How Global Warming Effect the Environment

Charlotte Chiero Wk: 8 Assignment: Project 1-Research Project Global Warming Westwood College Global Warming is an increase in the Earth’s temperature that is caused by gases, chemicals, and heat trapped or introduced into the Earth’s atmosphere causing temperatures to increase. Everyone here on earth is responsible for Global Warming; it is something that we all are responsible for, instead of pointing the finger at each other we need to start working on a solution to slow down the warming effect in our country or world. If we do not become more educated on how we our destroying the world there will be nothing left.

Global Warming has become so bad that we cannot tell the difference between seasons and this is because of the damage that we have done to our earth resources. To understand the Global Warming effect we need to comprehend what man has done to this world first we have destroyed our trees and not planting new ones exposing the earth to all kinds of unsafe elements. This is called deforestation. So why are we doing this. According to the National Geographic this is for agriculture farmers cut forests to provide more room for planting crops or grazing livestock.

Often many small farmers will each clear a few acres to feed their families by cutting down trees and burning them in a process known as “slash and burn” agriculture. Logging operations, which provide the world’s wood and paper products, also cut countless trees each year. Forests are also cut as a result of growing urban sprawl. Deforestation has many negative effects on the environment. The most dramatic impact is a loss of habitat for millions of species. Seventy percent of Earth’s land animals and plants live in forests, and many cannot survive the deforestation that destroys their homes.

In addition deforestation also drives climate change. Forest soils are moist, but without protection from sun-blocking tree cover they quickly dry out. Trees also help perpetuate the water cycle by returning water vapor back into the atmosphere. Without trees to fill these roles, many former forest lands can quickly become barren deserts. Removing trees deprives the forest of portions of its canopy, which blocks the sun’s rays during the day and holds in heat at night. This disruption leads to more extreme temperatures swings that can be harmful to plants and animals.

Further more trees also play a critical role in absorbing the greenhouse gases that fuel global warming. Fewer forests mean larger amounts of greenhouse gases entering the atmosphere and increased speed and severity of global warming. The quickest solution to deforestation would be to simply stop cutting down trees. A more workable solution is to carefully manage forest resources by eliminating clear-cutting to make sure that forest environments remain intact. The cutting that does occur should be balanced by the planting of enough young trees to replace the older ones felled in any given forest.

What we have to remember is that not all deforestation is intentional. Some is caused by a combination of human and natural factors like wildfires and subsequent overgrazing, which may prevent the growth of young trees. We have also, introduced chemicals in the atmosphere that is destroying our ozone layers. Trying to find solutions to problems like this will take all of us to work together all over the world to slow down the hothouse effects. As I mentioned early this is why we need our trees to help filter out all these harmful chemicals that our world is exposed to.

Some of these chemicals are electricity from coal burning power plants releases enormous amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. According to Planet Save 40% of U. S. CO2 emissions come from electricity production, and burning coal accounts for 93% of emissions from the electric utility industry. Every day, more electric gadgets flood the market, and without widespread alternative energy sources, we are highly dependent on burning coal for our personal and commercial electrical supply.

Another is in the last half of the 20th Century; the use of chemical fertilizers (as opposed to the historical use of animal manure) has risen dramatically. The high rate of application of nitrogen-rich fertilizers has effects on the heat storage of cropland (nitrogen oxides have 300 times more heat-trapping capacity per unit of volume than carbon dioxide) and the run-off of excess fertilizers creates ‘dead-zones’ in our oceans. In addition to these effects, high nitrate levels in groundwater due to over-fertilization are cause for concern for human health. References: Planet Save. (n. d. ). Retrieved September 20, 2012, from Planet Save:

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