Environmental Law and Policy - Research Paper Example

Global Warming Introduction For over a hundred years, humans have understood the possibility of atmospheric warming due to anthropogenic carbon dioxide emissions. As early as 1896, Swedish chemist Svante Arrhenius predicted that a doubling of atmospheric carbon dioxide would raise average global temperatures by 4.95 degrees C (9.0 degrees Fahrenheit) (Valente, 1995). The greenhouse effect, a natural phenomenon that has allowed the development of life on earth, is thought by many scientists to have been radically altered by humankind’s impact on the composition of the atmosphere. The problem lies in humans’ effects on the dynamic nature of the heat exchange process of the sun, earth, and black space. These alterations threaten to transform the global environment. As one author imagined it, “The year is 2035. In New York, palm trees line the Hudson River … Phoenix is in its third week of temperatures over 130 degrees … Holland is under water. Bangladesh has ceased to exist … in central Europe and in the American Midwest, decades of drought have turned once fertile agricultural lands into parched deserts (Rifkin, 1988).” Composition of Greenhouse Gases Methane and carbon dioxide primarily constitute the greenhouse gases. They also consist of water vapor and trace amounts of other gases including ozone, nitrous oxide, and HCFCs. Greenhouse gases “trap” some of the sun’s infrared radiation within Earth’s atmosphere, similar to a greenhouse. As the levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere increase, they trap more of the sun’s heat in the earth’s atmosphere, which has a number of effects on the earth’s environment. Were it not for greenhouse gases, most of the sun’s energy would radiate back out into space, leaving the earth cold and lifeless with an average temperature of minus 18 degrees C (0.4 degrees Fahrenheit) (Miller). Global Warming and Human Activities IIt is important to note that greenhouse gases produced by industrial processes (such as HCFCs) trap more heat than other greenhouse gases—up to several hundred times more heat than some naturally occurring ones like CO2. Scientists know for certain that human activities are changing the composition of Earth's atmosphere. Increasing levels of greenhouse gases, like carbon dioxide (CO2 ), in the atmosphere since pre-industrial times have been well documented. There is no doubt this atmospheric buildup of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases is largely the result of human activities. Combined with unnaturally elevated levels of naturally occurring gases, global warming is exacerbated by anthropogenic emissions of additional greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. To illustrate the problem, under pre-Industrial Revolution conditions, global levels of carbon dioxide were around 275 parts per million (ppm). Carbon dioxide levels increased from 275 ppm to 346 ppm between 1860 and 1986, primarily due to the burning of fossil fuels and deforestation (Flavind & Tunali, 1995). Plants convert carbon dioxide to oxygen and are one effective way to absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Deforestation has resulted in a reduction in the carbon dioxide to oxygen conversion. It is estimated that deforestation contributes 1.0 to 2.5 billion tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually (Oppenheimer & Boyle, 1990). It is thought that global levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere will reach 550 ppm sometime between 2040 and 2100; however, most analysts believe those levels will be reached closer to the middle of the twenty-first century (Rifkin). It is estimated that over the next 100 years the temperature will increase about 1.98 degrees C (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit). Such a severe temperature change would most likely cause an increase in heat waves and drought, the spread of infectious diseases, and the disruption of ecosystems worldwide. Furthermore, increased global temperatures is causing the melting of ice in both polar regions, resulting in a rise in sea level, predicted by climatologists to be up to 1.5 to 3 feet by the end of the next century (Lynch, 1998). A rise of 1.5 to 3 feet would devastate coastal areas around the world and cause hundreds of billions of dollars in damage. In 1987 the president of the Maldives, an island nation in the Indian Ocean, gave an impassioned plea to the United Nations to act on global warming. The estimated rise in sea level due to global warming would completely submerge the low-lying Maldives Islands as well as most of the world’s great seaports including New Orleans, Amsterdam, and Shanghai (Mansfield). In 1995, the Alliance of Small Island States met in Berlin to discuss global warming and its potential to affect sea levels. The 30-member alliance pushed for a global 20 percent reduction of man-made greenhouse gas emissions from 1990 to 2005. The European Union’s plan for greenhouse gas reduction is a bit less enthusiastic, calling for emission levels to be lowered 15 percent from 1990 to 2010. The United States is far behind the rest of the industrialized world; President Clinton advocated a plan that would hold emission levels steady at 1990 levels until 2008 (Lynch). President George W. Bush has not pursued any additional initiatives in this area and has expressly come out against the Kyoto Protocol to reduce carbon dioxide emissions that would help slow the accelerated global warming trend. Moreover, the predicted increase in global temperature will also result in a negative impact on agriculture in a number of regions. In the Midwestern United States, where much of the land is dependent on irrigation from groundwater, farming would become impractical if recharge levels are not met due to changing weather patterns that could result in severe hydrological drought. All over the world, food production would become erratic, reflecting the changed weather patterns. The impact on agriculture would be particularly severe, because most food is grown in the middle or higher latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere where the greatest impact from increased temperatures would be felt. If climatic zones were to shift northward rapidly, animals, and particularly plants, would have a difficult time adapting to the change. This would lead to a significant loss in species variety and genetic diversity. Deforestation of rain forests largely for agricultural development is also related to accelerated global warming in several important respects. It is occurring in many parts of the world and is particularly intense in the less developed countries even though reforestation is the primary means of effectively reducing carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Worldwide rates of deforestation are about 10 times the rate of reforestation. According to the World Resources Institute, approximately 27 million acres of forest is being lost every year. Resolution The global warming problem is a classic example, and also one of the most frightening examples, of the environmental policy paradox. As an EPA policy analyst once wrote, “[G]lobal warming is an international problem that will require extensive and unprecedented cooperation … [N]o single country, acting alone, will be able decisively to affect the problem (Fisher).” Another author described the policy environment surrounding the amplified greenhouse effect as “the catch 22 of the greenhouse (Stefi Weisburd, 1985).” As there is some scientific uncertainty about the exact timing and nature of global warming and what impact it would have on a region-by-region basis, policy makers continuously wait for additional research to be completed. Although there have been scientific conferences and international cooperation to study the effects of anthropogenic global warming, the attitude of many governments has been one of “wait and see,” and requests for further study. For example, the U.S. Congress passed the Global Climate Protection Act of 1987, which, despite its high-sounding title, basically called for a study and report on the greenhouse problem (Global Climate Protection Act of 1987). Some limited progress has been made internationally on the control of greenhouse gases however. At the 1992 UN Conference on Environment and Development in Rio de Janeiro (often referred to as the Rio Conference), 154 nations agreed to report each year on changes in their carbon emissions. Although this information was thought to be useful and would lead to further attempts to deal with global warming, this was only a reporting requirement on one substance and hence was what we might have expected when dealing with sovereign states attempting to manage an international common pool problem (Brown, 1993). Herein lies the paradox. When the uncertainties have been resolved, it may be too late to prevent or prepare for the negative impacts of global warming (Embler et al, 1986). Works Cited Christina M. Valente and William D. Valente, Introduction to Environmental Law and Policy (New York: West Publishing, 1995), p. 338. Jeremy Rifkin, “The Doomsday Prognosis,” The Guardian, August 21, 1988, p. 19. Miller, Living in the Environment, p. 440. Christopher Flavin and Odil Tunali, “Getting Warmer: Looking for a Way Out of the Climate Impasse,” World Watch (March–April 1995), p. 10. Michael Oppenheimer and Robert Boyle, Dead Heat: The Race against the Greenhouse Effect (New York: Basic Books, 1990), p. 57. Rifkin, “The Doomsday Prognosis,” p. 19; and Miller, Living in the Environment, p. 441. Colum Lynch, “The Mechanics of a Warming World,” Amicus Journal (Winter 1998), p. 19. William H. Mansfield, III, “With a Global Focus,” EPA Journal, 15 (1) (January/February), p. 37. Colum Lynch, Stormy Weather, Amicus Journal (Winter 1998), p. 16. Linda Fisher, “The Wheels Are Beginning to Turn,” EPA Journal, 15 (1) (January/February), p. 42. Stefi Weisburd, “Waiting for Warming: The Catch 22 of CO2,” Science News, 128 (September 14, 1985), p. 170. Global Climate Protection Act of 1987. Lester R. Brown, “A New Era Unfolds,” in Lester R. Brown et al. (eds.), State of the World (New York: Norton, 1993), p. 3. Lewis M. Embler, Patricia L. Layman, Wil Lepkowski, and Pamela S. Zurer, “Social Economic Implications,” Chemical and Engineering News, 64 (November 24, 1986), pp. 36, 39. Read More