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Caleb McCool

Prof. Reynolds

ENG 1201

21 March 2021

What Can We Do To Stop Global Warming?

Since the industrial period, humans have raised the average temperature close to 2º

fahrenheit. This number is constantly increasing by half a degree every decade. This might not

seem like a high number but it has caused irreversible damage on this planet. In the North,

Earth’s sea level has been increasing over the years. This has caused numerous amounts of

infrastructure and ecosystems to be compromised. This issue has become so serious that cities

have put climate change into their planning. On the other hand, in the south, Increased heat

waves and insect outbreaks have occurred. All of these events all have direct relation to global

warming. Global warming is the long term heating of earth since around 1850 as a result of the

actions of humans, most importantly fossil fuel burning, which raises gases that trap heat in

earth's atmosphere. Global warming has been a continuously increasing problem that needs to be

addressed and stopped as soon as possible. Some of the ways we can stop global warming

include: weatherizing homes and buildings, Powering various devices with renewable energy,

reducing water waste, and much more. Humans can reverse the damage done on the atmosphere

by taking steps to decrease global warming.

The history behind climate change through humans reaches back to the ancient Greeks

but the majority of history comes from the 20th century. The Ancient Greeks noticed that

humans can alter the temperature of the earth by cutting down trees (Climate Change History).

Another theory suggests that plowing fields would increase rainfall in the area. That theory was
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of course disproven and could not happen. That being said, the idea that the global climate could

be changed by humans was far-fetched for a while. This was until people were noticing an

increase in temperature over the past several years. Scientists and mathematicians found that the

greenhouse effect was the reason for climate change and global warming. Humans were

carelessly emitting greenhouse gases into the atmosphere as early as the industrial revolution.

As soon as humans discovered how to burn fossil fuels, they have been using it to power

most things. The effects of this were very dangerous and unknown for a period of time. Burning

fossil fuels involves releasing carbon dioxide which is a greenhouse gas. The first person to

notice a difference in temperature since the industrial period was a British engineer with the

name of Stewart Callender. He noted that the United States and the North Atlantic region has

warmed significantly in response to the industrial revolution. Stewart Callender suggested that

doubling the earth's CO2 levels in the atmosphere would cause an increase of 2º celsius (Climate

Change History). The topic really got into the hands of the public during NASA scientist James

Hansen’s testimony. During this event, Hansen stated that he is “99 percent sure” that global

warming and climate change was upon us (Climate Change History). Knowing this history, let's

look at some ways we can reverse the damage we have caused on this world.

A main solution to global warming is replanting trees that were removed from

deforestation. In an article written by Paul Hawken, he describes the causes and effects of

deforestation. To start, in recent decades, tropical forests have suffered a large loss and depletion

over time. Tropical forests once covered 12 percent of the world's land mass. Now they cover

only 5 percent (Hawken). When we cut down forests, carbon dioxide gets released into the

atmosphere. This alone is responsible for around 19 percent of greenhouse-gas emissions.

(Hawken). He later states the solutions people are making to help this issue. A team of
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researchers from the World Resources Institute, reported that there are at least 4.9 billion acres of

forests worldwide that are able to be restored. (Hawken). This is very good news because this

landmass is said to be larger than south america, which could cause a substantial benefit in

Earth's health. In 2011, The Bonn Challenge set a goal of replanting 865 million acres of trees by

2030. If this goal is achieved, a total of 12 to 33 gigatons of CO2 would be taken from the

atmosphere. (Hawken) This would be a huge accomplishment for the human race. This would be

a great first step in trying to solve the problem of global warming.

We, as humans, should have acted on this as soon as we saw the negative effects. Instead,

we just let deforestation occur. The worst part about all of this is that it is still going on as we

speak. There needs to be an immediate course of action on this subject. I believe that the first

step in solving this issue is to stop cutting down trees. We need to defund the companies doing

this so that damage does not continue. This is not so easy to accomplish because wood is a very

useful resource and there are not many alternatives to it. In order to put this action into place, we

would need to inform the people on how much damage is really being done to the forests around

the world. If we put that into perspective we can persuade people to help defined companies.

Once the companies are defunded we can finally start to reverse their actions. If everyone who

knew about global warming contributed to fixing the problem, we would be well on our way to a

cleaner, healthier future.

In an article written in the EnerKnol Visual Primer Series, they talk about green

hydrogen. Green hydrogen is fuel that is created using renewable energy instead of fossil fuels.

This is expected to play a crucial role in the shift to a clean energy economy through use in

transportation, buildings, and power generation. The California Hydrogen Business council

(CHBC) has plans of using green hydrogen to create 100 percent renewable energy sources. The
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CHBC says the project is projected to have a downward cost trajectory (Hydrogen offers

promising potential). Green hydrogen is one of the many things that can have a huge impact on

what needs to be done for the future.

There are very simple things that people can do to stop the warming of the earth. Of these

simple tasks, buying LED light bulbs is one of the easier ones. Everybody uses light bulbs in

their house. Weather that is in the kitchen, living room, or bedroom. While these rooms have

various brightnesses, standard bulbs burn out very quickly. LED bulbs are a great substitute for

short lasting bulbs. They can create a consistency of brightness throughout the room and can last

longer. The best part about these lightbulbs is that they save a vast amount of energy. LED light

bulbs save eighty percent more energy than standard incandescent light bulbs (Denchack).

People don't realize the amount of energy an LED light bulb can save them until they purchase

one. A ten watt LED bulb replacing a sixty watt incandescent bulb can save up to one hundred

and twenty five dollars through the bulb's life. (Denchack)

Weatherizing your home involves keeping up to date with the insolation and the

fixing of any cracks or leaks where air can get inside. Weatherizing houses are essential to

stopping the amount of energy an average household uses. Heating and air conditioning account

for more than half of home energy use (Denchack). If people sealed up cracks or drafts in their

house, there would not be such a high use of energy. The government wants to reward people for

making energy efficient improvements. This being said, they are giving people federal tax credits

(Denchack). Reducing the amount of energy your house produces is very important. Start by

checking to see how often you have to turn up or down the heat. You can also look out for cracks

in windows or flooring where air could possibly come in. If you do these things you will have an

energy efficient house and you would not have to waste a large amount of energy.
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The use of solar energy is an important topic to bring up when it comes to saving energy.

Solar energy produces energy through the sun. This is a very important and ideal method of

getting energy without the use of fossil fuels or other emissions. A solar farm named Alamo 3,

located in Converse Texas, produces enough energy to power 1,240 homes. That is around 55

megawatts of energy (Hawken). If companies that ran these solar farms got funded more, they

could be well on their way to fixing the issue of global warming and climate change. The

International Renewable Energy Agency has implemented around 220 million to 330 million

tons of yearly CO2 savings to various solar fields (Hawken). This is a number that no one could

have expected when this project was first underway. There is a downside to these solar farms

however. Solar panels are prone to solar radiation and other harms (Hawken). Solar panels also

need to withstand the elements of the outdoors.

The cost of technology in order to produce something durable is substantially high.

People can do this on a smaller scale by installing solar panels on their roofs. This is a very

energy efficient thing to do to the environment. Cutting back on even a little amount of

emissions and energy would be a great thing. In total, solar electricity only covers 0.4 percent of

global electricity (Hawken). A company by the name of “Project Drawdown” states that this

number will grow to ten percent (Hawken). If the government invests in solar energy, there will

be an over decrease in money being spent on energy costs. Hawken estimates a total of $5.2

Trillion in net savings. Another pro about solar energy is that it requires very little maintenance.

Various energy producing facilities require a high amount of maintenance which would be

expensive. With solar energy, the maintenance costs would be much lower.

Every air conditioning unit, refrigerator, or freezer contains refrigerants that release and

absorb heat. This makes cars and buildings cooler. But these refrigerants, specifically
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chlorofluorocarbons and hydrochlorofluorocarbons, are very dangerous to earth's ozone layer.

“Thanks to the 1987 Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer, these toxic

chemicals have been slowly banned from use” (Hawken). These chemicals destroyed the ozone

layer and caused a large hole to form. After almost three decades, the Ozone layer is beginning

to heal (Hawken). Officials from at least 170 countries gathered in 2009 at the country of Kigali.

These government officials decided to address this continuing problem. Through the amendment

of the Montreal Protocol, the world will begin phasing these chemicals out of use (Hawken).

Next time you go out to buy an air conditioning unit or refrigerator, make sure you use energy

efficient products.

In an article written by Gil Esteban, it states that Chile is facing problems while trying to

solve global warming and climate change in unique ways. Hydroelectric energy production is the

production of electricity through moving water. Global warming is causing a decrease in

precipitation (Esteban). Because of this, hydroelectric energy production is becoming scarce.

Because of this, countries are starting to replace these safe means of producing electricity with

fuel-fired generators. As a result of this, fuel cost and pollution will increase substantially. I

believe most countries should not get rid of this, but rather enforce this. Producing energy

through natural earth occurrences is a great way to take advantage of earth and spin it in a

positive direction. Installing more wind turbines and hydroelectric power generators could

decrease the price of producing electricity and also reduce the risk of global warming and

climate change.

Improving your diet can directly relate to global warming and climate change. Most of

the foods that are incorporated into American diets, costs a lot of money and energy to produce.

Most of the factories that produce food and other products, use a large amount of fossil fuels. A
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huge amount of emissions coming from these factories damage the environment. The most

important food to watch out for when planning out an energy efficient diet is meat. Nearly fifteen

percent of all global greenhouse gases emitted each year come from raising livestock (Hawken).

Livestock and meats are crucial to diets all over the world but this needs to cut down

dramatically in order to keep the atmosphere healthy. When people stop buying meat and other

livestock products, the demand for these things will decrease. This being said, if everyone did

their part in cutting down on meat consumption, we would have a great start to cleaning the

atmosphere. Animals such as cows produce an enormous amount of methane as they digest their

food. Land being used agriculturally to feed animals such as cows costs a lot of money and

energy to sustain.

Given this information, we as people need to do something about this. We can start by

informing people about this topic. Most Americans are unaware of the effects meat has on the

climate. If people start getting involved, we can persuade congress to put a limit on the amount

of meat being produced each day. If this number continues to rise, the climate will reach a point

of no return. Until this point, people should cut meat out of their diet. If we stopped buying meat

the producers will decrease the amount of meat being produced. Cattle and other animals

produce greenhouse gases on their own. Paul Hawken states in his article “Top 10 Solutions to

Reverse Climate Change” that if cattle were their own nation, they would be the world’s third-

largest twitter of greenhouse gases. This being said, people have started to doubt if climate

change was caused by humans in the first place.

While the article “Pros and Cons about Climate Change” states that many people oppose

humans being responsible for global warming, a book titled “Impact of Climate Change and

Human Activity on the Eco-environment: An analysis of the Xisha Islands” by Liqiang Xu,
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supports the idea of humans causing climate change. The Article” Pros and Cons about Climate

Change” does not agree with humans starting climate change. A recent report found more than

1000 scientists who did not agree that humans are the main reason for global climate change.

The claim goes on to say that 97% of scientists agree that the cause of global warming is

inaccurate (Procon.org). A perdue university survey found that 47 percent of climatologists

opposed the idea that humans are primarily responsible for climate change (Procon.org). This

statistic is persuading people that climate change is not caused by humans. Therefore they are not

putting effort into fixing or helping it. On the other hand, The book by Liqiang Xu supports the

idea of climate change caused by humans. In the introduction, it states the concentration of CO2

has never exceeded 300 ppm naturally. Humans are the only probable cause for the increase in

CO2 concentration (Xu). This topic has been an ongoing misconception that scientists have

argued for decades. We won't know for sure until further research is accomplished in the future.

A question arose in an article written by Amanda MacMillian. This question is asking

how much CO2 and greenhouse gases has the United States produced and how is the United

States solving this issue. This is one of the most controversial questions to ask because of the

stereotype surrounding the United States and their cleanliness. According to MacMillian, around

sixteen percent of all global CO2 emissions are produced from the United States. This is a very

surprising statistic because the United States only holds around four percent of the world's

population. Not only that, but America is by far the largest overall contributor of these gases over

the past 150 years.

The United States is doing very well in trying to reverse the actions that they have caused

to the environment. In 2015, the United States Environmental Protection Agency wanted to

remove carbon pollution from our power plants by almost a third by 2030 (MacMillian). If they
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pull this off, fighting the climate change war will be a little easier. The United States is also

preparing to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels. They are doing this by making solar energy

farms in areas with a surplus of land. When we install solar panels, we are decreasing the amount

of CO2 being used in the United States. One of the largest improvements made in the United

States was during the Obama administration. During this administration, The Department of

Transportation brought up the idea of carbon pollution and fuel economy standards intended to

cut emissions dramatically (MacMillian). Government officials are trying to boost the electric

car market so the emissions being emitted through cars is lower. In addition, the Obama

administration pledged 3 billion dollars to the Green Climate Fund, an international organization

which helped poor countries adopt cleaner energy technologies (Macmillian).

In conclusion, the earth's atmosphere is not as healthy as it needs to be. This is because of

the constant fossil fuel emissions and deforestation. Deforestation is a horrible thing that has

already caused a large amount of damage to the environment. Funding companies who replant

trees or planting trees ourselves could have a huge benefit in this ongoing issue. Weatherizing

homes is a simple fix that could benefit other things other than global warming. Weatherizing

homes can decrease the amount of energy being produced per household which could also save

money for the house owners. As solar energy is gaining popularity, so has the budget for

installing these panels. This could be a turning point for global warming. Solar panels are one of

the most energy-safe ways to produce energy. People have the ability to stop the spread of fossil

fuel emissions. We also have the ability to stop deforestation and other harmful things. We just

need to become more aware and educated about this subject. Once we know how we can stop

global warming, the atmosphere will get substantially more healthy.

Works cited

Denchack, Melissa. “How You Can Stop Global Warming” NRDC, 20 Jan. 2021,

www.nrdc.org/stories/how-you-can-stop-global-warming.

Editors, History.com. “Climate Change History.” History.com, A&E Television

Networks, 6 Oct. 2017, www.history.com/topics/natural-disasters-and-

enviroment/history-of-climate-change.
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Esteban, Gil. “Addressing the Effects of climate change on modeling Future

Hydroelectric Energy Production in Chile.” Energies, vol 14, no. 1, January 2021,

Hawken, Paul. “Top 10 Solutions to Reverse Climate Change.” Green America, 2017,

www.greenamerica.org/climate-change-100-reasons-hope/top-10-solutions-reverse-

climate-change.

MacMillan, Amanda. “Global Warming 101.” NRDC, 20 Jan. 2021,

www.nrdc.org/stories/global-warming-101.

ProCon.org, “Climate Change.” ProCon.org. 1 Apr. 2020, climatechange.procon.org/

Visual Primer Series, EnerKnol. “Hydrogen Offers Promising Potential for Clean Energy

Transition: Green Hydrogen Is Expected to Play a Crucial Role in The shift to a Clean

Energy Economy with Its Growing Use in Transportation, Buildings, and Power

Generation.” Ebsco List of E-Journals, 13 Oct. 2020, Climate change.

Xu, Liqiang. Impact of Climate Change and Human Activity on the Eco-Environment An

Analysis of the Xisha Islands. Springer Berlin, 20216. Sinclair Library