Writing Feedback /
About "climate change and Fossil fuels" - what is causing climate change, human role [NEW]
Examine the role of one human activity in causing climate change, and discuss how further deterioration may be prevented in this area
Climate is the average pattern of weather over the long term.The earth's climate has warmed and cooled for millions of years, since long before we appeared on the scene. There's no doubt that the climate is growing warmer currently; indications of that change are all around us. Since 19th century, human activities have became a important reason of the global climate change, especially about the global warming. This essay will talk something relate to fossil fuel and climate change.
The global warming has two reasons:the natural climate change and the human activity influence. The global climate changes for millions of years, it was a long time change, but today, the human activity speed up the pace of global warming. During the 20th century, the earth surface temperature increased about 0.74 centigrade degree. But in the 21st century the earth surface temperature might increase a further 1.1 to 6.4 centigrade degree.(IPCC 2007-05-04).
Since 19th century, the fossil fuel play a very important role in the modern society, especially in last 20 years, With the development of urbanization and industrialization, the demand for fossil fuel increases. Burning the fossil fuel will produce some greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide and nitrous oxides. As the carbon dioxide increases, the aerosphere can absorb more heat from solar radiation and earth surface radiation. It influences the Earth's energy balance, so the global surface temperature become higher and higher. The greenhouse effect can lead to the Vanishing Ice, which will cause the sea level to rise and imperil human life who live near the seaside. Actrully it named "sea level change", if the sea level continue to rise with the high speed, The Republic of Maldives might be submerged, in next 50 years. The Vanishing Ice also imperil the life of animal, such as polar bears and penguins.
In the last 4 years, the number of cars in Beijing has doubled, the increase of car also raise the demand for fossil fuel increases. Car's exhaust has many nitrous oxides and sulphur dioxides which can lead to the acid rain. The acid rain can corrodes our building especially many precious sculpture, damages forest and other vegetables and crops, pollute the earth's surface water and kill aquatic animals, lead to the soil acidification , and causes traffic accidents because of poor viability. The acid rain is also bad for human health. It can lead to the skin cancer and other skin disease. The large number of cars can also lead to the urban heat island effect. "An urban heat island is a metropolitan area which is significantly warmer than its surrounding rural areas."(from wikipedia) The urban heat island effect is very similar to the greenhouse effect, but it is just effect on the city and its surrounding areas not the earth. The urban heat island is a part of the global warming, and it is also bad to the human. For example, the photochemical smog which killed more then 400 people in Los Angeles in 1955 is resulted from the urban heat island. The urban heat island cause the high temperature and the fresh air can't circulate with the air in the city, so the polluted air with much nitrous oxides and sulphur dioxides influenced by the high temperature and the sunshine, the photochemical smog has been produced.
Actually burning of fossil fuels has bring too much disaster to the earth. For example, "In the United States, more than 90% of greenhouse gas emissions come from the combustion of fossil fuels." (US EPA.2000. Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks). Burning of fossil fuels can also produce many polluted air, such as nitural oxides, sulphur dioxides and heavy metals. It must be paid more attention. If not, the climate change must be much worse then before. Here is some ways about how can further deterioration be avoided in the fossil fuels' part.
Fossil fuels can supply the energy for human. It is the reason why human regards the fossil fuels as the most important resource. But burning fossil fuels can produce many kinds of polluted air, so, the best way might be change the energy structure of the industry or some others field. Actually we have a variety of new energy to choose, such as solar energy, wind energy, tidal energy, geothermal energy and nuclear energy. In fact, the natural gas is one of the clean energy, because when natural gas burned, it only produces carbon currents and water, without any polluted air. Even though natural gas can produce the carbon currents which paly a very important roles in global warming, but it is also better than the coal or oil in some ways. For someone who wants to buy a car, the new energy cars might be the beat chioce, such as electric cars or natural gas, by the way, may be we can drive the solar cars in the future.As a new energy,In fact, the nuclear technology is not maturity enough and the nuclear energy is still very dangerous, so, the nuclear energy has a long way to go. To the average person, the nuclear energy is pretty far from them.In the whole world, pay carbon credits is very popular. For country, it is a nice way to limits some company and impel them to develop their technology and reduce the carbon dioxide emission to earn much money. For people, everyone can pay their own carbon credits and use the money to plante more tree.
In summary, the global climate change is a long term process, the human activity can influence the change's speed. Even though, nowadays, the global climate apearing a bad situation, but to humam, they also have enough time to correct their mistake and do much better then before. In next 10years, the fossil fuels might still play a most important role in the energy field, but I believe that new energy would replace the fossil fuels.