Global Warming as a Threat to Life on the Planet - Essay Example

I. Overview of Global Warming A. Climactic Changes Supporters 2 Detractors B. The reality of global warming C. Thesis ment: Although many argue that global warming is neither a reality nor a threat to human life and the earth’s ecosystem, scientific facts indicate the opposite and further evidence arguments to the effect that global warming is functioning as a direct and immediate threat to our environment and its delicate ecosystem. II. While scientists maintain that the impact of global warming will not be felt for years to come, its effect is visible in both changing average temperatures and the effect of these changes. A. Example: Moscow B. Laws of nature are violated III. Global warming, despite evidentiary support, is a source of controversy. A. Reality B. Myth 1 Earth temperatures have always experienced increases 2 Greenhouse gases have always existed C. Controversy over cause and consequences IV. While global warming is, in part, a natural phenomenon, it has been severely exacerbated and escalated by human activities. A. Natural levels of greenhouse gases warm the atmosphere: positive effect B. Unnatural levels heat the environment: negative effect. C. Statistics on increase. V. Certainly, greenhouse gases and global warming do not comprise novel phenomena but at their current levels, they are both novel and dangerous. A. Examples of consequences 1 Mt Kilimanjaro 2 Venezuelan glaciers 3 Melting ice 4 Heat waves B. Face of nature is rapidly changing due to rising temperatures. VI. In terms of figures, the average increase in temperatures does not sound excessive. A. Increase in Celsius B. Implications of increase. VII. Global warming, as briefly touched upon in the preceding paragraph, will have, and already has had, a detrimental impact upon agriculture and average productivity per acre. A. Decrease in rainfalls and impact on agriculture B. Consequences of decreased agricultural productivity VIII. In areas where freshwater tends to be scarce and the summer months long and dry, as in the Mediterranean countries, fears over the long-term consequences of global warming are very pronounced. A. Threat of drought B. Implications of drought IX. The fact that global warming is a threat to human life is evidenced in the impact it has had, and is likely to continue to have, on human health. A. Death B. Disease 1 Malaria 2 Denude fever 3 Cholera X. Proceeding from the above stated, global warming is a serious problem and it could very well be the greatest challenge confronting man’s continued survival and well-being. A. Global warming is a threat to 1 Health 2 Agricultural productivity 3 Economic activity 4 Ecosystem B. Global warming is a threat to life on this planet and, thus, must be confronted and resolved through preventative and corrective environmental policies. Irrespective of the fact that it has many deniers, including decision-makers and scientists, global warming is a reality. Year after year, one feels perceptible climate changes and season after season, the world witnesses freak storms and floods, not only in places where their occurrence is an anomaly but, at unexpected times. Global warming is threatening the earth’s ecological system and, should it continue at its present rate, will become a direct threat to the continuation of human life on this planet. Although many argue that global warming is neither a reality nor a threat to human life and the earth’s ecosystem, scientific facts indicate the opposite and further evidence arguments to the effect that global warming is functioning as a direct and immediate threat to our environment and its delicate ecosystem. While scientists maintain that the impact of global warming will not be felt for years to come, its effect is visible in both changing average temperatures and the effect of these changes. In 2005, Moscow, one of the world’s coldest cities, experienced one of the warmest winters in its history. Not only were temperatures high but these unusual temperatures were sustained for a lengthy period of time, with the consequence being a reversal of the normally consistent and unchanging laws of nature. Quite simply stated, Russian bears woke up fro their winter hibernation, in the midst of winter, as their body temperatures deluded their biological clocks into believing that spring, the season for waking up, had arrived (Stuff, 2006). This example, while seemingly inconsequential insofar as it has no embedded doomsday scenarios within it, is perfectly representative of what global warming is and what its effect on the environment can be. Indeed, just as Bongaart (1992) had warned several years ago, global warming has the power to upset the laws of nature and, in so doing, threaten all forms of life on earth. Global warming, despite evidentiary support, is a source of controversy. One camp insists that it is an undeniable reality whose consequences, although impossible to accurately assess, are bound to be disasterous if corrective and preventative policy are not adopted by governments across the world (McCarty, 2001). In direct comparison, there are those who insist that global warming is nothing other than a false alarm and is unsupported by scientific evidence (Bethell, 2005). While conceding to the presence of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere and even as they admit to temperature increases, this camp insists that greenhouse gases have always been present in the environment, insofar as they are a natural byproduct of human activity and life and the average temperatures have always experienced periods of slow and gradual increase, irrespective of human activity (Bethell, 2005). The implication here is that even though there is a general agreement regarding the presence of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere and of increasing average global temperatures, there is disagreement over cause and whether or not this is actually indicative of the existence of global warming. While global warming is, in part, a natural phenomenon, it has been severely exacerbated and escalated by human activities. As Bongaart (1992) explains, carbon dioxide has always been present in the atmosphere, as have other greenhouse gases. Their presence, within acceptable limits, warms the earth’s atmosphere and renders it more suitable to human life. Largely agreeing with this assessment, Exner (2005) maintains that, from the scientific perspective, greenhouse gases, such as which contribute to the warming of the atmosphere, play an integral role in the sustenance of life on earth. The implication here is that greenhouse gases such as which lead to the warming of the earth’s atmosphere is not categorically harmful and are definitely not new. They have always been presented and have played a positive role insofar as the support of life is concerned. What is new and what is negative is the escalation of the levels of greenhouses gases in the atmosphere. Several scientists and environmentalists have highlighted this particular point, maintaining that the natural release of greenhouse gases, within reasonable levels, into the earth’s atmosphere was a necessary precondition for life but its release in excessive quantities is warming the atmosphere beyond that which is considered necessary for the sustenance of life (Bongaart, 1992; McCarty, 2001; Exner, 2005). Indeed, as Bongaart (1992) explains, over the past century, the level of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere has increased by 25%. Consequently, the warming of the atmosphere has extended beyond the natural and entered into the unnatural – into the dangerous territory of global warming. Certainly, greenhouse gases and global warming do not comprise novel phenomena but at their current levels, they are both novel and dangerous. Whereas the former had previously contributed to the latter and had a positive effect on the planet’s ability to support life, present greenhouse gas levels are leading to global warming levels which are upsetting nature and changing the environmental conditions of the earth. Gupta (20060 outlines the consequences of the aforementioned in concrete terms which the average person, not just the scientist, can assimilate and, accordingly, comprehend the true magnitude of the problem. As she explains, incontrovertible scientific evidence indicates that since 1912, Mount Kilimanjaro has lost 75% of its ice cap and within the next few years, its snows will have completely melted. Over the past fifteen years, four of the six glaciers in Venezuela have completely melted. By 2070, the ice in the majority of national ice parks across north and south America will have melted. Added to that, in 2000, the United States experienced severe, and unprecedented, hot spells across much of the country, while in India 2,500 people died in one of the worst heat waves the country had ever experienced. The same holds true for Europe and, indeed, much of the world (Gupta, 2006). The aforementioned facts do not just furnish concrete evidence for the reality of global warming, nor do they simply establish the fact that the earth’s atmosphere is heating up. Instead, and of greater significance, they indicate the effects of global warming;. These effects, as illustrated, include both the changing of the face of the planet, as in the melting of snows and the loss of human life, consequent to man’s inability to tolerate heat beyond a certain level. In terms of figures, the average increase in temperatures does not sound excessive. As Gupta (2006) notes, increases have not exceeded the 2.5 degrees Celsius mark. That hardly sounds drastic. However, as both Thorngate (2006) and Houston and Wallace (2000) point out, were the earth’s temperatures to experience an annual increase of just .2 degrees Celsius, that would lead to a 2 degrees Celsius increase per decade. In the long run, this will be disastrous, whether as measured in terms of the impact on the ecology, agricultural cycles and productivity, or human life. There is, quite simply stated, very little room for continued global warming and without the immediate adoption of counter-measures, average temperatures will continue to increase and the ability of the planet to sustain life will continue to decrease. Global warming, as briefly touched upon in the preceding paragraph, will have, and already has had, a detrimental impact upon agriculture and average productivity per acre. Global warming, quite simply stated, implies decreased rain falls and a decreased ability to water agricultural lands as they should be. According to Cline (1996) as a direct result of the impact of global warming on rainfall levels, agricultural lands have lost an average of $100 per acre. In other words, average agricultural productivity per acre is decreasing at a time when global population figures are expanding and, naturally, the demand for food is increasing. Decrease in productivity is primarily affecting one of the most important of the crop families, grain, with the reason being that the aforementioned crop is extremely dependant on both water and stable temperatures. In the absence of both, consequent to global warming, crop lands across the world are producing increasingly smaller harvests, not to mention the periodic harvest failures which farmers are confronting more often than ever before (Cline, 1996). Consequently, the impact of global warming on agriculture is not something which is yet to happen at some distant point in the future but it is something which is already happening at this present time. In areas where freshwater tends to be scarce and the summer months long and dry, as in the Mediterranean countries, fears over the long-term consequences of global warming are very pronounced. Allen (2003, 359) contends that insofar as the named region is concerned, scientists “predict decreased precipitation and an increased risk of summer drought and therefore diminishing river flows and scarce water resources.” (359). The implications are very serious because they indicate that the region in question, as will probably be the case with others, will gradually loose its capacity to sustain its populations through agriculture as a source of food or agriculture as an economic activity. In other words, fears over global warming are not simply that average temperatures are increasing but that the consequences of the increase are a threat to human life and activity. The fact that global warming is a threat to human life is evidenced in the impact it has had, and is likely to continue to have, on human health. Apart from the fact that increasing numbers of people are dying as a result of heat waves, they are suffering the consequence of diseases which are spreading and proliferating because of increased temperatures. Monastersky (1996) the recipient of several awards for his research and articles on the impact of global warming on health, contends that global warming has significantly contributed to the proliferation of malaria, denude fever and cholera. The aforementioned increase has been attested to, according to Monastersky (1996) by several studies and is supported by empirical evidence. More importantly, the rise in the incidence rates of the named diseases is directly attributed to increases in global average temperatures. The implication, therefore, is that global warming is currently functioning as a direct threat to human health. Proceeding from the above stated, global warming is a serious problem and it could very well be the greatest challenge confronting man’s continued survival and well-being. Certainly, there are those who refuse to accept global warming as a reality, contending that it is neither a novel nor a threatening phenomenon but, concrete scientific facts effectively invalidate this position. Global warming is a reality and it is a serious threat, impacting all of human health, agricultural productivity, economic activity and the ecosystem. It is, in brief, a threat to life on this planet and, thus, must be confronted and resolved through preventative and corrective environmental policies. Sources Cited Allen, H. D. (2003) `Response of past and present Mediterranean ecosystems to environmental change.’ Progress in Physical Geography, 27(3). Anon (2005) `Warm Russian bear wakes.’ Stuff. Retrieved 1 May 2007 from http://stuff.co.nz/stuff/0,2106,3155308a4560,00.html Bongaarts, J. (1992) `Population growth and global warming.’ Population and Development Review, 18(2). Cline, W. R. (1996) `The impact of global warming on agriculture: Comment.’ The American Economic Review, 86(5). Exner, J. H. (2005) `Science and policy: Who speaks for science?’ Chemical and Engineering News, 83(50). Gupta, J. (2006) Our Simmering Planet. London: Zed Books. Houston, F. and Wallace, J. (2000) `Covering the Climate: Beware of False Conflict.’ Columbia Journalism Review, 38(6). McCarty, J. P. (2001) `Ecological consequences of recent climate change.’ Conservation Biology, 15(2). Monastersky, R. (1996) `How would global warming affect human beings.’ Science News Online. Retrieved 1 May 2007 from http://www.sciencenews.org/pages/sn_edpik/ee_2.htm Thorngate, S. (2006) `False stewardship.’ Sojourners Magazine, 35(8). Read More