"We are living on this planet as if we have another to go to" -Terry Swearingen
One of the most impending dooms of today's world is CLIMATE CHANGE. Ignoring climate change will mean inevitable death for many species of wildlife, and in the end, the human race. On this page is included a brief description of climate change and the problem it causes, and refutes to arguments against climate change.
A Brief History of Climate Change: Ever since the Industrial Revolution (the 1800's), the Earth has been exposed to human development that causes increasing amounts of pollution due to burning fossil fuels. The burning of the fossil fuels causes greenhouse gases from the early times to be released back into the atmosphere. Having some greenhouse gases is necessary to life on Earth, as they trap the amount of heat necessary for life. An excess of insulation, however, causes an excess of heat, which is now beginning to have major effects on life on Earth. As of now, the world's average temperature has risen by about 1.7 degrees Fahrenheit. In fact, 2014 was the hottest recorded year ever on Earth.
Effects: 1. Global warming: This is self-explanatory; the Earth is heating up. Warmer temperatures present a threat because they destroy the delicate balance of creatures' adaption to the climates in which they live. Each spot on Earth has a specific climate, and the specific climates are changing drastically. The few creatures most notably affected are polar creatures. However, temperate creatures also suffer when they move north to avoid heat but run out of space to move to. When creatures are forced to move, the mix of species in a specific area also changes, which harms the ecosystem, as animal populations may suddenly drop or skyrocket. A graph about the White-Throated Sparrow population location change can be found below (from http://climate.audubon.org/all-species).
2. Weather extremes: The number of extreme temperatures has been increasing, as well as the number of intense rainfalls, hurricanes, and tornadoes. Not only this, but one extreme event greatly increases the chance of other extreme events due to certain weather patterns, including bacteria that lead to rainfall in a particular area. 3. Ocean acidification: Due to the excess of CO2, the ocean has been forced to absorb much more carbon dioxide than it would normally, making the pH go WAY down (the more acidic a substance, the lower the pH). This is a problem because organisms are adapted to living at a specific acidity content. In particular, calcifiers, such as coral reefs, as most affected. Calcifiers are organisms that produce their own calcium shells for protection. Yet, with more acidic water, the calcium is corroded faster than it can be produced (and faster than it has evolved with previous pH norms to be produced). Without protection, animals are vulnerable. Coral reefs, for example, are rapidly decreasing in number, as they are eaten by other sea creatures, but cannot calcify to produce more coral. This presents a problem both because coral reefs provide barriers against tidal waves and erosion, and because they provide homes for a hugely diverse population of species. A graph of the increase of ocean acidity, both now and depending on our future actions, can be seen below.
4a. Melting of glaciers and sea ices: When glaciers and sea ice regions melt, the native people and animals have major problems, particularly with being able to use the ice sheets to travel and find food. Polar bears, for example, are unable to safely migrate to colder areas to find nutrition, such as seals. Sea ice also helps act as a check on climate change, as it reflects light back to be absorbed into the sky. Ocean circulation is affected, as well as coastal immunity to eroding waves. When sea ice melts, it also causes a climate feedback loop—the darker Earth's surface is (and sea ice melting causes a darker surface), the more heat is trapped. The more heat trapped, the more sea ice melts. 4b. Sea level rise: As glaciers and sea ices melt, the sea level rises as a result. With a raised sea level, multiple inhabited islands in the ocean will be covered, along with their native people and wildlife. Major cities built along coast lines will also be in peril, with major culture centers and people forced to relocate. Below is a chart of areas most affected by this issue.
Common Arguments Against Climate Change and Their Rebuttals: (This article discusses a few questions in which the questioner is assumed to accept climate change: http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2015/11/28/science/what-is-climate-change.html?action=click&pgtype=Homepage®ion=CColumn&module=MostEmailed&version=Full&WT.nav=MostEmailed&_r=0 ) (One must note that most climate change deniers cite examples where temperatures have cooled, say, in Illinois over the past ten years. The problem with this is just that their sample size is too small. The rise would be clear if they looked at a worldwide average over the last century.) 1. There has been an increase in sea ice-40%- over the last two years -Global warming also brings global moisturization. When an area reaches the winter season, the water vapor condenses into ice. And the only way that the earth could hold more water is if the temperatures were warmer. -Sea ice may have had several increases, but there has been a overall decrease. -Furthermore, in 2016, sea ice at the Arctic and Antarctic were at record lows. 2. Humans are not emitting that much CO2. Other places on Earth emit more. -That's true. Human CO2 emissions are only 30 gigatons compared to the naturally emitted 780 gigatons. The 780 gigatons, however, are reabsorbed by the ocean and lands. So we have an extra 30 gigatons of CO2 in the atmosphere (see diagram below)
3. If climate change is real, why have we had the coolest summer in hundreds of years? Isn't the world supposed to be getting hotter? -climate change does not necessarily just mean the whole world is getting warmer. One must consider that, even if one particular spot isn't seeming to get warmer, the world as a whole is heating up. -climate change does not just mean global warming; it also means more extreme weather conditions in general. So really, the cool summer is a sign of climate change, as it is a temperature extreme. 4. We only have evidence of recorded temperatures that go 150 years back. Hence, the current warming up that we are experiencing could simply just be a natural phenomenon. -this is technically true, but geologists can use patterns in rocks or glaciers to deduce the changes in global temperatures much further back. The spike we are seeing right now is definitely unprecedented (see the graph below with spike circled). Using cores taken from Antarctica, which date back 800,00 years, scientists can see how much carbon was deposited in the ice, and thus how much carbon was in the atmosphere.
5. Graphs taken from specific spots in the world don't show evidence of global warming; rather, they show the exact opposite. -it is not that simple! As stated two points ago, this is a worldwide average, not an average of a particular place. And, even if a place was cooler for the past five years, it has likely overall warmed up over the past fifty years. 6. Global warming is just a natural effect of the Ice Age. The Earth is still warming up from that time period, so global warming would have happened without humans. -maybe so, BUT, if you look at a graph of the rising temperature next to a graph of the increased amount of CO2 emissions, you will see that the curves are nearly identical. It cannot be a coincidence that the rate of increasing temperature corresponds exactly to our increased emissions. (See the graphs below. They detail the increase of carbon emissions and temperature rise from about 1860 to 2000. While, at first sight, the different jags and peaks are not necessarily the same, the average curve is).
-in an inspection of carbon isotopes, scientists have found something interesting. They are finding that the atmosphere is having less Carbon-13 isotopes than it did before--showing that fossil fuels, which have little C-13, may have played a part.,. Scientists now believe that fossil fuels are indeed causing climate change due to these isotope fluctuations. The graph below demonstrates quite nicely. When we have the highest levels of CO2, we find low levels of isotope C-13.
7. Over the last ___ years, there has been no temperature change at all! In many arguments like this, the time frame the arguer is putting forth is too small a time frame to show any change. One will need to look at a frame of at least 50 years to see the patterns. 8. If plants need carbon dioxide, then more carbon dioxide will help plants. A study showed that increased carbon dioxide improved plant growth. a. It is true that the carbon dioxide boosts plant growth. However, carbon dioxide has no use for plants if there is not also an increased amount of water for plants to use to synthesize glucose. Additionally the plants will need the water to make up for what is evaporated as heat rises. Biomes will also shift as the heat rises, making the soil conducive to some plants and not others.
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