Preface:
In this argumentative essay, I explained the importance and the dangers of our everyday habits as they relate to global warming. It is based not only on a class that I am currently taking, but also my own research that I did specifically for this paper. I chose this topic because I feel that it is extremely important to inform people about, and it is essential to find a solution. I hope this essay will motivate the readers to take action.
Global Warming
I never paid attention to the issue of global warming until I started my botany 1403 class, titled environmental appreciation. The professor explains that we are artificial people living in an artificial world, and when our batteries run out we will die. There are other societies in the world whose way of life is being destroyed more immediately than ours even though they are not the ones who caused global warming. With the extent to which the rate of warming has increased, it would be a great challenge to make a big enough change in time to restore the original condition of the earth and ultimately save all life on the planet. However, there are many ways in which to make this change by going green. It is not only in our best interest to do this for global warming, but it is also better for our overall health to reduce pollution. We do have a choice though, to either do something or not.
Under normal conditions, some of the radiation from the sun to the earth is repelled back out into space after providing its heat. Greenhouse gases cause heat to become trapped in our atmosphere, which is a good thing in moderation. The problem we are facing is that there is an excess of these gases in the atmosphere. Carbon dioxide is responsible for 80% of the greenhouse gas emissions. There are many ways in which we are emitting carbon dioxide in large quantities, such as cutting or burning down forests, producing cement, or burning fossil fuels to power cars, factories, power plants, and even to heat or cool our homes.
Besides the fact that the actions listed above contribute to global warming, there are other negative effects of them. Cutting down forests is also harmful to us because fewer trees mean less oxygen. In fact, less plant life in general means fewer animals and therefore less food for us overall. Another issue for the environment is the use of plastics, because even though they are recyclable, there is a type of plastic that is very dangerous. Watch out for plastic containers that say PVC or the number 3, which is usually found by the recycling symbol because this type of plastic causes “a wide range of health effects including cancer, birth defects, diabetes, learning and developmental delays, endometriosis, and immune system abnormalities.” according to an article at healthychild.org.
We have two options. We can either continue to live this mechanical fantasy life thinking that the environment is just fine and will still be here just the same in the next couple of decades, let alone that we will still be here, or we can wake up and do something about this problem. If the mass majority of the population on the planet remains blissfully unaware of this issue, especially the ones who are causing the problem, we will come to an end of our civilization very soon.
Carbon dioxide levels are on a steady increase each year. Eventually there will be so much of it that all the glaciers on the planet will melt causing ocean levels to rise, which will also cause much of our land mass on the planet to become submerged. The excess heat will also eventually cause a loss of a huge amount of fresh water because, for example in a place like Utah, the population relies on fresh water which comes in the form of snowfall since rainfall is not enough. These examples are only the beginning.
Now there is the question of what we can do to stop this runaway train from speeding off the tracks. Well there are some large scale ideas in the works that may end up coming into effect. Among these is the plan for wind powered, satellite controlled, spray vessels to sail around the seas and shoot saltwater spray into the atmosphere, therefore increasing the amount of sunlight that is reflected by the clouds into space. However, there are many smaller scale changes that can be made on the level of individuals such as lessening use of fossil fuels, lessening overall consumption of products thereby reducing trash output, as well as using alternative energy sources. As an alternative for powering your home you can switch to solar panels, geothermal energy, or even wind energy. Electric cars may be a good alternative to gasoline or even natural gas cars. There are many more examples of what can be done in each person's life to influence a change, but these would be a good start.
There has been extensive research on this subject and the data clearly shows that this is an issue worth paying attention to. Humans have been creating many problems for this planet for quite some time now and it is time to put an end to it. If we decide to make some serious changes to stop this pattern of destruction we may have hope for a future. Alternative energy sources are an example of a change that can be made by individuals to limit and prevent fossil fuel usage. The most crucial aspect of this issue though, is that we do not have much more time to put off taking action, and the first step is to educate the public about the problem and what they can do to make a difference.
In this argumentative essay, I explained the importance and the dangers of our everyday habits as they relate to global warming. It is based not only on a class that I am currently taking, but also my own research that I did specifically for this paper. I chose this topic because I feel that it is extremely important to inform people about, and it is essential to find a solution. I hope this essay will motivate the readers to take action.
Global Warming
I never paid attention to the issue of global warming until I started my botany 1403 class, titled environmental appreciation. The professor explains that we are artificial people living in an artificial world, and when our batteries run out we will die. There are other societies in the world whose way of life is being destroyed more immediately than ours even though they are not the ones who caused global warming. With the extent to which the rate of warming has increased, it would be a great challenge to make a big enough change in time to restore the original condition of the earth and ultimately save all life on the planet. However, there are many ways in which to make this change by going green. It is not only in our best interest to do this for global warming, but it is also better for our overall health to reduce pollution. We do have a choice though, to either do something or not.
Under normal conditions, some of the radiation from the sun to the earth is repelled back out into space after providing its heat. Greenhouse gases cause heat to become trapped in our atmosphere, which is a good thing in moderation. The problem we are facing is that there is an excess of these gases in the atmosphere. Carbon dioxide is responsible for 80% of the greenhouse gas emissions. There are many ways in which we are emitting carbon dioxide in large quantities, such as cutting or burning down forests, producing cement, or burning fossil fuels to power cars, factories, power plants, and even to heat or cool our homes.
Besides the fact that the actions listed above contribute to global warming, there are other negative effects of them. Cutting down forests is also harmful to us because fewer trees mean less oxygen. In fact, less plant life in general means fewer animals and therefore less food for us overall. Another issue for the environment is the use of plastics, because even though they are recyclable, there is a type of plastic that is very dangerous. Watch out for plastic containers that say PVC or the number 3, which is usually found by the recycling symbol because this type of plastic causes “a wide range of health effects including cancer, birth defects, diabetes, learning and developmental delays, endometriosis, and immune system abnormalities.” according to an article at healthychild.org.
We have two options. We can either continue to live this mechanical fantasy life thinking that the environment is just fine and will still be here just the same in the next couple of decades, let alone that we will still be here, or we can wake up and do something about this problem. If the mass majority of the population on the planet remains blissfully unaware of this issue, especially the ones who are causing the problem, we will come to an end of our civilization very soon.
Carbon dioxide levels are on a steady increase each year. Eventually there will be so much of it that all the glaciers on the planet will melt causing ocean levels to rise, which will also cause much of our land mass on the planet to become submerged. The excess heat will also eventually cause a loss of a huge amount of fresh water because, for example in a place like Utah, the population relies on fresh water which comes in the form of snowfall since rainfall is not enough. These examples are only the beginning.
Now there is the question of what we can do to stop this runaway train from speeding off the tracks. Well there are some large scale ideas in the works that may end up coming into effect. Among these is the plan for wind powered, satellite controlled, spray vessels to sail around the seas and shoot saltwater spray into the atmosphere, therefore increasing the amount of sunlight that is reflected by the clouds into space. However, there are many smaller scale changes that can be made on the level of individuals such as lessening use of fossil fuels, lessening overall consumption of products thereby reducing trash output, as well as using alternative energy sources. As an alternative for powering your home you can switch to solar panels, geothermal energy, or even wind energy. Electric cars may be a good alternative to gasoline or even natural gas cars. There are many more examples of what can be done in each person's life to influence a change, but these would be a good start.
There has been extensive research on this subject and the data clearly shows that this is an issue worth paying attention to. Humans have been creating many problems for this planet for quite some time now and it is time to put an end to it. If we decide to make some serious changes to stop this pattern of destruction we may have hope for a future. Alternative energy sources are an example of a change that can be made by individuals to limit and prevent fossil fuel usage. The most crucial aspect of this issue though, is that we do not have much more time to put off taking action, and the first step is to educate the public about the problem and what they can do to make a difference.