Bhatti, Asad

The Earth is undergoing drastic changes that have not been seen before. A phenomenon known as the greenhouse effect is taking place. This effect involves the Earth heating up due to an increase in greenhouse gas molecules that traps incoming ultraviolet rays instead of allowing them to pass through the atmosphere as they get reflected back towards the Sun. This is causing drastic changes in Earth’s weather. The four most important greenhouse gases are carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and sulfur hexafluoride. These gases cause the largest impact on global warming.

Even small concentrations of greenhouse gases affect global surface temperatures. These small concentrations absorb a lot of the infrared light in the atmosphere. Carbon has been focused on as the leading global warming concern because carbon dioxide is long lasting and extremely stable. It is the most abundant greenhouse gas and is exerted from the burning of fossil fuels, which occurs a lot in our current world. Earth simply cannot get rid of this sheer amount of carbon dioxide. The amount of carbon dioxide currently in the atmosphere is 403 parts per million with a fluctuation of 8 to 9 ppm per year. We know that there is so much carbon dioxide in our atmosphere by looking at increases in carbon dioxide in preserved bubbles in ice cores and by looking at tree rings. Scientists also use data collected from various instruments used to measure carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Over the last two hundred years, carbon dioxide has increased significantly, especially since the Industrial Revolution, due to the increase in the burning of fossil fuels. Before these fossil fuels were burned, they acted as carbon sinks, absorbing CO2 rather than emitting it. Over the last hundreds of thousands of years, there have been cycling periods of increases and decreases in the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, but there has never been this much CO2 in the atmosphere. We know that humans are responsible for the increase of carbon dioxide because certain human activities such as the burning of fossil fuels and deforestation emit large amounts of carbon dioxide. Agricultural practices such as cattle production require a lot of land, water and fertilizer. Cows also produce methane. The carbon cycle is a process in which a carbon atom moves between different natural reservoirs. As carbon is transferred between reservoirs, it moves between sources, which are processes that release carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, and sinks, which are processes that remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. The three natural reservoirs are fossil fuels, oceans, and the terrestrial biosphere. This cycle occurs at various rates that variates from daily fluctuations to long-term cycles over millions of years. Fossil fuel burning is the main focus of climate concerns because they cause the most greenhouse gases. Fossil fuel burning is the largest contributor to global warming due to the large amount of carbon that is released. Possible alternate energy sources include geothermal, nuclear, solar, and wind energy. These sources of energy have little or no emissions. Solar energy is the most important because it is readily available, affordable, and reliable. It also has absolutely no emissions and the Sun’s energy is infinite. Small portable solar panels are cheap and can be easily acquired by rural areas and people in poorer countries. Carbon dioxide affects acidity of the world’s oceans because when the oceans absorb carbon dioxide, they produce an acidic solution. The increase in carbon dioxide absorption changes the pH of the oceans, which causes the destruction of coral reefs, changes in the patterns of ocean life, and more unnatural effects. The ocean cannot balance the acidity with basic solutions in the ocean. If the ocean stopped taking in carbon dioxide then the earth would heat up even more, the ice sheets would melt faster, and less heat would be reflected. If we cannot reset the carbon cycle’s CO2 level, then the Earth will continue to heat up which could result in the complete eradication of all life.

The total carbon footprint for an average U.S. household is 48.5 tons CO2 per year. My household carbon footprint is 67.4 tons CO2 per year. To improve my carbon footprint in relation to travel, I can take fewer trips to visit my family in Pakistan, I can take more public transit, bike, or walk, and I can take fewer trips around the Bay Area solely to eat food and explore. In terms of housing, I can turn off plug extension switches when not in use. For food and diet, I can eat less unhealthy food and eat more organic food. I can buy fewer videogames in terms of shopping. To increase awareness of global warming locally, I can put up signs that inform people of the negative effects of global warming, as well as host a local seminar and invite scientists to speak to members of my community. In my household, I can discuss the effects of carbon emissions with my family and how to reduce these emissions. On the DVC campus, I can advocate for more environmental science classes and I can request the school to make an environmental science course a requirement for transfer to four-year schools.