This is a guest post by Ms. Sahar Andrade who is based in Greater Los Angeles Area and blogs regularly at www.saharandrade.wordpress.com and www.saharconsulting.wordpress.com
I read recently an article that raised more my worries about “Climate Change”& “Global Warming”; it was about the citizens of a small coastal village of “Newtok, Alaska” voting to move their village nine miles inland because melting ice shelves made their present home too risky.
Global Warming is the most threatening factor to our planet and our lives, it is the increase in the average temperature of the Earth’s near-surface air and oceans since the mid-twentieth century and its projected continuation. Most of the temperature increase is “very likely” due to the increase in greenhouse gas concentrations which trap energy in the atmosphere, bringing intense longer heat waves, greater summer cooling costs, more frequent ozone alerts, more frequent droughts, severe storm and erosion damage, and will counteract the benefits of soil moisture due to the warming climate for agriculture
As the global climate change and continues to warm, The effects of Global Warming will cause sea levels to rise and will change the amount and pattern of precipitation, likely including an expanse of the subtropical desert regions. Other likely effects include Arctic Shrinkage and resulting Arctic methane release (release of methane from seas and soils in permafrost regions of the Arctic), shrinkage of the Amazon rainforest, increases in the intensity of extreme weather events, changes in agricultural yields, modifications of trade routes, glacier retreat, species extinctions and changes in the ranges of disease vectors and an invasion of various warm-climate crop pests and pathogens
The planet we live on has been getting sick. We can not set aside anymore the depletion of natural resources as our planet has a limited amount. We can not leave it to the next generations to challenge pollution, depletion of natural resources, global warming; we need to preserve the foundation of a good standard of living in saving clean air, water, fuel sources and soil. To start, we need to watch what we are throwing away everyday as the household batteries and electronics which often contain dangerous chemicals that may pollute the groundwater which in turn can contaminate our plants/ vegetables and even tap water. The risks to human health are tremendous. Each time a car, home appliance, or light bulb is purchased, a decision is made that has a small influence on climate change. But many small decisions, done in multitudes of billions of people, the effects become overwhelming.
Humans are challenged to find a set of policies, practices, and standards of behavior that provide long-term economic opportunities and improved quality of life around the. The involvement of governments around the world will be imperative, to include decisions about the best ways to reduce a country’s carbon emissions and where to invest funds in research on alternative energy source.
But if change can happen, and if we are to reverse the effects of Global warming that are supposed to be irreversible in 10 years from now, it needs to start by and from each one of us. We need to realize that our daily simple buying decisions affect the whole world. We need to start caring and be a part of the solution and not a part of the problem. It is up to us, it is up to you and me to start our first steps, and push our governments to intervene in saving the planet.
Cheers,
Sahar Andrade
www.saharconsulting.com
www.linkedin.com/in/saharandrade
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