Well, I guess to start this off I should probably tell you what a greenhouse gas is. I'm sure most of you know, it's a well spoken about topic and I feel like it's something everyone should know about at this point in their lives. The definition of a greenhouse gas, according to whatsyourimpact, is "a group of compounds that are able to trap heat in the atmosphere." This basically means that these gases are emissions that make the Earth much warmer than it should be.
Whilst a lot of greenhouse gases are the fault of humans, there are some gases that can't be controlled. Carbon dioxide is a chemical that occurs during the natural process of respiration; we breathe in oxygen and breathe out carbon dioxide. Now, this is a process that we can't control since we need it to live.
This is not the only way carbon dioxide is released into the air and it, actually, happens to be the largest greenhouse gas created by human activity. If that comes as a surprise to you... it shouldn't. We do so much to the Earth that involves the use of this particular greenhouse gas, it's kind of ridiculous that we haven't found alternatives to the use of CO2 at this point. You'd think that since people have come to realize that this gas is negatively effecting the environment and us that this would lessen the use of it. Hm... nope.
Some CO2 emissions that are released into the air are from fossil fuels, land use changes (natural changes), and natural sources. You know when you're driving and you see a huge mound of smoke being released into the air from one source? I have to see one every time I drive to the mall I go to on Long Island, so I'm sure you've seen at least one of these buildings in your lifetime too. Each of these emissions listed are all manmade sources of CO2 emission; the burning of fossil fuels is the biggest unnatural source of carbon dioxide in our environment.
Fossil fuels come from, it's going to sound really weird, decomposed dead animals and plants from hundreds of millions of years ago. These decomposed plants and animals eventually formed the fossil fuels that we use today. Fossil fuels make up coal, natural gas, and oil. Coal (fun fact: it's the most abundant fossil fuel in the world!) is used in the use of electricity and in those buildings I was talking about before, you know the ones with the smoke coming out of them. Basically, coal is really bad for the environment because of the steam that is released from the coals when it's used. Carbon dioxide is not the only greenhouse gas released into the air from coal; the burning of this fossil fuel also releases sulfur dioxide, Nitrogen oxides and ash (so it's really bad!!!).
Gas and oil are pretty similar for the fact that they're usually found near one another underneath the Earth's surface. Natural gas that is dug up is usually used in heating/electricity; it's what's used in order to allow you to make some food on your stove and other things in your home. The industry also uses natural gases (surprising, I know) in order to run their factories that are killing the environment. Oil, or petroleum, is used to create gasoline. Whenever we decide to drive or take an uber somewhere, I mean they really are so convenient, we are releasing fossil fuels into the air.
A huge reason why many car manufacturers are switching to electric cars is to stop people from releasing gasoline into the air. There's a lot of debate between people on whether electric cars really are better for the environment or not. I mean, remember what I said before, these gases are used to create electricity. So, basically, more CO2 is going to be released into the atmosphere since electric is made by using a greenhouse gas.
I've only touched on some of the greenhouse gases that are emitted into the air and most of them are through human error; over 85% of the greenhouse gases that are released into the air by humans are fossil fuels. We are killing the atmosphere through the use of electricity, driving, and the industrial buildings that are all over the world.
I'm sure humans will eventually find a way to stop the use of greenhouse gases that we can control, but until then the environment will continue to suffer.
It's really scary to think about how rapidly humans have increased their greenhouse gas emissions and that the rate at which we're polluting the environment is not at all sustainable. Ever since the industrial revolution, we've increased pollution through increased burning of fossil fuels and massive amounts of construction and industrial development. I like how you touched on the fact that electric cars aren't as green as they may appear to be, since pollution is generated as the electricity is created. It would be cool if you looked into some other options for alternative energy sources because it's kind of discouraging to think about how this seemingly innovative breakthrough with electric vehicles is not as good as it seems to be. This post is really informative! Great job!
ReplyDeleteThis was actually sad to read- I can't believe we are not making continuous research/efforts to stop the emission of these gases. And the fact that 85% are released purposefully through fossil fuels is astounding. Your post was very informative, and I agree that we should have found more environmentally-friendly methods by now. Good post!
ReplyDeleteI like how you wrote this post! The sometimes sarcastic tone mixed with so many facts made it persuasive. I feel like in general as humans we tend to fix problems after they have gone just a little bit too far so even though we have a number of new technologies that could greatly reduce the amount of fossil fuels we burn, we won't change until the effects are felt in our personal lives. I hope being cynical and underestimating society as a whole, but I suppose we'll see if anything gets done in the near future. I also really liked your point about electric cars; I had never thought of that before. Awesome post!
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