CLIMATE: THE PROS AND WAYS OF STAYING BELOW 1.5 DEGREES OF WARMING
By: Dike, Samuel Chinazaekpere.
What really is climate change? What actually do we think of it as? For the readers that know nothing or just an obscure idea about the changes in climate of our environment, climate change is a peculiar change in global or regional climate patterns. It could be viewed as the change in statistical distribution of weather patterns when such change stays for a lengthy period of time. This time could be decades to millions of years. It’s also the change average weather conditions (source of definition:
wikipedia.org).
Climate change on Earth has gone “beyond the beyond”. Our home, earth has experienced climate change by fluctuation in its average temperature. Long cold periods (ice ages) and long warm periods (interglacials) are majorly as a result of change on climate. The thing is that Earth’s climate has changed over the course of years. According to NASA, there have been apparently seven cycles of glacial advance in the last approximately 650,000 years.
Most of these changes in climate is as a result of orbital variation leading to the varying magnitude of solar energy on this our solemn planet. As technology and orbiting satellites have become of aid in providing pictures which serve as evidence on changes in our climate.
After knowing all these lengthy but vivid explanations, these changes are caused as a result of biotic and volcanic processes, plate tectonics (involving the movement of plates on the Earth’s lithosphere) and technically by solar radiation’s variations received by our planet, earth. All these are natural causes which neglects the fact that human activities also contribute to these crazy changes in climate. Pertaining to climate variation, human activities are one of anthropogenic factors that alter the climate. Human activities, on recent researches carried out by paleoclimatologists, have played essential role in climate changes of our recent time. Some say it is largely irreversible as a result of this. This climate change leads what everyone should have heard of; “the global warming”. It is one of the vital symptoms of climate change.
Earth’s surface temperature has risen overwhelming to a Celsius reading of 1.5 to 2.0 over the course of frequent and unattended to warming. Oceans and seas have been warmed and risen as a result Earth’s surface elated temperature, ice sheets have shrunk like the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets, glaciers have been retreating. Oceans have also been acidified as result of warming. Artic sea ice has declined rapidly over years. The thing is the entire ecosystems are already declining.
Actually, global warming depicts the rising in temperature of the surface of the Earth. This warming has its side effects as well on our mother, Earth. Globe or global warming is trigger at times by small increases by the magnitude of sunlight reaching the surface of Earth. This warming when viewed, talked or emphasised about in present days refers directly to human-caused warming especially the increased carbon dioxide and greenhouse gases. Fossil fuels, opposing a hundred percent usage of renewable energy, encouraging deforestation to a large extent, poor agricultural practices, are all genuine causes of this symptom of climate change, global warming.
Carbon dioxide with the ability of trapping heat, also has the dexterity to affect the transfer of infrared energy. This as a result leads to greenhouse gases’ level been increased and in return causing warming.
Climate change is one major problem facing the world (every nations). This is no doubt seen as global warming. There is really a need to maintain the average temperature rise of our planet. This rise has been suspected not to be more than 1.5℃. This is a global goal, knowing the true fact that listing every solution from every nook and crane is not virtually enough but actually practicing it. How do we stay under this certain value?
First of all, lets know the importance of staying below this value of 1.5℃. Heatwaves would just typically last for about a month with few days but a temperature rise like 2℃. The reliability of freshwater is reduced under a 1.5℃ rise in global temperature unlike in the case where is increased. Sea level rise is reduced to a minimal extent. Coral bleaching is not has much when a 2℃ temperature rise is allowed. There are clearly so many advantages of staying below a rise of 1.5℃.
Back to when we left our question, “how do we stay under this certain value?” Virtually, it is not a rhetorical question but rather a question that demands a lot of answers, which could be perceived as solutions that has to bail us out of this world’s difficulty.
Firstly, fossil fuels are killing us. It is a bitter truth. Even upon all their stylish usefulness to us, they are deluding this world as they depleting our ozone layer and ecosystem as a whole. The cons of fossil fuels are channelling into pollutions and serious environmental problems. Fossil fuels liberates carbon dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, sulfur dioxide and some others. Fossil fuels are purely non-renewable sources of energy. That is, they won’t be available once they are fully used up. The effects of fossil fuels on earth inhabitants has reached to the point of affecting our health such as lung and cardiovascular disease as a result of air pollution. The major thing here is the world as a whole need to start thinking of a 100% usage renewable energies. The staunch use and affinity of fossil fuels (oil, natural gas and coal) should kind of be weakened.
Generally speaking, moving away from fossil fuels and investing in renewables (like solar, water, wind), states and countries are not only performing the right thing for the climate but also making a lifetime rewarding investment. Renewable energy can help a lot in bringing jobs, air that is clean, and global warming is reduced. There are lot of benefits obtained from renewables than non-renewables like fossil fuels. A good amount of funds is generated from the investment of renewable energy. The fossil fuel economy is already profitable and providing jobs. What are we sitting down, crossing arms and waiting for? This is an era when reducing climate changes can help in boosting every countries’ economy.
Looking into natural climate solutions could also be a way out of this puzzle. I am writing with pride that it is not only fossil fuel consumption that causes the constant pumping of carbon into our atmosphere. We should also see the to protect and restore natural system that take and store carbon. Forests should be left alone, wetlands and peatlands should also be protected and restored rather than been demolished. Nature and its solution towards global warming provides a sustainable development; replant and reinforces the growth of forest, regrades degraded lands and so on. All these should in a way improve our lives and supply with quality food.
More elaborately speaking on reforestation and afforestation, which both involves going against deforestation and encouraging the planting of trees and having forestlands. Biologist would tell you that plants (especially tall trees) capture carbon dioxide and convert this to oxygen. The conversion cannot go on when trees are intentionally brought down for certain and unjust reasons. Climate researchers and climatologist agree to the fact that reforestation is one golden way to tackle this problem befalling our spherical home. There is no doubt that clean water, cleaner air, erosion declination, increase fertility of soils and massive yield of tree crops are the clear benefits of doing this act of reforestation. There should be forest policies brought abought by government of each countries against uncalled for deforestations. The earth’s forestlands and savannahs should be taken with serious care so as to prevent abuse or misuse of this vital trees which can save us from an increase in global temperature above 1.5℃. many millions of tonnes of these greenhouses gases especially carbon from laid down trees are exposed to the ozone layer and our atmosphere as a whole. Thus, causing depletion of this layer and what? Encouraging serious global warming.
It is a clear point that agriculture is duly responsible for most emissions of these greenhouse gases that causes depletion of the ozone layer. Sustainable should be fully encouraged and anyhow commercial agriculture should be suppressed to its minimum. The idea of clearing all lands for agriculture should be minimized or dropped for the time being so as to tackle this global problem of climate change. Also regulating and balance checking the number of farm animals for milk and meat purposes should be given a thumbs up. As these farm animals tend to emit carbon also to the atmosphere especially when they are of a great aggregate in number on a particular farm. Agricultural practices should make more sustainable as this will help a lot in bring climate changes to the barest minimum. Wetlands and peatlands should also be made restores and protected.
In conclusion, we are all need to work together in one way or the other to see how we can save our habitat from diminishing. The power in teamwork cannot be described with words. Governments should enforce laws and policies that would support the minimizing of global warming and thus, the Earth will be a special planet.
Dike Samuel.
Mechanical Engineering.
UNIVERSITY OF NIGERIA, NSUKKA.
