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Sunday, September 22, 2019

Climate Change – A challenge for mankind



22nd September 2019

By: Haris Ahmad[1]

Climate change is a major issue nowadays and it is being caused by the inhabitants of the planet Earth themselves. The change in global weather patterns is going to cause destruction all over the planet. This catastrophe will increase the global temperature and is going to make it hard for life to exist. There has been an increase of 0.8° Celsius since 1880. If this continues, then soon our planet will become inhabitable. The glaciers are melting very fast and the sea level is rising by 3.3 mm per year. On Earth, human activities are changing the natural greenhouse. Over the last century, the burning of fossil fuels like coal and oil has increased the concentration of atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2). This happens because the coal or oil burning process combines carbon with oxygen in the air to make CO2. To a lesser extent, the clearing of land for agriculture, industry, and other human activities has increased concentrations of greenhouse gases.

In 2017, 7900 km² of the forestland of the Amazon forest was cut down. The Amazon forest is our main defender against climate change as it produces 20% of the Earth's oxygen. The Amazon is also referred to as the Earth’s lungs. Each year 15.3 billion trees are cut down globally which is an insanely high amount inverse to the number of trees that are planted. I know that this resource is important for many uses in our lives but this doesn’t mean that we should use it in such an amount that it becomes so scarce that we lose it. We should use every resource wisely.


*Photo Source: FG TRADEGETTY IMAGES


Climate change will affect the environment very badly. Climate change will bring a lot of problems. The temperatures will significantly rise causing a lot of heatwaves and drought. There will be changes in precipitation patterns, which will cause a change in rain patterns. The hurricanes will become stronger and intense. The sea levels will rise 1-4 feet by 2100 causing a lot of floods. The Arctic will likely become ice-free.

The country I live in (Pakistan) has a very tiny contribution to total greenhouse gas emissions, but it is among the countries that are most vulnerable to climate change, and it has very low technical and financial capacity to adapt to its adverse impacts. The threats to Pakistan are significantly high in terms of frequency and intensity of extreme weather events, along with erratic monsoon rains causing frequent and intense floods and droughts. More frequent and intense floods will cause an increased amount of salt in the major dams.

Rising temperatures will result in intense heat leading to less agricultural productivity. The increased intrusion of saltwater in the Indus delta will affect coastal agriculture. There will be a huge threat to coastal areas because of higher sea levels causing cyclones and floods. There will be increased health problems. It would be very hard for Pakistan to overcome these problems because Pakistan is already developing slowly and these natural disasters would cause the destruction of the infrastructure. Therefore, the whole management of schools, hospitals, and other places will be disturbed and would take a lot of time to recover. This is why we all have to step up and take action against the people and the things that are causing climate change to not only save our beloved country but the whole world to make it a better place for the upcoming generations. The climate strikes that are being initiated globally are a very good step for global awareness about this major catastrophe. We should reduce the emission of the greenhouse gases caused by the burning of fossil fuels and should use bio-fuels instead. Deforestation should also be stopped as the trees work in reducing the carbon dioxide and increasing the oxygen.

The plantation drive called Billion Tree Tsunami initiated by the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Government in 2014 is a timely intervention. However, we need more such initiatives to overcome the impact of climate change as much as possible.  This is not only the responsibility of the government but it is the responsibility of every citizen to come forward and play his/her role.  No effort is less, every effort matters. Let's work to save this beloved planet Earth!



[1] Haris Ahamd is currently studying in 9th grade  (O levels) in The City School, Islamabad. 

2 comments:

  1. Great article, we need to bring awareness in people, there is one land to live so we should keep it safe.
    I love greenery,glaciers.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thank you for the feedback Ma'am. Indeed we have to keep Earth safe; however, the people of the world will prefer money over that. Therefore, one day, these greedy people will lead to the destruction of the planet if they don't stop. That destruction may be a mass extinction.

    ReplyDelete

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