Climate Change Essay

John Balafoutas
Science Period 3

Billions of years ago Earth was formed. Throughout the years it has changed in a
variety of ways. One major factor on Earth has constantly been changing since its great
formation: Earths climate. Earth has recently exited an ice age and its average annual
temperature has steadily been increasing. However, this warming process is being
accelerated due to human causes and natural forces. Humans are causing Earths climate
to change by mainly burning fossil fuels. These fossil fuels release old carbon dioxide
into the air causing climate change to accelerate by simplifying the energy received from
the sun. There are also natural forces that can trigger Earths climate to change. These
natural forces include plate tectonics that cause continental drifting in turn altering wind
and ocean currents and volcanic activity which adds ash and gases into the atmosphere.
Such gases include carbon dioxide and methane. Due to this temperature change over a
period of time, rising sea levels, changes in agricultural patterns, and an altered
ecosystem may occur on Earth.
One result of an annual increase temperature average is rising sea levels. Rising
sea levels will occur when the warmer temperatures reach the poles and melt a substantial
amount of glaciers and sea ice. The result of this melting will cause sea levels to rise.
Low lying areas such as Florida and the South Pacific would be drastically affected
because they will be engulfed by water. However, there are precautionary steps as an
individual I can take to lower the pace at which the sea level will rise. One step I would
take is to write a letter to the government to emphasize the importance of climate change
and what can be done to slow down the process. Also, in my letter I would state that
using policies such as cap and trade will benefit Earth because it will drastically lower the
amount of harmful gases, such as carbon dioxide, entering Earths atmosphere.
In addition, to sea level rising, climate change will alter agricultural patterns. One
way agriculture will be altered is because the yield of certain crops will decrease. Yield
will decrease because many crops cannot grow in an overheated area and may cause
farmers to move to a more stable environment for farming. Also, livestock of farms will
be threatened due to a change in climate. Many animals will parish in this increased
climate because they cannot survive the overwhelming heat. Lastly, as climate continues
to change, the land used for farming may become useless because of an increase in
droughts. Luckily, as an individual I can take steps to reduce the pace of agricultural
change. One step I can take is to encourage my family to buy fuel-efficient automobiles,
which will lower the amount of harmful gas that is emitted into the atmosphere. As a
result, there will be less gases released into the atmosphere.
Lastly, due to climate change, Earth may experience an altered ecosystem. One
change to Earths ecosystem would be animals and insects migrating to another area that
will fit their needs. For example, mosquitoes will travel north because they will be able to
live in northern areas with warmer climates. Furthermore, the ecosystems will be affected
because many species will struggle to survive, and as a result, this will cause a harmful
trickle down effect to all other living organisms. Moreover, climate change will
encourage the spread of various diseases and pathogens. These diseases and pathogens
could enter an ecosystem and drastically affect the animals survival. As an individual, I
believe to solve this ecosystem problem I can takes steps such as recycling to lower the
amount of fuel created by new products and riding a bike instead of an automobile to
lower the amount of fossil fuels emitted into the air.
Finally, climate change is a serious problem that will continue to occur and cause
such issues rising sea level, changes in agriculture, and altering ecosystems. However, we
as humans can take steps to slow down climate change and avoid events such as the ones
stated above. As individuals, we can all make changes to decrease the pace of climate
change. These changes include recycling, riding bikes instead of automobiles, using
energy efficient cars, and even writing letters to legislators supporting lower harmful
gases released into the atmosphere. Also, I feel that society as a whole should work
together to lower the acceleration of climate change. We can lower the rate of climate
change by studying the harmful gases released by humans daily. As a result, society can
combine the data found and work to lower the overall impact on our atmosphere by
regulating restrictions limiting the amount of harmful gases that enter our atmosphere.
Climate change will always be a serious issue in our changing society today. However, as
a society, we can work together to help stop this current trend of rapid climate change.
In conclusion, many people worldwide have theories that claim climate change is
not societys fault and it is mainly caused by nature or climate change does not exist at
all. However, these statements are false due to the data received from the atmosphere and
Earth. This data received shows that global temperatures are steadily rising but the suns
energy remains steady. Thus, the sun would not be a factor of climate change. But,
further observations show that as the global temperature increases, the carbon dioxide in
the atmosphere increases as well. This states that carbon dioxide is directly linked to an
increase in temperature. In addition, people are known for releasing a substantial amount
of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere daily because of automobile, electricity, etc.
Moreover, we can also observe that the climate is changing by monitoring other aspects
on Earth such as the sea level and glaciers. Glaciers in the poles are melting at a rapid
rate which shows significant signs of a warmer climate. As a result to glaciers melting,
the sea levels on Earth are progressively growing pointing to a warming climate. This
data clearly proves that the theories above are false. As a result, we can conclude climate
change is occurring and people such as you and I are the cause.