When I first started this project, I knew that the Earth’s surface temperature is increasing. What I did not know was how serious climate change and global warming are. Over the past few years I have noticed a change in the weather patterns. My knowledge has grown a tremendous amount.
I started off by talking about the reason why I became so interested in the environment. I read an article that mentioned an unusual solution. This got me thinking about why this matters to me. Why should I care about the Earth? Why should any of us care? Earth is our home. Through this process I have come to appreciate the Earth and all that it offers humans like resources, food, water, weather, and a place to call home.
Global warming is just one impact of climate change. Other impacts include severe weather, lack of natural resources, and decrease in crop yield. I then started to look into solutions. It appears that there are many right now solutions, but nothing permanent. These solutions include renewable sources, carbon taxing, and cap and trade.
Renewable sources are resources that naturally replenish over a short amount of time. Wind, Sunlight, water, geothermal and biomass are all considered renewable sources of energy. These energies mostly provide electricity, but can also supply heat to houses, and fuel to cars. So what can individual households do? I think if you can afford to make switches to renewable resources you should think about it. Although it can be an expensive at first in the long run you will save money and energy. For others that do not have all the money in the world, there are small and simple things you can do around the house to make a difference. Some of those things include, changing a light bulb and making sure you do not have any leaky faucets.
If every household makes little changes then we are making a large step to helping the environment. What I mean to say is that these changes add up, but I wonder is this enough? Will any of the changes be enough to counteract human impact?
The other solutions (cap and trade and carbon taxing) basically mean that industries have to pay for their pollution, which gives them incentive to use renewable sources. For a right now solution this is very possible. I think this solution would allow us to maintain carbon levels and research a long term solution.
Lately, I have spent time thinking about these solutions and if we have enough time. If we do not make changes soon, we could see some serious problems. What changes can we make? Will they be enough? I think I have taken for granted my time on Earth. I assume that I will have a tomorrow. I assume that I will have food and water. The truth is that our natural resources will not be able to support our population. The weather could very well destroy our land causing us to be unable to grow crops.
The world we live in is not so safe, but it is our pollution and very being that has caused this. As the Earth gets sicker, it starts to pollute our lives. At some point the Earth could become unlivable. Maybe changing our lives now would allow future generations to enjoy a semi-normal Earth, without the possible consequences we face today. Maybe the damage we have caused can be healed, but it will take one big Band-Aid.
This Blog has forced me to think about my own life and daily routine. I appreciate the time I have spent on Earth and look forward to the years to come. Now I am more conscience of turning off the faucet while brushing my teeth or using Eco-friendly light bulbs. I hope that my growth of knowledge and thinking has allowed readers to learn about human impact on the Earth and what we can do now to heal our home.
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