CLIMATE CHANGE

The greenhouse effect is caused by an atmosphere containing gases that absorb and emit infrared radiation. Greenhouse gases trap heat within the surface-troposphere system, causing heating at the surface of the planet or moon. Global warming, a recent warming of the Earth's surface and lower atmosphere, is believed to be the result of an "enhanced greenhouse effect" mostly due to human-produced increases in atmospheric greenhouse gases. This human induced part is referred to as anthropogenic global warming (AGW. The four major gases are water vapour, carbon dioxide, methane and ozone. Here are the 5 deadliest effects of global warming Spread of diseases Warmer waters and more hurricanes Increased probability and intensity of drought and heat waves Economic Consequences Polar ice caps melting It will raise sea levels Melting ice caps will throw the global ecosystem out of balance Temperature rises and changing landscapes in the Arctic Circle will endanger several species of animals Submerging of low-lying areas Flash flooding

Two significant summits that made an attempt to reduce greenhouse gases are discussed here in brief The Kyoto Protocol is a protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC or FCCC), aimed at fighting global warming. It was adopted on 11 December, 1997 in Kyoto. Under the Protocol, 37 industrialized countries (called "Annex I countries") agreed to reduce their overall emissions of six greenhouse gases by an average of 5.2% below 1990 levels between 2008-2012.It entered into force on 16 February 2005 and currently has 190 parties. The United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen, Denmark took place from 7-19 December 2009. It included the fifteenth Conference of the Parties (COP 15) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the fifth Conference of the Parties serving as the Meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol (COP/MOP 5. By promoting and demonstrating innovative, positive, and meaningful business leadership and ideas, it aims to demonstrate that achieving an effective global climate treaty is not only possible, but necessary. But it seems to fail as some developed countries like U.S.A have not signed the treaty fearing that it would lead to limit their income through industrialisation.

A Carbon credit is a generic term meaning that a value has been assigned to a reduction or offset of greenhouse gas emissions. One carbon credit is equal to one ton of carbon dioxide, or in some markets, carbon dioxide equivalent gases. Carbon credits are a part of international emission trading norms. Operators that have not used up their quotas can sell their unused allowances as carbon credits, while businesses that are about to exceed their quotas can buy the extra allowances as credits, privately or on the open market. India and China are likely to emerge as the biggest sellers and Europe is going to be the biggest buyers of carbon credits. Permafrost or permafrost soil is soil at or below the freezing point of water (0 C or 32 F) for two or more years. Permafrost accounts for 0.022% of total water and exists in 24% of exposed land in the Northern Hemisphere. The extent of permafrost can vary as the climate changes. Today, a considerable area of the Arctic is covered by permafrost. Permafrost can also be a storage of carbon. One estimate is that 1700 Gt (Gig ton) of carbon are stored within the permafrost worldwide. Thus carbon trading can make money for a country if it is carbon positive. Rajendra Pachauri, the controversial Chairman of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for 2007 and it was to be shared, in two equal parts, between the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and Albert Arnold (Al) Gore Jr. for their efforts to build up and disseminate greater knowledge about man-made climate change, and to lay the foundations for the measures that are needed to counteract such change. Pachauri says global warming is real, and that the recent warming has been caused mainly by human activity. But there are some people who dont believe that the climate changes are due to human intervention but its just a cyclic change. For example,Australian Workers Union national president Mr Ludwig suggested that climate change could be influenced by volcanoes, rather than human intervention. Volcanoes release more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere than humans had and he joked that more efforts might be made to cap volcanoes than to introduce an emissions trading scheme.