Environment & Challenges of Global Governance

Environment & Challenges of Global Governance Name Institutional Affiliation Course Name & Number Professor Date Global Warming What is the nature and scope of global warming? Global warming is the persistent rise in the average air temperatures on the earth’s surface over the decades. Since the Industrial Revolution, global temperatures increased by 1°C annually. In 1880-1980, it rose by 0.07°C, 0.18°C from 1981 to 2000, with years 2015-2023 being the warmest years recorded with temperatures rising to 1.46 °C above pre-industrial levels(Al-Yasiri & Géczi, 2021, pp.1-3). Global warming occurs when sunshine touches the earth; then clouds, reflective ground surfaces, atmospheric atoms, and ocean send back 30% of the sunlight into space. At the same time, the water bodies, air, and land absorb the rest, heating the globe and the sky, making the environment feasible. As the earth becomes warm, thermal radioactivity and ultraviolet rays radiate the solar energy straight out of space, cooling the earth (Shahzad, 2015, pp. 1-2). However, some of them are reabsorbed by greenhouse gasses, namely carbon dioxide, methane, ozone, and other gases, trapping the heat on the earth’s environment and raising its temperatures. The extent of the rise in temperatures since the onset of the Industrial Revolution has steadily grown over the last 2000 years and will likely rise even higher if significant solutions to mitigate it fail to be implemented. The high temperatures have increased from 0.6°C to about 1.7°C presently. After the levels of carbon dioxide being consistently at 280 parts per million for 6000 years, currently, they have risen to 420ppm (Shahzad, 2015, pp. 2-3). The steady increase is due to burning fossil fuels to facilitate transportation and generate electricity, deforestation, agriculture, and manufacturing. As a result, global temperatures have increased, resulting in catastrophic events such as bushfires in the U.S. and Australia, locust swarming in Africa, Asia, and the Middle East, destruction of crops, heatwaves, tropical storms, deforestation, and ice sheet melting. According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency, there will be increases in global temperatures by 0.5°F to 8.6°F by 2100 and up to 2.7°F if strict measures to minimize greenhouse gas emissions fail to be adopted (United States Environmental Protection Agency, n.d.). The ground-level temperature will rise more rapidly on land than in the ocean, with some parts of the world enduring high temperatures. The U.S. will likely experience a rise in temperatures by about 3°F to 12°F, intensifying extreme heat waves and fires. What causes global warming? The primary root of global warming is the usage of fossil fuels. Fossil fuels such as coal, oil, gasoline, and natural gas produce power and electricity, resulting in the production of harmful gases (GHG) such as chlorine, CO2 at 60%, methane at 25%, water vapor, nitrous oxide at 7.5% and bromine at 7.5%. The U.S. transport industry accounts for 29% of these gases, electricity production contributes 28%, and industrial activities produce 22% (Goel & Bhatt, 2012, pp. 1-2). The accumulation of these gases in the air over time changes the radiative balance, warming the earth's surface and plummeting the atmosphere, causing the world to become warmer. Also, these gases in the atmosphere deplete the ozone layer, allowing harmful sun rays to permeate the earth. Deforestation is another major cause of global warming. Vegetation and trees play a critical part in controlling climate by absorbing carbon dioxide from the air, the main greenhouse gas emitted, and releasing oxygen. Forests are carbon sinks that store carbon (Al-Yasiri & Géczi, 2021, p.5). However, according to the United Nations, with 10 million hectares lost to farming, settlement, and industrialization and another 70 million hectares lost through forest fires, the stored carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere, increasing greenhouse gas pollution and contributing to global warming (United Nations, 2024). Agriculture is another cause of global warming. Feeding the world is a significant endeavor that produces billions in greenhouse gas emissions yearly. According to researchers, worldwide food systems produce about 17 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide, which is 21% of the world’s emissions, 53% of methane, and 78% of all nitrous oxide emitted worldwide in 2019 (Al-Yasiri & Géczi, 2021, pp.5-6). The emissions emanate from livestock production, which produces methane through animal burbs and manure, production and processing of animal feeds, and deforestation and tilling land to grow animal feeds. Land use for farming causes deforestation and degradation, resulting in 3.5 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide release. Also, food waste...