Today, climate change is the most significant challenge to capitalism; in order to understand how it may evolve, each circumstance must be understood. Changes in climate have led to hazards such as extreme weather, increased danger of wildland fires, stresses of food producing systems, and infectious diseases. There are many studies being carried out in regard to the issues in the modern world because it has become a major area of concern. When it comes to the topic of climate change, most of us will readily agree that man made effects could be the primary reason. Where this agreement usually ends, however, is on the question, is climate change really caused by human activity or natural causes? From my point of view, I do believe that climate change is caused by manmade effects that is causing damage to human health, the ecosystem, ice glaciers, and much more. As a result, our environment may not be good in the future if climate continues to change negatively. Few solutions to this could be limiting power plant pollution, this can reduce climate pollution and releasing clean energy. An economic stimulus program, “Green New Deal” pushes to transition the U.S to use 100% renewable, zero emission energy sources, as well as invest into electric transportation.
The climate of earth is now changing faster, climate change has already impacted across a wide range of regions of the country and many sections of the economy that are expected to grow in the coming years. As stated in the U.S Energy Information Administration, The warming trend is significant because most of it is likely to be caused by the “greenhouse effect”. Most scientists that study climate change agree that the “greenhouse effect” is the main cause of global warming trend. It is stated that, “Certain gases in the atmosphere block heat from escaping. Lasting gases that endure semi-permanently in the atmosphere and don’t respond physically or chemically to changes in temperature are described as “forcing” climate change. Gases, such as Water Vapor that respond physically or chemically to changes in temperature are seen as “feedbacks”. Gases that help cause the greenhouse effect include, Nitrous Oxide, Water Vapor, Carbon Dioxide, and Methane.” Its concluded that there’s a probability that human produced greenhouse gases have caused much of Earth’s temperatures..
We need to reduce climate change because data shows that it causes rising temperatures, affects human health, and much more. In other words, climate change is a dangerous world issue that is caused by human activity and needs to be diminished. According to U.S Global Change Research Program’s online website entitled “Temperature-Related Death and Illness”, A recent study of U.S. deaths from temperature extremes based on death records found an average of approximately “1,300 deaths per year from 2006 to 2010” as resulting from extreme cold exposures, and “670 deaths per year” as resulting from exposure to extreme heat. These results, and those from all studies that rely on coding within medical records to determine the cause of deaths, will underestimate the actual number of deaths due to extreme temperatures. Some statistical approaches estimate that “more than 1,300 deaths per year in the U.S are due to extreme heat.” Different approaches to attributing cause of death lead to differences in the number of deaths attributed to heat and cold. Studies found that, a larger number of deaths being related to extreme cold rather than extreme heat, and a larger mortality rate in winter overall, the relationship between mortality and an additional day of extreme heat is larger than the relationship between mortality and an additional day of extreme cold. This data explains how many people in the U.S die due to high temperatures of heat and cold temperatures. This evidence also explains the death rate between heat and cold yearly. Over all from this data, I believe that climate change is what’s causing these deaths yearly and it needs to be reduced to decrease the mortality rate of extreme temperatures.
Second, Climate Change should be reduced because some regions in the U.S have experienced costly impacts in terms of both lives and economic damages from observed changes in the frequency, intensity, and duration of extreme weather events. Climate Change projections explain that there will be continuing increases of some extreme weather events by the end of the century, while for other extremes the links to climate change are more uncertain. As reported by Globalchange.gov in the category of “Extreme Events”, A “10-year estimate of fatalities related to extreme events from 2004 to 2013, as well as estimated economic damages from 58 weather and climate disaster events with losses exceeding $1 billion are indicative of human and economic costs of extreme weather events over this time period.” The Globalchange also reports that, “Disasters such as hurricanes, heat waves, droughts, tornadoes, severe storms, and flooding have caused a total loss of 546 billion dollars from 2004 to 2013.” Each extreme event is broken down to how much loss there was, which adds up to the total amount of money lost. Climate Change will alter the frequency, intensity, and geographic distribution of some of these weathers, which has consequences for exposure to health risks from extreme events. Altogether, disaster weather events can be dangerous in some U.S regions in terms of lives and can cause huge economic damage which leads to money loss, these extreme weather events is known to be apart of climate change which needs to be brought down into a lower state to minimize the lives lost and the economic damages.
Third, Climate Change has many impacts on wildlife, such as habitat loss, deforestation, and ice melting in Antarctica. We can be facing the biggest environmental challenge our species has ever seen and could cause species extinctions. As stated by World Wildlife Fund Global warming is likely to be the greatest cause of species extinctions this century. The Intergovernmental Panel on climate change says “a 1.5°C average rise may put 20-30% of species at risk of extinction. If the planet warms by more than 2°C, most ecosystems will struggle.” A few examples of these species are Tigers, in the wild it has been declined to as a few “3,200 due to poaching and habitat loss.” Climate Change is likely to result in increasing sea levels and risk of fire in fragmented habitats where tigers live. It also states that, “Forests are important as they soak up carbon dioxide, the main greenhouse gas responsible for global warming, and help regulate the world’s climate.” They’re also home to countless plant and animal species; however, forests are affected by climate change. Impacts vary in different kinds of forests. In tropical forests such as the Amazon, where there’s abundant biodiversity, even modest levels of climate change can cause high levels of extinction. When large areas of forest are destroyed it’s disastrous for the local species and communities that rely on them. Many of the world’s threatened species live in areas that will be severely affected by climate change, and climate change is happening too quickly for many species to adapt.
Some pros of Climate Change in agriculture from the U.S Environmental Protection Agency have shown that in some areas, an increase in temperature may benefit the types of crops typically planted there and would allow farmers to cultivate crops more commonly grown in warmer places. For example, in the midwestern region of the U.S., “farmers have adjusted their farming practices and are growing more corn than they have in previous years despite warmer than usual temperatures. Yields of other crops around the world have also ballooned in recent years. Increased temperatures often result in longer growing seasons, too, which can benefit farmers and consumers—more time for growth usually means a larger harvest, and some experts report that if farmers can simply adapt to benevolent climate change in their respective areas, they will continue to see fields full of thriving crops.” I grant the pros of Climate Change; however, unfortunately Climate Change has negative things for agriculture as well. A study have shown that climate change can impact farm animals, too. Heat waves, which are projected to increase under climate change could directly threaten livestock. It is also stated that, “In 2011, events involving exposure to high temperatures caused more than $1 billion in heat-related losses to agricultural producers.” Moreover, heat stress over time can increase an animal’s vulnerability to disease and reduce its fertility and milk production. This research shows that even with a few pros of climate change, the negativity of it can cause huge impacts on animals, oceans, temperature, and much more. For these reasons, Climate Change needs to be decreased to the smallest it can be.
It is clear that Climate Change is a global issue that needs to be brought down, Our climate is changing at a rapid pace and it is affecting the lives of people and animals. Although I grant that the benefits of climate change can make more growth for crops and have longer seasons, I maintain that programs such as the “Green New Deal” can make the world a better place. Ultimately, what is at stake here is the safety of our environment and health. Though it could be natural causes and there may be few benefits, climate change is a worldwide issue that needs to be reduced.
