place to live on increases. Since the industrial revolution, land has been cleared so that communities can settle down. Land has also been cleared for the purpose of livestock farming, agriculture and ranching. Because of this alteration in our world’s geography, the environment is not able to deal with all the excess CO2 levels in our atmosphere. The re-growth of trees and natural vegetation in some areas has been able to absorb a bit of the carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere but it is not enough to take out all of the excess CO2.

Land changes alone are responsible for about 15% of carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere. How do we contribute to climate change every day?Gadgets such as television, computers etc use electricity to work. We cannot imagine our world without electricity. But this electricity is generated from fossil fuels which in return emit unnecessary amounts of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.Use of transport such as cars, motorcycles and buses require fuel in order to work. They run on petrol and diesel which are products of fossil fuels.

We mostly refuse to use recyclable products and prefer generating waste and dumping it into the Earth. Such products like plastic cannot be recycled and hence remain in the environment, damaging it, for many years to come. Trees and natural vegetation are cut down in order to create paper and wood for the construction of our houses. The land is also cleared so that crops and agriculture could be grown in order to feed the growing population of the world.Conclusion: Climate change is an ongoing process which can’t be stopped but a little effort from our side might help in slowing down this process.

Small things like, recycling, using renewable power, and becoming energy efficient can help in protecting planet Earth for our future generations to come. Works CitedMaslin, M. Global Warming: Causes, effects and the future. MBI Publishing Company. (2007, P 12-17).Biello, D. “Final Report: Humans caused global warming.” Scientific American. (February 2, 2007)Roach, J. “Global Warming very likely caused by humans, World climate experts say.” National Geographic. (February 2, 2007)Walker, P.

“Humans blamed for climate change.” The Guardian. ( February 2, 2007)National Aeronautics and Space Administration/Jenkins,A. “Global Climate Change: Vital Signs of the planet.” November 24, 2011 http://climate.nasa.gov/causes/UN news centre/UN news service. “Evidence is now ‘unequivocal’ that humans are causing global warming-UN Report.” November 24, 2011 http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?Cr1=change&Cr=climate&NewsID=21429Live Science/Borenstein, S.

 “113 nations agree: Climate change very likely caused by humans” November 23, 2011 http://www.livescience.com/1294-113-nations-agree-climate-change-caused-humans.htmlSeattlepi/McClure, R. Stiffler, L. “Scientists Agree: humans causing global warming.” November 23, 2011 http://www.seattlepi.com/local/article/Scientists-agree-Humans-causing-global-warming-1227187.php

Read More
Cite this document
  • APA
  • MLA
  • CHICAGO
(“Are Human Activities Contributing to Climate Change Research Paper”, n.d.)
Are Human Activities Contributing to Climate Change Research Paper. Retrieved from https://studentshare.org/english/1584925-are-human-activities-contributing-to-climate-change
(Are Human Activities Contributing to Climate Change Research Paper)
Are Human Activities Contributing to Climate Change Research Paper. https://studentshare.org/english/1584925-are-human-activities-contributing-to-climate-change.
“Are Human Activities Contributing to Climate Change Research Paper”, n.d. https://studentshare.org/english/1584925-are-human-activities-contributing-to-climate-change.
  • Cited: 0 times

CHECK THESE SAMPLES OF Are Human Activities Contributing to Climate Change

Is Climate Change Human-caused What is the Evidence If So, what Can/Should we do about it

However, before examining the contribution of human activities to climate change, it is important to examine the natural contributing activities briefly.... Crowley (271) indentified volcanic activity, ocean currents, and changes in the intensity of solar radiations and the earth's planetary movements as the major natural contributors to climate change.... The contribution of ocean currents to climate change remains uncertain.... Introduction climate change is one of the major formidable challenges facing the world in the 21st century....
3 Pages (750 words) Essay

Ethics and Business

Companies contributing to climate change can be viewed as victimizing vulnerable individuals, which is morally bad and wrong (Gardiner, et al.... Additionally, the possible solution to climate change will be discusses from the perspective of the different moral frameworks.... Companies are considered immoral if they contribute to climate change without adhering to their moral duties.... Additionally, activities that contribute to climate change are morally wrong since they do not respect the rights of all humans....
4 Pages (1000 words) Essay

Greenhouse Effect, Climate Change, and Global Warming

"Greenhouse Effect, climate change, and Global Warming" paper examines causes of global warming, ill-effects of global warming, our contribution to the reduction of global warming.... The paper states that the emissions of the alleged green-house gases may considerably affect climate on-ear.... However, many other science-veterans are induced about the fact that the activities which are performed by humans are partially held responsible for the long period of warming of the past epoch....
6 Pages (1500 words) Coursework

Essentials of Meteorology - Climate Change

This paper "Essentials of Meteorology - climate change" focuses on the climate change around the world which is seen as a combination of several factors, which act in an interrelated fashion.... [1]Causes of climate change: The climatic changes in the modern periods have become the potential contributor to the event of global warming.... Like the host of natural factors mentioned above which contribute to the event of climate change and rising temperatures, the planet's climatic system is also affected by various manmade activities....
6 Pages (1500 words) Essay

Is Climate Change Caused by Human Activities

he effects that are related to climate change are of late undeniable since there are proofs that can be observed.... This term paper "Is climate change Caused by Human Activities" focuses on climate change has been a contentious issue.... The issue that has never been agreed to that well is what or who really causes climate change: human activities or natural occurrences.... hellip; climate change is the change in the significant weather of a given area that can take decades or more years to determine....
8 Pages (2000 words) Term Paper

Human Activities as the Major Cause of Climate Change

… The paper “Human Activities as the Major Cause of climate change”  is a delightful variant of a literature review on environmental studies.... The paper “Human Activities as the Major Cause of climate change”  is a delightful variant of a literature review on environmental studies.... Edwards and Miller (2001) describe that climate change is the change in the statistical distribution of weather over a long time....
6 Pages (1500 words) Literature review

Centre for Climate and Energy Solutions

hellip; climate change and Energy Solutions have been a leading wave of force that seeks to boost environmental conservation as well as energy generation.... It targets to improve communities via energy production and at the same time conserve the environment and as a result regulating climate change.... The organization has significantly contributed to the climate change issues in the global.... The company succeeded in the PCGCC (Pew Center on Global climate change)....
8 Pages (2000 words) Report

Environment Issue of Climate Change

However, IPCC does not carry out research related to climate change nor does it monitor the climate.... … The paper "Environment Issue of climate change" is an engrossing example of coursework on environmental studies.... climate change is a topic that has gained a lot of popularity and interests from all groups of people all over the world.... The paper "Environment Issue of climate change" is an engrossing example of coursework on environmental studies....
8 Pages (2000 words) Coursework
sponsored ads
We use cookies to create the best experience for you. Keep on browsing if you are OK with that, or find out how to manage cookies.
Contact Us