Global Warming Summary/Opinion
Climate change is said to be occurring as a result of uneven movement of radiation in and out of the earth's atmosphere. When light from the sun hits the surface of the Earth it is reflected back into the atmosphere as infrared light Which is absorbed by greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide. As humans burn more fossil fuels, the amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere increases, worsening the rate of global warming. Many ecosystems are affected by changing climate conditions, the increase of only a few degrees can have devastating effects on living organisms. Along with temperature, disease carrying insects and harmful waterborne hazards such as cryptosporidium also increase. If conditions go unaltered, it is predicted that by the year 2030 , over a million people will die each year due to disease factors that would not otherwise be present if climate change was not occurring. The World Health Organization (WHO) has been unable to come to a solution for climate change that will proceed the Kyoto Protocol which expires in 2012. Other non-binding agreements exist and smaller national contracts are being organized such as the American Clean Energy and Security Act which is awaiting a vote from the Senate.
I think that it is a good idea for the senate to pass the American Clean Energy and Security Act because, even though it will not stop climate change, it will help to slow it down. This process of global climate alteration may not be reversible at this time, but anything that can buy more time to develop new means of disease control and wildlife protection should be used. It seems as though the reason that the the government is so hesitant to interfere with the fossil fuels industry is because that is the industry that provides the most tax money to the government. If any permanent solution to global warming is to be reached, our planet is going to have to come before our profit.
By passing this act, the cost of petroleum based industry will increase, this will help to stimulate more research into cleaner energy technology. It has been said that necessity is the mother of invention and this bill may prove to provide just that; by decreasing America's dependence on other countries that provide oil, our economy will be greatly benefited. It is important for the U.S. to take advantage of this time and become the world leader in clean-energy technology. As other nations around the world begin to compete to be the leaders in technology it would be an excellent motive for the wellbeing of our planet's ecosystems if competition for clean-energy solutions were what the nations were competing for.
source: (Environment News Service) http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/apr2009/2009-04-22-02.asp
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