Introduction
Global warming signifies the continued heating of the surface of the earth and the entire environment, which encompasses ice caps and oceans to mention a few. The global increase in atmospheric temperature has been evidently discerned in recent times. Consistent with the Environmental Protection Agency, the average temperature of the earth’s surface rose by about 1.4 degrees Fahrenheit in the last century and is expected to rise by a further 2 to 11.5 degrees Fahrenheit in the next century. Global warming is triggering climate change and causing problems such as hurricanes being more powerful and life-threatening (Nordhaus 15-16). People ought to be informed and empowered for the effective prevention of increased global warming.
Main body
Global warming is mainly caused by human activities with the commonest one being greenhouse gases. The existence of different aerosols in the ambiance is leading to a rise in the temperature of the earth. Emissions released into the atmosphere by the different modes of transport create pollutants that become converted to aerosols after ensuing chemical reactions (Revesz et al. 173-174). The increased level of greenhouse gases was evident in the twentieth century due to the rise in population and consumption of energy.
The enhanced demand for industrialization in contemporary times to satisfy human needs is resulting in the release of greenhouse gases through numerous industrial practices. Some of the greenhouse gases that contribute to global warming include nitrous oxide, methane, halocarbons, chlorine, and chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) among others. When such greenhouse gases become collected in the atmosphere, they disturb the radiative stability of the ambiance.
Depletion of the ozone layer is another effect of global warming. The ozone layer is getting depleted each day through the increased release of chlorofluorocarbons (Nordhaus 15). Chlorofluorocarbon gas is released through human activities such as in refrigerators’ use and aerosol propellants while industries are cleaning fluids. The gradual release of the gas decreases the ability of the ozone layer to protect the earth’s surface through inhibition of the sun’s harmful rays from reaching the earth. In this regard, harmful ultraviolet rays of the sun enter the biosphere and become absorbed by greenhouse gases hence increasing the temperature of the earth’s surface. Researchers have established that the size of the ozone hole is more than twofold the size of Antarctica (over 25 million km2).
Awareness programs aimed at reducing global warming through such approaches as embracing practices that decrease the emission of greenhouse gases should be facilitated and undertaken by government organizations, nongovernmental organizations, and private sectors. Some effects of global warming cannot be reversed, for instance, the melting of ice caps. Nevertheless, people should try their best to prevent worsening of the damages by lessening the human activities that cause global warming.
For example, rather than making use of electrical energy people should start using clean energy such as the one produced through the wind, solar, and geothermal systems (Smith and Leiserowitz 937-939). Decreasing the rate of oil and coal burning and the application of electrical devices amid other practices internationally may diminish global warming to an undamaging level.
Conclusion
Global warming denotes the persistent heating of the surface of the earth, which includes ice caps and oceans to mention a few. It is mainly caused by human actions with the greatest being greenhouse gases. For the successful prevention of global warming, people ought to be enlightened and empowered. Awareness programs that seek to reduce global warming through such ways as the implementation of techniques that decrease the emission of greenhouse gases should be facilitated and carried out by government organizations, nongovernmental organizations, and other stakeholders.
Works Cited
Nordhaus, William. A Question of Balance: Weighing the Options on Global Warming Policies. Yale University Press, 2014.
Revesz, Richard, et al. “Global Warming: Improve Economic Models of Climate Change.” Nature, vol. 508, no. 7495, 2014, pp. 173-175.
Smith, Nicholas, and Anthony Leiserowitz. “The Role of Emotion in Global Warming Policy Support and Opposition.” Risk Analysis, vol. 34, no. 5, 2014, pp. 937-948.