Enhanced Greenhouse Effect Write-up
The greenhouse effect is the natural process of the warming of our Earth. However, the enhanced effect has the normal process tweaked. It is brought about by human activities, such as the burning of fossil fuels and clearing of forests.
The above activities cause greenhouse gases like methane (NH4), carbon dioxide (CO2) and nitrous oxide (N2O) to be released at a much higher rate. These gases are help to trap and retain heat on earth. However, as too much is produced at too quick a pace, excess amounts of heat energy are trapped, resulting in global warming.
From the last Ice age (around 10,000 years ago) to the end of the 18th century, the levels of greenhouse gases had remained rather constant. However, with the arrival of the industrial revolution, the situation changed. Workers were replaced with machines, and factories sprung up. Due to machines running on energy, the energy consumption rate experienced a huge growth. Burning of coal, a fossil fuel, was essential and this caused an increase in the emission of carbon dioxide. According to statistics, carbon dioxide contributed about 70% to the enhanced greenhouse effect.
The clearing and burning of vegetation also led to the high amount of carbon dioxide content. Plants make use of carbon dioxide for photosynthesis, and are thus referred to as greenhouse gas “sinks”. Over many years, forests build up a store of carbon within the trees, soil and fallen leaves. However, with activities like deforestation, much of this carbon is converted back to carbon dioxide through burning or decay.
As the enhanced greenhouse effect worsens, the Earth experiences much climate change, with effects varying around the globe. Global warming has a high possibility of causing irreversible and large changes. Some of these changes are a rise in temperature, flooding and extreme weather, mostly hazardous for organisms living on earth.
Effects of the Enhanced Greenhouse Effect
Why are these important people getting so worried about the greenhouse effect? The consequences of this process will not crash down on us for a long time, but unless we do something to prevent it from ever happening, it will be a dark future for man. The rise in the global average temperature will cause dangerous climatic changes all over the world. The ice caps in polar regions will begin to melt due to the rise in temperature, and the melting ice will become excess water. This will flow into oceans and seas, thus resulting in a rise in the sea levels. Millions of people in low-lying areas will be affected deeply. Tiny islands like the Maldives will perhaps even be submerged.
The need to prevent these deadly consequences grows stronger with each passing year. See the post “Prevention Efforts” to learn what governments and political leaders of different countries have done about it, on both national and international levels, and also how you can play your part at home.
For more information on some of the terms used in this entry, visit the category Glossary of Terms.
