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Global Climate Change A Serious Threat to the Earth
Overview- Introduction of global climate change.
- Difference between weather and climate.
- Factors responsible for the global climate change.
- Explanation of the greenhouse effect.
- Factors responsible for the rising temperature of the Earth.
- Global climate change leads to various problems.
- Different ways to control the problem of global warming.
- The important steps taken by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change.
Global climate change is the long-term shift in weather patterns globally. It is a holistic concept which refers to the changes in a region's overall weather patterns including precipitation, temperature, cloud cover and other such conditions which prevail for a longer period of time. The concept emphasises on the change in Earth's average temperature.
Weather includes the short-term changes witnessed in a region's temperature, humidity, clouds and precipitation etc. The weather may vary from one day to another and morning to evening. However, the climate is the weather conditions prevailing over an area for a longer period of time.
Anything that has an impact on the amount of energy being absorbed and radiated from the Sun is a contributor to the global climate change. These changes can have short-term or long-term impacts. One such process is the greenhouse effect which leads to global warming. The human activities have led to the rise in the greenhouse gases which have resulted in global warming. The greenhouse gases include the carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide and fluorinated gases. The greenhouse gases have the potential to trap the heat in the atmosphere and keep the Earth warm. They capture the infrared radiations released by the surface of Earth and make the atmosphere warmer. The impact of the greenhouse gases is circulated through the water vapour in our atmosphere. A fact states that without the greenhouse gases, the Earth would have been a frozen planet.
So, the concern is not the presence of greenhouse gases but the human activities which are contributing to the rise of the same. The burning of fossil fuels is the largest source of the greenhouse gas, carbon dioxide. Besides deforestation, emissions from the vehicles and industrial effluents are some of the causes of the rising greenhouse gases in the atmosphere and choloroflorocarbons (CFCs) also lead to the ozone layer depletion.
Apart from the greenhouse effect, there are some natural causes for the global climate change. The changes in the internal climate system of the Earth may lead to the changes in the global climate. The fluctuations such as El Nino and La Nina lead to the interaction between the oceans and the atmosphere resulting in the variation of global temperature. Such variations last for several years. A small change in the Earth's orbit can have a direct impact on the amount of sunlight received by a region and the distribution of the seasons across the planet. Besides the Sun, there are other sources of energy on the Earth.
The geothermal energy produced due to the heat and decay of radioactive compounds below the surface of Earth is also one of the contributing factors to the rising temperatures. Volcanic eruptions also lead to the changes in the Earth's climate.
Over the years, the climate of the Earth has changed considerably. The Earth is warming. The small changes in the average temperature of the planet can lead to dangerous shifts in climate and weather. This is quite evident from the fact that there have been significant changes in the patterns of rainfall at certain places. These have resulted in droughts, floods or intense rains. The oceans are warming and becoming more acidic. The glaciers are melting, leading to the rise in the sea levels. The global climate change has led to the variations in the seasons, which have further led to the changes in the behaviour of different species.
If not checked timely, global climate change may lead to various problems, few of which are listed below
- Spread of vector borne diseases increase in weather events such as hurricanes, tornadoes, heavy rainfall and heat waves.
- An imbalance in the natural ecosystem.
- Expansion of sub-tropical deserts.
- Acidification of the oceans.
- Affect on the basic necessities such as water supplies, electricity and agriculture.
The Climate Change division of Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change is coordinating the National Action Plan on Climate Change to tackle the global issue on a national level. It has undertaken many new efforts under the National Action Plan which work around achieving eight missions namely; National Solar Mission, National Mission for Enhanced Energy Efficiency, National Mission on Sustainable Development, National Water Mission, National Mission for Sustaining the Himalayan Ecosystem, National Mission for a Green India, National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture and National Mission on Strategic Knowledge for Climate Change.
The Nation Action Plan on Climate Change pulls together all the mission bundled with effective implementation and additional efforts to reduce the stress of climate change.
The Paris Climate Change Agreement, within the aegis of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change is a giant leap in this direction. Under the agreement, the countries are expected to set their own targets for reducing emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases.
The target is not a legal binding, but the countries need to update them every five years. The agreement is scheduled to go into effect from 2020. It is only with the joint efforts of the people, countries and the global environment regulators that the problem of Global Climate Change can be reversed.
Difficult Words with Meanings :
- Holistic concerned with wholes rather than analysis or separation into parts
- Precipitation casting down or rolling headlong
- Effluents sewage or other liquid waste that is discharged into a body of water
- Geothermal relating to or produced by the internal heat of the Earth
- Eruptions an issuing forth sudden and violently outburst or outbreak
- Vector the direction or course followed
- Dire terrible
- Rebates a deduction from an amount to be paid or a return of part of an amount given in payment.
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