Hello Everyone,

Hope you are having a great day. Today I will be talking about Climate Change and Carbon Footprints.

The potential effects of Climate Change

1. Rise in sea level
2. Temperature rising 
3. Droughts
4. Floods
5. Habitats being destroyed

The scale, risk and environmental problems of climate change

Climate change is massive, the impact will be far worse than anyone could ever imagine. All the problems of climate change listed above will continue to happen and get worse.

Evidence of climate change

From 1850 to 1900 there was no change in carbon dioxide parts in the atmosphere.

In 1925 the carbon dioxide levels started to increase but at a slower rate. 

However from 1950, the amount of Carbon Dioxide parts started increasing rapidly.

Now the amount of carbon dioxide has doubled since the pre-industrial times.

What are the Greenhouse gases ?

There are three main greenhouse gases that are harming the planet:

1. Nitrous Oxide
2. Methane 
3. Carbon Dioxide

As you can see from the graph here, carbon dioxide is the biggest greenhouse gas in the atmosphere followed by methane and then nitrous oxide.

Carbon Footprints

This is the amount of carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere as a consequence of the activities and lifestyles of each individual/company/community.  

Average Carbon Footprints

The USA has an average carbon footprint of about 20 metric tonnes 

Europe has an average carbon footprint of around 10 metric tonnes

India has an average carbon footprint of 1 metric tonne

How can we make our carbon footprint smaller ?

We can cut down on emissions of carbon dioxide by installing 'carbon capture' and storage. Although it reduces the amount of carbon dioxide going into the Earth's atmosphere, it is extremely expensive. You can also plant more trees which take in carbon dioxide during photosynthesis and release oxygen cleaning up the atmosphere. If we don't stop mitigating (preventing climate change) we could be in serious trouble. If you are living in a cold climate putting insulation in your roof, fit triple glazing windows and have those windows facing the sun. Also insulate the walls well to keep in the warmth will help considerably. These actions reduce your carbon footprint because you don't have to heat your house which uses up gas or electricity - harming the atmosphere. When living in hot climates try building a veranda so you don't need air conditioning or fans. When you are travelling try and walk to most places instead of using the car. If you need to use the car try and reduce your speed.

Whilst buying foods try and consider how long the food has come because if it has travelled a long way it is most likely not environmentally friendly and is causing harm to the Earth. Research shows, that not all local food is environmentally friendly to produce. For example lamb in the UK (the country where I live). It would be more energy efficient for me to get my lamb from New Zealand because of the farming methods used and the weather conditions there.  Also lamb produced in the UK travels many miles from the field to our plate.  

Replacing any filament lightbulbs with LED bulbs will reduce your carbon footprint because you reduce the amount of wasted energy.

That is only a few of the ways of reducing your carbon footprint.

Thanks For Reading 

Matthew