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Christian Piskura
Mr. Matthews
Pathways 11
20 October 2015

Climate Change
Climate change, the destabilization of our planets climate, is a vast issue. Although the
implications and predictions weve formed around climate change paint quite the unflattering
picture, climate change remains a widely unrecognized phenomenon. While there is significant
evidence to depict the tangible effects of climate change, there are still those who deny that
climate change is a real issue. More importantly, there is still a degree of uncertainty amongst the
scientific community as to whether or not humans are even the cause of climate change to begin
with. However, many sources agree that there is direct evidence of human contribution to
atmospheric CO2. 1
Over the last century, weve experienced a nearly two degree increase in the earths average
temperature. 2 While this may seem to be a miniscule amount, it should still raise concerns for a
wide variety of reasons. One of these is the increase in relative terms. Not only are our
temperatures rising, but our carbon emissions are as well. Recent charts are showing another

1 "How Do We Know that Humans Are the Major Cause of Global." 2009. 27 Oct. 2015
<http://www.ucsusa.org/global_warming/science_and_impacts/science/human-contribution-to-gwfaq.html>

2 "How much has the global temperature risen in the last 100 ..." 2011. 27 Oct. 2015
<https://www2.ucar.edu/climate/faq/how-much-has-global-temperature-risen-last-100-years>

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rising trend in our carbon emissions. In 2014, energy-related carbon emissions increased for the
second consecutive year 3
With new trends in technology and the worlds wasteful lifestyles, climate science
predicts further increases in carbon dioxide emissions until about 2040. 4 For almost the next 3
decades, carbon concentration in the atmosphere will continue to increase. For the past decade
(2005-2014) the average annual increase is 2.1 ppm per year. This could add up to as much as
an increase of 53 ppm (parts per million), or, considering the trend of .2 increment rises in
carbon increase each decade, as much as 59 ppm. Altogether, we could expect 457 ppm of
carbon dioxide in the atmosphere by 2040, nearly 30% higher than the upper safety limit of 350
ppm. 5
Carbon Dioxide is far from the worst offender in the climate crisis. Other gases, such as methane,
are a major factor in the Earths climate crisis. Methane, most heavily produced by our nations
livestock, traps up to 100 times more heat in the atmosphere than carbon dioxide within a 5 year
period, and 72 times more within a 20 year period. 6 This means that, while there have been
efforts to reduce carbon emissions, they will prove highly ineffective.
Livestock farming is only one hazard caused by our food industry. We waste roughly 1.3 billion
tons of food annually. 7 We use fossil fuels to create the power needed to cultivate that food,
3 "This Chart Shows How U.S. Carbon Emissions Are Rising ..." 2015. 27 Oct. 2015
<http://news.nationalgeographic.com/energy/2015/04/150421-US-carbon-emissions-rise>

4 "Climate change - Predictions - GreenHouse Gas Online." 2002. 3 Nov. 2015

<http://www.ghgonline.org/predictions.htm>

5 "CO2 Now | CO2 Home." 2008. 5 Nov. 2015 <http://co2now.org/>

6 "Methane vs. Carbon Dioxide: A Greenhouse Gas Showdown." 2014. 3 Nov. 2015
<http://www.onegreenplanet.org/animalsandnature/methane-vs-carbon-dioxide-a-greenhouse-gasshowdown/>

7 "World Environment Day - Food Waste Facts - UNEP." 2014. 5 Nov. 2015
<http://www.unep.org/wed/2013/quickfacts/>

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further polluting our environment. Food waste is a compound issue, because the food waste itself
goes on to produce hazardous emissions. One of the most overlooked effects of food waste is the
contamination of the dumping grounds. Because of the sheer volume of refuse left to rot on these
sites, the land is rendered uninhabitable to plant life that would otherwise reduce the carbon in
our atmosphere. Food waste ranks as the third top emitter after the USA and China. 8
Climate change: a vast destabilization of the Earth as it has been known by mankind.
Generations of the future will inhabit a different world; a planet scarred by the effects of
scorching summers and frigid winters. Food shortages of the present day could become hundreds
of times worse, the worlds scarce remnants of flora and fauna struggling to survive. None of the
climate models produced through our current science are accurate enough to detail the true
horror of what is to come. When will mankind take action?

8 "Food Waste Worsens Greenhouse Gas Emissions: FAO ..." 2013. 5 Nov. 2015
<http://www.climatecentral.org/news/food-waste-worsens-greenhouse-gas-emissions-fao-16498>