Climate change is one of the crucial problems caused by humanity and inherently destructive to the planet. There are certain measures and policies discussed in relation to this global issue, such as promoting vegan diets or switching to electric vehicles. It can be argued, though, that changing some particular parts of the industrial system is not sufficient, and that there are numerous aspects that need to be addressed to minimize the effects of climate change. Reducing the use of fossil fuels will be presented and analyzed in this essay as one of the solutions that can impact different industries and achieve higher efficiency in tackling this problem.
As mentioned above, climate change affects all areas of life on the planet. It has serious consequences for oceans, weather, food sources, and health (Perera, 2017). Ice sheets are melting, which causes sea levels to rise, flooding coastal regions. Weather also becomes more extreme due to warmer temperatures, and this includes more intense storms, floods, heavier snowfalls, longer and more frequent draughts. These extreme weather conditions, in turn, diminish water supplies and make it more difficult for people to grow crops. People’s health is also affected; for example, because of climate change, people in urban areas are exposed to high levels of smog, which can cause asthma, heart disease, and lung cancer.
The solution presented could work due to the fact that renewable sources do not produce greenhouse gas emissions, which is the major cause of climate change. Since the beginning of the industrial revolution, human activities, and the burning of fossil fuels in particular, have increased the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere by more than a third (Peter, 2018). Nevertheless, humans are the ones who can combat this problem as well: if fossil fuels are replaced with renewable energy sources, like solar and wind, people well be able to prevent some of the worst effects of climate change. It should be stated, however, that this solution can only be effectively implemented through governmental efforts and policies. The activities would include replacing the technologies used by power plants with the more sustainable ones and funding the development of new technology for those parts of modern economy that are not easily electrified.
This solution would have a number of positive impacts on the environment and people’s lives. First, warming would slow, and the weather would become more stable. The melting of ice sheets would also slowdown, which means the frequency and risks of floods would be minimized. Pollution levels would decrease, which, in turn, would have a positive impact on people’s wellbeing, reducing health risks and medical expenses (Shindell & Smith, 2019). All these outcomes could be used to analyze and assess the efficiency of the solution. The necessary data that would need to be collected in order to do it includes healthcare reports and reports from tide stations and satellite altimeters to measure the change in sea levels. Positive changes in all the areas analyzed, even if they are insignificant at first, would indicate that the solution is effective.
Some issues that could prevent the solution from working include organizations’ unwillingness to follow the policies and regulations concerning their use of fossil fuels. That is why these policies have to be reinforced by the government. In addition, there might be financial issues preventing the companies from switching to clean resources. Therefore, the government may allocate additional funds for these purposes. Individuals can also take steps to contribute to this solution; thus, I can make changes in my lifestyle that reduce the use of non-renewable energy. For example, installing solar panels in my house would help to generate more renewable energy and avoid relying entirely on gas and oil.
References
Perera, F. (2017). Pollution from fossil-fuel combustion is the leading environmental threat to global pediatric health and equity: Solutions exist. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 15(1), 16.
Peter, S. C. (2018). Reduction of CO2 to chemicals and fuels: A solution to global warming and energy crisis. ACS Energy Letters, 3(7), 1557-1561.
Shindell, D., & Smith, C. J. (2019). Climate and air-quality benefits of a realistic phase-out of fossil fuels. Nature, 573(7774), 408-411.