It is true that human activities are a greater influence on climate

change compared to natural causes. Climate change refers to the change

of climatic patterns in the long term. Human activities such as the burning
of fossil fuels, deforestation, changing the use of land leads to the
enhancing of greenhouse effect. The effect will speed up the rate of
climate change.
Human activities have caused the increase in greenhouse effect in
the atmosphere which has contributed to climate change. The burning of
fossil fuels produces a large amount of energy that is important for human
activities. However burning of fossil fuels produces a large amount of
carbon dioxide which contributes to global warming, in other words
climate change. Carbon dioxide is huge contributor of greenhouse gases.
Deforestation is another factor that contributes greenhouse gases to
the atmosphere. Forests absorb carbon dioxide through the process of
photosynthesis. With deforestation going on, fewer trees and plants are
left to absorb all the remaining carbon dioxide. This leads to an increase in
carbon dioxide level in the surroundings. Deforestation also exposes the
soil to sunlight, causing carbon oxidation and the causes more carbon
dioxide to be released into the atmosphere. About the size of South Africa
of forests have been lost since the 1990s. The greatest overall loss of
forests occurs in South America followed by South-East Asia. Forests are
cleared to make room for more human activities such as agriculture and
commercial development.
The development of land into agricultural and industrial areas has
contributed to the increase of greenhouse gases. The production of crops
and raising of livestock on agriculture land releases more greenhouse
gases. Tractors on farm runs on fossil fuels which release carbon dioxide,
the use of inorganic fertilisers increases the amount of nitrous oxide in the
soil which is released when the soil is ploughed. Animals such as cattle
also release a large amount of methane gas. The production of goods and
services in industries also causes the emission of greenhouse gases.
Activities such as manufacturing involves burning of fossil fuels which also
releases carbon dioxide.
Although human activities have a great influence, there are also
natural causes of climate change. One natural cause is volcanic eruption.
Volcanic eruptions have an impact on the climate. For example, during the
eruption of Mount Pinatubo in the Philippines in 1991, 17 million tonnes of
sulphur dioxide was released into the atmosphere, spreading around the
earth and reflected solar energy back to space. This process lowers the
temperature of the northern hemisphere by about 0.6 degree Celsius.
However, the influence of natural causes on climate change is
minimal. The global climate returned to its original state two years after
the eruption. Natural causes are also part of the cyclical global warming

and cooling which has occurred over hundreds to millions of years. It is

therefore true that human activities have a greater influence on climate
change than natural causes.