Ahmed Alouddi  

    Who to blame for earth’s climate change? 

    Earth’s climate has changed drastically throughout the years. There have been many controversies about how and what has caused the earth’s climate to change. There are always two opposing views on many things such as climate change. Many people believe that climate change is manmade and others believe that climate change is not man-made and is caused by nature and is a normal cycle of how the earth works.

    Before the industrial revolution climate change was caused by natural factors such as volcano eruptions, changes in the orbit of the sun, and shifts in the earth’s crust (Causes of climate change, 2021). These were natural factors that couldn’t be stopped but after the industrial revolution, climate change began to be on the rise. The temperature increased by burning fossil fuels, deforestation, factories emitting chemicals in the air, and the increase of cars and human population with cars emitting chemicals in the air. This is also known as global warming. There are many other ways of how humans have caused the increase of earth’s temperature at a significant rate. Even with the science to prove that humans have caused climate change to worsen many other people still deny this fact and say that climate change is not man-made and is only caused by the natural factors of earth.

    Those that believe that climate change is mostly man-made have looked at the science and the causes that lead to the warming of the earth a.k.a global warming. At the start of the industrial revolution, many machines and new technology came to light for the better and for the worst. During this time nobody realized how much change it would do to the climate which has caused an increase in temperature in the earth’s atmosphere. This increase in temperature has caused ice in the north pole, south pole, and in other places to melt increases the water in the oceans. According to climate change controversies, “ Antarctica’s Larsen B ice shelf is melting faster than previously measured. Scientists expect the eventual entire disintegration of Larsen B ice shelf.” This can lead to floods, animal extinction, and can potentially harm the ozone layer which will then harm the earth and humans. The gases that warm the earth and increase its temperature are called greenhouse gases also known as the greenhouse effect. According to the met office, it states “ Humans cause climate change by releasing carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases into the air. Today, there is more carbon dioxide in the atmosphere than there ever has been in at least the past 800,000 years. During the 20th and 21st century, the level of carbon dioxide rose by 40%”(Causes of climate change, 2021). We can see this as a result of the industrial revolution and the new machinery that is being used to produce new objects such as cars, buildings, factories, and many more. Humans create greenhouse gasses by burning fossil fuels, deforestation, and Agriculture due to the animals that release methane which is 30 times more powerful than carbon dioxide as a greenhouse gas (Causes of climate change, 2021). There are many other factors that are part of increasing the earth’s temperature but there are the major ones. There have been many ways to resolve this issue between countries but there are still people that believe otherwise and that humans are not the cause of climate change but its nature and the earth is just getting warmer. There are similar ideas revolving around earth causing climate change.

    On the other side, other people believe that climate change is caused by nature and is part of the earth’s progress, it’s caused by the sun and cosmic rays by human activities, and the data the computers provide are unreliable and more carbon in the air increases the plant’s growth. There are many others that believe this but the reason behind it is a tricky one because there could be many reasons as to why they don’t believe in the science that shows them the problems with climate change. Many people believe the science behind is false or the data can be unreliable. People will also use the Ice age period as an example to back up their idea because the sun melted the ice. As we can see there are many ideas but no proof that certain circumstances were the same back then. According to The climate is changing, but not just because of humans. Here’s why that matters, it states “ When the Earth gradually adopts a more elliptical orbit, there are more pronounced temperatures during the summer and winter months. This alteration is exacerbated when the Earth’s axial tilt is inclined to a sharper degree than usual. As this happens, it causes the North and South Poles to be positioned more directly toward the Sun. Haven’t you noticed the recent rise in irregular weather patterns? This is not just a man-made problem. Gradual slight variations in the Earth’s orbit around the Sun can strongly influence temperature extremes”. We can see here that even a slight shift in the orbit can cause the temperature to rise.  People begin to question whether these slight shifts and turns of the orbit are the cause of climate. Many disagree and many agree but we can never be too sure of what major factor is affecting climate change but we can also have minor factors with the help of science to figure them out. 

    Climate change has impacted many countries by putting the environment and agriculture at risk. The main two countries that are producing the most greenhouse gases are China and the USA. other countries like Africa will be impacted by climate change. According to Africa: Climate Change, it states “ Climate change threatens agriculture, a crucial component of the African economy. Subsistence farming and fishing remain common practices in many parts of the continent. Many small-scale agricultural operations depend on rainwater rather than irrigation. Erratic and unpredictable rain patterns linked to climate change pose an ongoing threat to these activities, as they can trigger flood and drought cycles that disrupt local farming and fishing.” As we can see here the effects of climate change are unpredictable yet can be very impactful and will lead to major problems. Global warming can also lead to an increase in sea level, a risk to our ecosystem, and has caused health concerns. 

    A possible solution to this controversy is that climate change can be caused by both greenhouse gases that humans have created and the natural greenhouse gases that the earth emits. The effects of climate change will not change whether it’s caused by earth or made by humans, we should focus on preventing these effects from worsening rather than questioning each other of what the cause of climate change is. Both controversies are right but there isn’t one factor that causes climate change so both sides of the controversy are not wrong but are partially or are right in some way. There are multiple factors that makeup climate change and we should work together to limit them as much as possible so the impact on earth is not harmful. 

References:

Neaves, T., Director, & Centers on the Public Service at George Mason University. (2017, November 28). The climate is changing, but not just because of humans. Here’s why that matters. Retrieved March 22, 2021, from https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/climate-changing-not-just-because-humans-here-s-why-matters-ncna824271

Climate change controversies. (2011). In D. S. Blanchfield (Ed.), Environmental Encyclopedia. Gale. https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/CV2644151550/OVIC?u=cuny_ccny&sid=OVIC&xid=dd88ae53

Causes of climate change. (n.d.). Retrieved March 22, 2021, from https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/weather/climate-change/causes-of-climate-change#:~:text=The%20evidence%20is%20clear%3A%20the,the%20planet%20to%20heat%20up.

The causes of climate change. (2021, February 08). Retrieved March 22, 2021, from https://climate.nasa.gov/causes/

Africa: Climate Change. (2021). In Gale Global Issues Online Collection. Gale. https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/CP3208520147/OVIC?u=cuny_ccny&sid=OVIC&xid=618f2180

Climate Change Impacts on the United States. (2006). In B. W. Lerner & K. L. Lerner (Eds.), Environmental Issues: Essential Primary Sources (pp. 114-117). Gale. https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/CX3456400053/OVIC?u=cuny_ccny&sid=OVIC&xid=e1ec33f1