Introduction
The movie An Inconvenient Truth is a sermon from former U.S. Vice President Al Gore on the causes and consequences of global warming delivered from a secular IMAX pulpit. The central theme to this message is that the present amount of pollution being pumped into the atmosphere is causing undesirable changes to the environment. Unless this disturbing trend is severely curtailed and soon, catastrophic human and economic consequences will result and ultimately, the planet will be uninhabitable for human life.
Discussion
The clearing of forests by mass burning, which is happening at a phenomenal rate in the tropical rain forests, is decreasing the amount of CO2 that is absorbed and increasing the amount that is added to the atmosphere. CO2 supplies about half of the total gases that create the greenhouse effect. Although deforestation is contributing heavily to the excess of CO2 in the atmosphere, a larger portion is caused by the burning of fossil fuels such as oil and coal. Fossil fuels are burned by factories, vehicles and electricity-producing power plants to name a few sources. The vast majority of this excessive fuel consumption and its poisonous, pollutant and greenhouse-enhancing byproducts are located in the U.S., Europe and Russia (Breuer, 1980).
If we injure the planet in this selfish, cataclysmic method, we kill future generations of humankind. Agriculture activity, land masses and the very air we breathe will suffer a radical change from the effects of global warming. The effects of melting snow caps and the resulting rise of sea levels have been well documented. Other effects are known but not as universally. A reduction of snow cover in addition to lake and sea ice will have dire consequences for locations at higher latitudes and lower elevations, especially in the winter and spring months. At increased temperatures, the atmospheric water vapor and resulting precipitation will be proportionately higher (Wunderlich & Kohler, 2001). Cloud compositions will change which will amplify the greenhouse effect. The increased levels of precipitation because of the warming at the polar regions will increase the effect. Shifting vegetation patterns, types and regional variations, will cause major human adaptations, the degree to which is open to speculation. The elevated evaporation rate will hasten the drying effect of soil subsequent to rainfall which will result in drier conditions in many regions. Places that presently suffer through periodic drought conditions in the warmer months will be hardest hit. The more rapid water recycling rate will result in heavier rainfall amounts and the number of extreme rainfall events. Higher rainfall rates will cause increased tropical storm intensity in addition to the warmer temperatures. Hurricanes may be even more frequent and intense than presently predicted. As horrific as this near-future scenario is, it remains the land masses that will suffer the greatest changes as a result of the greenhouse effect. (Trenberth 1997).
The solution to automobile emissions may lie in alternative fuels. The conversion of beets or corn into ethanol is touted by scientists today as an economically and environmentally sound solution to global warming concerns. Energy from hydrogen, an environmentally friendly gas is a much discussed energy source. Hydrogen, the ‘H’ in H2O, is, not surprisingly, found in water. The resource is boundless and instead of emitting CO2, hydrogen emits only water vapor. “The more widely used method is to split the hydrocarbons in fossil fuels into hydrogen and carbon. This is much cheaper but it defeats the point somewhat as it still uses fossil fuels and creates carbon dioxide as a by-product” (“Alternatives to Oil”, 2002).
Geothermal energy comes directly from the earth as steam and used to power electric producing plants as well as other less complex applications. This energy source is plentiful, sustainable and affordable way to reduce the consumption of fossil fuels.
In California, geothermal energy supplies approximately five percent of total electric usage, 25 percent in the Central American country of El Salvador. Iceland uses its vast resources of geothermal heat to warm many of its buildings and other power applications. The State of Idaho is also a large consumer of this naturally occurring power source from the earth. The benefits are being utilized all across the nation. (“Geothermal Energy”, 2006).
To expedite the process of weaning the world from oil, a novel idea has been put forward. The industrialized nations, those who have profited the most by fossil fuel use, should take the lead in the conversion by enacting worldwide pacts and treaties. In 1997 the Kyoto Treaty, which has now been signed by more than 160 countries, is, to date, the most comprehensive global effort to decrease CO2 emissions. Though the agreement was signed by the U.S. and then President Bill Clinton consented to decrease greenhouse emissions in the U.S. by 40 percent, it has been dismissed by the Bush administration and has yet to be ratified by the U.S. CO2 greenhouse gases have since increased in the country that produces well more than any other. World leaders and environmentalists alike have proclaimed the treaty as a vital step on the road to abating the potentially cataclysmic global warming problem. (Malinin, 2005). Hillary Clinton strongly emphasizes the global warming crisis. Clinton also points to the rising cost of gasoline being a particular burden to poor families and damaging the economy as a whole. In addition, investing in alternative fuels would create new technologies and jobs but her main concern is protecting the environment.
Conclusion
Misconceptions regarding the long-range effects of fossil fuel emissions have been perpetrated by large corporations such as oil and auto companies who believe they will be the losers if limits to greenhouse emissions are legislated in the U.S. Auto companies in particular lobby against regulating automobile emissions claiming that it is not economically feasible for them. If the earth cannot sustain human life, the automakers will not make any money. Maybe that is an argument they can understand.
References
“Alternatives to Oil.” (2002). Disposable Planet? BBC News UK. 2008. Web.
Breuer, Georg. (1980). “Air in Danger: Ecological Perspectives of the Atmosphere.” New York: Cambridge University Press.
“Geothermal Energy: Tapping the Energy in the Earth’s Core.” (2006). Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI). 2008. Web.
Malinin, Sergei. (2005). “USA, China and India Outlaw Kyoto Protocol and Set Forth New Climate Change Initiative.” Pravda.
Trenberth, Kevin E. (2006). “Global Warming: It’s Happening.” National Center for Atmospheric Research. 2008. Web.
Wunderlich, Gooloo S.; Kohler, Peter O. (2001), Improving the Quality of Long-Term Care. The National Academies Press p.18.