Research Paper global warming PDF

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can individual stop global warming?...

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Dolma Sherpa Professor Krumrey English 101-23 27 April 2017 Research paper Can individual actions reduce global warming? How do we live with the fact that the world we knew is coming to end? This question really makes us think about the future of our earth and makes us want to do something to make earth a safe place to live. Our planet has been suffering from several problems such as climate change, global warming, pollution, deforestation etc which has led to other problems like extinction of biological species. So, we should take efforts now and try to solve these problems, in order to save Earth in future. As humans are responsible for all of this, they can also be the one to solve this problem. It is possible that the actions that individuals take can help reduce global warming. Global warming is not an issue which is new to us. For many years, scientists have warned us about what the future will bring and how will it be if current trends continue. “The global average temperature has increased by more than 1.5°F since the late 1800s. Some part of the world have warmed by more than this amount. Assuming a doubling in the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, the various models predict average rises of 4.2, 4.0, and 5.2 degrees C” (Pittock 25). Several experts say that with temperature and population increases, the earth will have a difficult time to get enough crops for this great number of people. All these changes in the climate are not just because of natural causes. Human activities are contributing to this change in climate.

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Human beings are the one who is responsible for all these problems. They do things that produce and emits carbon. Their behavior and their way of living are causing all of this environmental issues. Scientists are also confident than ever that humans are to blame for climate change. There are several evidence and reasons to support this. When we drive, power our homes with sources that pollutes air, we release different gases that heat and harm our planet.

“According to new data released by the Department of Transportation's Federal Highway Administration, Americans drove more than 3.15 trillion miles in 2015, equivalent to around 337 round trips from Earth to Pluto”(Kaenel). This driving habit has brought changes in the climate. The problem of climate change and global warming is increasing rapidly because of continuous carbon emission. Scientists also tell that carbon-dioxide has caused most of the warming. Also, burning fossil fuels such as coal or petroleum sends harmful gases like carbon-dioxide to the atmosphere. Another cause is the cutting down of the trees and clearing the forest for human purpose. Michael Pollan, in his article “Why Bother?”, also talks about how our planet Earth is at great risk because of continuous carbon emissions and still we, the people are doing nothing to stop it. All this explains how our everyday actions and industrial activities such as smokes from factories have led to global warming. “Individual actions can make a significant difference.We're not going to be able to solve the problem without a concerted and unified effort at reaching individuals and changing behavior in residential sectors, whether it's the compact fluorescent lightbulb or changing our use of two-cycle, highly polluting gas-powered lawn equipment." says Bill Burtis, communications manager for Clean Air-Cool Planet, an environmental group in Portsmouth, N.H. When he says this, he wanted to tell that the problem of climate change and global warming can be solved or reduced only with unified effort and if all the people are willing to work together to reduce their carbon footprint.

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But people individually can take steps and act against this problem and help to stop global warming. It may seem a bit impossible for one individual or family to directly reduce global warming, but our daily actions have a significant effect on the health of the planet. There are many things that people can do. The best place to start reducing our carbon footprint is right inside our home. Individuals can improve their home energy use. Excessive use of electricity and fuels pollutes the environment and emits more carbon. They can avoid excessive use of electricity and can start using energy-efficient appliances and compact fluorescent light bulbs etc. “If every U.S. home replaced a single lightbulb with a compact fluorescent bulbs, it would prevent the equivalent of the GHG emissions from more than 800,000 cars”(Gardner 5). Instead of using hair dryers to dry hair or washing machines and dryers to clean clothes, they can use traditional methods of hand washing and drying it naturally. People should also improve their driving habits. They can avoid the use of fossil fuels and petroleum products. Fossil fuels increases the levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere which is really harmful for the environment. It is also one of the main cause for the change of climate. To avoid climate change, people can start riding bikes or walk to their workplace or they can drive less and lessen the use of fuels. It will not only reduce our carbon footprint but also help to improve our overall health and people can save money on gasoline and parking. They can take public vehicles or carpool whenever possible. They can buy vehicles with better mileage and when travelling to long distances, they can take train or bus rather than flying. They can try using alternative source of energy like solar power which has no harmful effects to the environment. Another thing that helps in solving the global warming problem is peer pressure. Peer pressure helps to influence people. For example, when one person take actions to reduce global warming like using less electricity, driving less etc. , it can influence many other people to do the

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same. In the article “Why Bother?” by Michael Pollan, he says “If you do bother, you will set an example for other people. If enough other people bother, each one influencing yet another in a chain reaction of behavioral change, markets for all manner of green products and alternative technologies will prosper and expand”(Pollan) . This explains that peer

pressure helps to bring changes in people’s behavior and their way of living. So, one person can take the initiative and encourage others to take actions to stop global warming. Similarly, people can start living green, plant more trees and stop cutting down trees for their basic needs. This doesn’t mean they need to become vegetarians or vegans but they can decrease their intake of meat. It is because meat and dairy contribute to greenhouse gas emissions and global warming. Plants take in carbon-dioxide which is the most important greenhouse gas. So, planting more trees helps in reducing carbon-dioxide from the atmosphere and stop global warming. Deforestation should be discouraged and afforestation should be encouraged. Organizing various plantation programs and awaring public about climate change can also help in solving this problem. When we talk about the causes of climate change,one of the main cause is environmental pollution. Environmental pollution includes pollution of water, air, land etc. The growing population in the world has brought more pollution in the environment harming it in different ways. Pollution not only leads to global warming but also has several other bad effects. Increased pollution in the environment can harm the health of human as well as other creatures of the earth. Global warming leads to depletion of the ozone layer of the earth so the harmful rays can cause different skin disease among people.Water is the most important thing for living beings including all the species of the planet. So, we should conserve water and not waste it for unnecessary purposes. We can fix the drips and leaks and install low-flow shower heads and toilets because water conservation results in reduced energy requirements and emissions of carbon.

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Likewise, reducing the waste material and recycling paper products can also help minimize the carbon footprint. We can recycle all types of containers likes cans, bottles etc. because it saves energy and natural resources and help to reduce carbon emissions that contribute to global warming. When we reduce the consumption of energy, it reduces greenhouse gas emissions in the atmosphere. We can make green choices when shopping, driving, and spending time outside of our home. For this, we can buy products made up of recycled paper and food products which can support local farmers. We can bring our own reusable bags when we go shopping as it reduce plastic and paper waste and conserve energy. Government also plays a great role in reducing global warming. Government can make strict rules and laws regarding global climate change. Strict rules regarding pollution, deforestation, and energy use should be implemented. These rules will allow people to be more aware about what they are doing and how they behave. They will not do things that government restricts. There should also be punishment given to people who doesn’t follow the laws. Government itself should also take this issue seriously and work to solve this problem. There are also lots of things that government have been doing since long time ago. “According to the Climate Change Performance Index, which ranks countries on the basis of their greenhouse gas emissions and their actions to lower them, as well as renewable energy and energy efficiency, European nations are leading the way. Denmark is in the top, followed by the United Kingdom, Portugal, Sweden, Switzerland, Malta, France, Hungary, Ireland, and Iceland”(Mandel). In this way, if the government along with the people start taking steps to reduce climate change and focus on these issues more, there might come one day when we don’t have to worry about climate change and global warming. It is possible that the actions taken by individuals can help to reduce global warming and

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bring changes to the planet. But, there are some people who think it is not possible. Even though lots of people are aware about these environmental problems, and the change it has brought to our planet, they feel that it’s too late now to take action. When Pollan says, “According to one analysis, if walking to work increases your appetite and you consume more meat or milk as a result, walking might actually emit more carbon than driving”(Pollan 313), it makes us think if our attempts are positively affecting the environment or instead, it is bringing bad changes to the environment. There are also people who do not believe in climate change at all. They believe that climate change is not real but a hoax. They also believe that the change in the climate is a natural process of the earth. Climate change is a process which is part of nature and has been there from long time ago and all the news that we hear in the media are all unreal and are faked by people to gain profit. Saying all these things, they believe that individuals taking actions now to stop global warming is waste of time because it’s too late. Everyone has their own opinion and they have the right to think and believe what they think is good for them, so we cannot really say that they are wrong and what we think is right. We need to respect everyone’s opinion even if we have something different in mind. In my opinion, climate change is a serious problem and we should make efforts to solve this issue even if we’re late. Individuals can change their behavior of doing things like driving less, using less electronics, planting more etc. to reduce global warming. They can do things that produce less carbon and start taking actions to reduce these problems. Since, actions taken by individuals can reduce global warming and save the planet, everyone should do their part in preserving the planet Earth.

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Works Cited Billitteri, Thomas J. “Reducing your carbon footprint” CQ Researcher, Dec. 5, 2008 Brown, Marilyn A., et al. "Shrinking the Carbon Footprint of Metropolitan America" Brookings Institution, May 2008, p. 8. Clemmitt, Marcia. "Climate Change" CQ Researcher, Jan. 27, 2006, pp. 73-96. Gardner, Gerald T. and Stern, Paul C. "The Short List: The Most Effective Actions U.S. Households Can Take to Curb Climate Change" Environment, September/October 2008, www.environmentmagazine.org/Archives/Back%20Issues/SeptemberOctober%202008/gardner-stern-full.html Marx, Eric. "Are you ready to go on a carbon diet?" The Christian Science Monitor, Nov.

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10, 2008, www.csmonitor.com/2008/1110/p13s01-wmgn.html Pittock, A. Barrie. "Climate Change and World Food Supply." Environment November 1995 37:25-30. Pollan, Michael. “Why Bother?” The New York Times, April 20, 2008....