Global Warming and Its Consequences

As the sun shines down upon planet Earth, the water bodies and land radiate some of its heat back to space. However, the presence of gases like carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide in the atmosphere of the Earth tend to prevent such a deflection. An abundance of these gases act as a blanket over the earth, preventing it from cooling down completely. This in turn leads to an increase in the surface temperature of the planet. According to scientists, the atmosphere thus acts as a green-house that traps heat within the planet. These heat trapping gases are called greenhouse gases. 

 In the last 200 years, industrial development has enormously increased the quantity of carbon dioxide (a major greenhouse gas) in the atmosphere, which has in turn raised the average temperature of earth. This phenomenon is called global warming. Due to this, thousands of species of plants and animals have become extinct, and now the very survival of human beings is at stake.  Each decade is turning out to be warmer than the last one. The data record of temperatures reveals that the year 2005, was the warmest in 130 years, followed by the year 2009. Estimates say that by the end of 2100, average temperature will increase by 1.5 to 6 degrees centigrade.

The devastating consequences of global warming are evident, and in the near future irreparable loss is a given. Between the years 1970 to 2007, 40 percent of the ice in the Arctic Ocean melted. Molten ice-layers of Greenland and Antarctica are raising the temperature and level of sea water. Gradually melting glaciers across the world will continue to raise the level of sea water. Consequently, low altitude regions like China and other countries located in coastal areas will be submerged. Nearly 400 million people live in areas that are 5 meters or less in altitude, and there are one billion in areas within 25 meters of altitude above sea level. It thus seems likely that a large number of people will be rendered homeless because of the rise in sea levels. Around 90 per cent of the world's glaciers are receding across the globe. Himalayan glaciers are the perennial source of water for a large number of Asians. The shrinking of glaciers will lead to heavy floods on the one hand and scarcity of water on the other. The current scarcity of water in Peru and Bolivia, for instance, is the result of vanished glaciers. 

Melting Ice of Poles

The rise in temperatures will increase the humidity of the atmosphere, wreaking abrupt changes in climate. At the same time both floods and droughts will destroy lives and livelihoods within the same geographical area. This in turn will give rise to problems such as food crises and starvation, while taking the advantage of this situation, grain trading companies will make huge profit.

Carbon dioxide is the main cause of global warming. From 1750 (roughly the start of the industrial revolution) to 2007, atmospheric levels of carbon dioxide increased by 38 percent, methane by 150 percent and nitrous oxide by 16 percent. This fact reveals that 250 years of industrial development have resulted in disastrous consequences for our planet. Though profit-ridden capitalism brought advancement through industrial development, it was at the cost of uncontrolled carbon dioxide emissions, which is never controlled by capitalist class, greedy of super-profit. This is why carbon dioxide produced by transport, industries, power plants, home appliances and petroleum products contribute 73.7 per cent of the total greenhouse gas emissions, and there is no remedy to undo the levels of carbon dioxide currently present in the atmosphere.

Before the industrial revolution the relationship between man and nature was one of harmony as the harmful gases produced by humans and animals were balanced off by the abundant presence of trees. However, rapid industrialisation and deforestation irreversibly built up the stock-pile of carbon dioxide on Earth. There is no way out to reduce quantity of these gases from atmosphere. Additionally, these gases are still being emitted in large volumes. 

It is worth noting that every country and each individual of our planet is not equally responsible for carbon emissions. This is made clear from the following table:    

Top Seven Emitters in the World in 2014

Source: "CO2 time series 1990-2014 per region/country". Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency. 

The per capita carbon dioxide emission of countries of American camp like Kuwait, United Emirates of Arab, Bahrain and other petroleum producing countries is more than 30 tonnes. The per capita yearly carbon dioxide emission of USA, Canada, and Saudi Arab varies between 15-30 tonnes, while that of a developing country like India is less than 5 tonnes.

According to a report produced by Greenpeace India Society, October 2007, even the rich and poor of a country are not equally responsible for carbon dioxide emissions. The report suggests that the annual carbon dioxide emissions for a family earning Rs. 3,000 per month is 335 kilograms, while for a family whose earning is Rs. 30,000 per month (four times more than that of poor families) emits 1494 kilograms. From this fact it is clear that 15 percent of India's population, which owns cars, refrigerators, televisions, washing machines and other energy consuming home appliances, is mainly responsible for excessive emissions. But the price of such a lifestyle falls upon the poor, who lead low-impact lives and comprise 85 percent of the population.

Carbon dioxide emissions and correspondingly global temperatures are growing rapidly, leading to dangerous consequences. The ice-covered region of the Arctic Ocean, which normally would reflect heat out of the atmosphere like a mirror, is now obstructing it due to the adverse effects of global warming. Melting of ice in the north Tundra region releases methane gas, which warms the earth even more rapidly than carbon dioxide. Moreover, the increased quantity of carbon dioxide absorbed by the ocean makes it more acidic, resulting in deaths of marine flora and fauna. Even the capacity of the ocean to absorb carbon dioxide is decreasing, giving rise to growing level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.

According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the rate of increase of sea water levels was 1.8 millimetre per annum in 1961, which has gone up to 3.1 millimetre per annum in between 1993-2003. It is clear that the effects of climate change are worsening day by day. As per estimates, by 2025 around 70 per cent land on earth will be drought affected while only 40 per cent of land of our planet is currently drought affected. 

(All Photos from Google Search)