Running

Head: CLIMATE CHANGE & GLOBAL WARMING

Climate Change and Global Warming

Eduardo Garcia, Haley Garcia, Evelyn Sanchez, Zath Mendoza

The University of Texas at El Paso

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Abstract

This paper focuses on four different concerns related to climate change, these are:

evidence that prove climate change is real, the benefits of acting against climate change, how

areas contribute to climate change and pollution, and the human factors that affect global

warming. It provides general background on greenhouse gases and the problem with carbon

dioxide pollution and states the significance of decreasing the use of many gases affecting the

Earth’s atmosphere. Further reading of this paper will show the three main benefits (relating to

money, health, and the life of plants and animals) or advantages of stopping, or simply delaying

global warming. The third part of the piece focuses on the different way areas contribute to

pollution: industrialization, mining, and agriculture in different nations. Lastly, this paper also

provides information on how humans contribute to climate change – the biggest one is pollution

created by mankind consumption and production.

Key words: climate change, global warming, carbon dioxide, greenhouse gases, atmosphere,

agriculture, industrialization, pollution, humans, issues, factors

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Climate Change and Global Warming

Global Warming is a very important issue in today’s society that still remains a

controversial topic, despite all the evidence. Glaciers have shrunk, the sea level has risen 3

inches since 1993, global temperature has risen along with the oceans’ and the presence of arctic

ice have declined rapidly. There are many extreme changes that our planet has endured such as

weather, temperature and land which all have had an effect on all forms of life. Due to climate

change, various animals have become extinct, plant growth has been altered, and even the food

and water we consume has been contaminated. This is largely due to the greenhouse gases and

fossil fuels that we have been exhausting and producing over the years. Aside from all this proof

and having a president that does not believe in global warming, the rest of the world is

contributing, working together and trying to find new ways to save our planet. If we don't act

now, the global temperature will continue to rise for decades to come causing more extinction,

failure in plant growth and more contamination in the products we consume. In order to better

inform the public on this worldwide predicament further research was conducted to answer the

four major questions listed below:

1. What is the evidence that shows climate is changing?

2. What are the benefits of acting on climate change now?

3. How do different regions/areas contribute the climate change and pollution?

4. What are the human factors that affect climate change?

What is the evidence that shows climate is changing?

According to The Global Climate Change on NASA website (2019), the planet’s average

temperature has been slowly rising since the late 19th century due to large amounts of carbon
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dioxide from human-made products that produce it into the atmosphere. (Climate change

evidence, 2019). The production of carbon has become a big issue within each community as we

continue to go forward with production of resources such as cars, gas, and machinery that create

carbon dioxide. Many of the greenhouse gases such as nitrogen, carbon (carbon dioxide) and

methane create a blanket and trap the sun’s heat and with more production of those gases, the

temperature will rise on the earth’s surface. There is also more evidence that climate change is

taking effect such as, “changes in the dates when lakes and rivers freeze and their ice melts, a

reduction in the extent of snow cover in the Northern Hemisphere and a reduction in glaciers”

(Evidence for climate change, 2018). There are endless amounts of factors that show evidence

that climate change and global warming is continuing to take effect. For example, since the

industrial era started in 1750, humans have contributed by adding CO2 into the atmosphere.

“Atmospheric CO2 concentrations have increased by more than 40% since pre-industrial times”,

according to the United States Environmental Protection Agency. In Figure 1, it shows the

amount of carbon dioxide from around 400,00 years ago to the present day. There has been a

steady line for thousands of year until the year 1950 to the present day, the carbon dioxide levels

have risen passed that line and continue to grow. Other evidence shows that Methane (CH4)

concentrations, have increased during the 20th century and it has been more than ever. It is now

more than two-and-a-half times pre-industrial levels which will continue to increase if no one

does anything about it. There are also other climate forces like human activities, Black Carbon

which is not a gas but also contributes to warming of the atmosphere which the black carbon and

methane impacts the Arctic significantly. With the increase of greenhouse gases, global warming

will increase as well and there are plenty of ways to decrease these natural and some human

factors.
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Figure 1

What are the benefits of acting on climate change now?

Climate change and global warming are two of the biggest issues this Earth has been, and

is currently, going through. To clarify, according to Nasa (2019), climate change is the “global

phenomena…which add heat-trapping gases to Earth’s atmosphere…” while global warming

refers to “long-term warming of the planet since the 20th century…due to the increase in fossil

fuel emissions…” so what are the benefits of acting on both climate change and global warming

early? For starters, climate change is costing different regions of the United States alone a lot of

money for different reasons, such being: coastal areas being threatened by high waters, rising sea

level, and constant hurricanes, Midwest areas are affected by heat waves, pests, or flooding that

damage crops, and finally the West areas like California are currently being affected by droughts

and multiple wildfires – if climate action doesn’t take place, according to a study, these
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communities might even lose a total of “1.4 percent of GDP by 2025 and 1.9 percent of GDP by

2100.” (Top 10 Benefits of Climate Action, 2009). On a positive note, taking action against

climate change and global warming can not only avoid the high costs of climate change but can

also create jobs and bring income to households. According to the UCS, or Union of Concerned

Scientists, from 2007 to 2008 alone, the solar industry has created more than fifteen thousand

jobs and the wind industry has provided a solid 35,000 jobs. Thus, using this standard statistic, if

the U.S Government required the nation to “produce 25 percent of all electricity from renewable

sources by 2025, [they] would create nearly 300,000 new U.S. jobs.” This would generate a total

of 263 billion dollars in capital investment, 14 billion dollars in income for U.S. rural

landowners, and 12 billion dollars in new local tax revenues. (Top 10 Benefits of Climate

Action, 2009).

Public health is a concern to everyone, or at least it should be. If climate change

continues to go unchecked, the health of the world’s population would immensely decrease

leading to a devastating number in deaths and illnesses. As stated by the UCS, “reducing our

emissions through a shift to cleaner forms of energy will not only help slow global warming but

will also improve air quality…” A healthy air quality number ranges from 0 to 100, anything

above 100 is unhealthy, could be highly hazardous, and can affect children, the poor, and elderly

the most resulting in more people suffering from respiratory, cardiovascular and heat-related

health issues. “Reducing our emissions through a shift to cleaner forms of energy… will reduce

the amount of mercury and other heavy metals - by-products of coal-fired power plants – that

enter our air, water, and food.” (Top 10 Benefits of Climate Action, 2009).

Acting against climate change now will not only save the people from the dangers of

pollution and other hazardous material created by global warming but it will also keep the
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animals and precious ecosystems of this planet alive, safe, and healthy. People tend to

underestimate the vitality of some of these species of plants and animals when they should also

be a main concern. Modern medicine relies on plants to create the medicine a person might need

to survive which is why people need to act now. Ecosystems such as the coastal barrier reef

provide communities with safety against storm surges, wetlands, and some even filter impurities

from water, they help in their own little way. In order to obtain lumber, forests are needed but

wood cannot be provided if droughts, wildfires, and pests keep threatening the land. “Warming

temperatures…threaten oceans, lakes, and rives which sustain our fisheries.” This being stated, if

global temperatures keep rising, a percentage of plants and animals could become extinct in less

than 30 years. (Top 10 Benefits of Climate Action, 2009).

How do different areas/regions contribute to climate change and pollution?

There are various ways that our planet is being polluted and different regions of the world

contribute in different ways to cause climate change. These contaminated areas ultimately spread

throughout our planet creating a worldwide problem that continues to gradually worsen over

time. Different regions of the world add to pollution through industrialization, gold mining,

overpopulation and agriculture production (just to name a few). These contaminates are

produced all over the world but can be more potent than others and are damaging our ozone

layer. Natural resources such as oxygen, water and soil are negatively impacted and contribute to

the changes in our climate.

Industrialization concerns every nation because it is produced in every country on this

planet. The process of industrialization cannot be done unless it is applied by human civilization.

Thus, leading us to look at China, the country with the largest population. Since China is an over
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populated country, it demands for rapid production of industrialization to keep up with its

growth. As I said previously, industrialization is a big contributor to pollution. Rapid

industrialization leads to the over use of natural resources and contamination. Heavy metals,

harmful chemicals and radioactive waste deplete the environment. The air is polluted with these

substance, which can travel half way around the world before descending into rain water and

contaminating lakes and rivers. (Olden, 1995) In fact, Chinas water surface is indefinitely

contaminated with lead, cadmium and arsenic.

Different regions participate in pollution in different ways. For example, in Brazil gold

mining contaminates the environment and atmosphere. Gold mining is the process of gold

extraction. In order to retrieve gold, it goes through a process of mixtures that include harmful

substances such as cyanide, arsenic and mercury. Mining water (any water within a reservoir

located near goldmines), have been tested and are laced with these chemicals. Once again,

corrupting earth’s natural resources and polluting our air we breathe, water we drink and any

plant or wildlife that may come into contact with it. But gold mining is only one of the many

ways that results in contamination of rivers. Agricultural pollution is another form of

contamination that negatively impacts our world to a great extent.

Agriculture is a process practiced throughout the entire world that includes the

preparation and use of soil for growing crops and the rearing of animals to provide for food and

cloth. Although agriculture is important because it is our main source to food, it essentially does

numerous amounts of damage to our environment and ecosystem. Eutrophication is a national

problem where lakes and rivers contain excessive amounts of nutrients causing a lack of oxygen

in the water This process happens after agriculture is practiced. Nutrients eventually wash off

crops due to rainfall and runoff in to the lakes and rivers nearby. An alarming 24% of land on
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earth is used for agricultural purposes and is growing fast as the population continues to increase.

The production of meat has the biggest impact on our environment than any other form of food,

resulting in 18% of the total global greenhouse gas emissions. (Baker, 2015)

What are the human factors that affect climate change?

There are many factors or reasons that affect climate change around the world. One very

important factor that humans cause is pollution, which can be done through many different types

of ways. One huge way that this is caused is through all the natural gasses and fossil fuels that

we are using and burning into our atmosphere which is creating the greenhouse effect. It may not

seem like a big deal since we use it constantly to sustain our daily lives but because of this it has

caused our ozone layer to thin and even open. This then causes for more ultra violet light beams

to enter the atmosphere and increase the temperatures around the world. This may not seem like

a big deal, but this is the reason why ice bergs have been melting around the world which has

been causing ocean levels to rise and slowly continue to increase as the years go by. American

scientist Charles David Keeling conducted an experiment showing that us humans have

increased the amount of Co2 that we put into the atmosphere and showed that the average

amount of Co2 in the atmosphere has increased as well (2019). Meaning if we don’t stop these

numbers will continue to rise and same for our temperature causing global warming and climate

change to become even worse. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration also

shows a graph of how due to these changes, the average temperatures around the world has

slowly been increasing from 1880 to 2017.

The Union of Concerned Scientist have also stated that due to humans burning Co2 into

the atmosphere that every year since 1977 has increased in temperature (2017). They also stated
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that 16 out of the 17 warmest years have happened since 2001 and making 2016 the warmest

year on record so far (2017). Proving that if we continue at this rate it is only going to get

warmer and temperatures will continue to rise. They also stated that when they did an experiment

in 2016 showing what would have happened if they didn’t have any emission of burning coal or

oil 13 out of the 15 warmest years would never have had happened (2017). They also state that

from 2001 to 2013 human factors of increasing climate change have increased from 67% to 91%

from 1951 (2017). Showing that we are the reason why climate change has become such a huge

problem to deal with now. They also stated that Co2 levels in the atmosphere have risen form

280 parts per million in 1750 to 400 parts per million now and will continue to rise (2017). They

also stated that in 2016 the world reached a no point of return for Co2 concentration in air

(2017). Meaning the concentration of Co2 in the air can and will continue to increase but if we

do everything possible to reduce it, we can’t. It will never go under 400 again only stay or be

maintained at it.

Conclusion

While some tragedies are unavoidable and inevitable, lowering emissions and doing the

most to stop global warming is still necessary for us - the people, the animals, and the plants to

survive on this beautiful planet. Having a fighting chance, even if it’s a low one, is still a chance,

and diminishing climate change and global warming is the goal – no matter how big or small the

change is. The evidence is all there, the facts have been stated, and the fight has begun, all a

person has to do is listen and join the group of people trying to make a change.
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Reference

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Baker, Keli, "The Truth About Organic: Sustainability, Practice, and Perception" (2015).

Undergraduate Honors Theses. 826. https://scholar.colorado.edu/honr_theses/826

Climate change evidence: How do we know? (2019, February 25). Retrieved from

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