1.

Understanding Global Warming and

Greenhouse Gases
The earth is surrounded by a cover of gases as
atmosphere. This atmosphere allows most of
the light to pass through, which reaches the
surface of earth. This light from sun is
absorbed by the earth surface and converts
into heat energy. This heat energy is re-
emitted by the surface of the earth during
night. Due ecessive presence of some gasses
in the atmosphere, this escape of heat from
earth surface is prevented, resulting in heating
of earth called global warming. The gasses
which are responsible for causing global
warming are called greenhouse gasses.
The harmful effects of presence of greenhouse
gasses in atmosphere are global warming,
climate change, o!one depletion, sea level rise,
adverse effects on biodiversity etc. "ne way or
another these adverse impacts are all directly
or indirectly related to the presence of
greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. # number
of human activities, processes and
consumptions produce waste gasses or
greenhouse gasses that are harmful to the
environment. They include$
%a& 'uel combustion
%b& (nergy industries
%c& )anufacturing industries and construction
%d& *ehicle Transport and automobiles
%e& 'ugitive emissions from fuels
%f& +urning of solid fuels
%g& Use of oil and natural gas
%h& )ineral products
%i& ,hemical industry
%-& )etal production
%.& /roduction of halocarbons and sulfur
heafluoride
%l& ,onsumption of halocarbons and sulfur
heafluoride
%m& 0olvent and other product use
%n& (nteric fermentation
%o& )anure management
%p& 1ice cultivation
%2& #gricultural soils
%r& /rescribed burning of savannas
%s& 'ield burning of agricultural residues
%t& 0olid waste disposal on land
%u& Wastewater handling
%v& Waste incineration
)uch of these harmful gases are produced
either naturally or by various human activities3
which we should reduce. +rief description and
effects of si important greenhouse gases are
given below$
a. ,arbon dioide %,"4& # naturally
occurring gas produced by living organisms
and fermentation. 5t is a normal component of
the breath we ehale3 it is ha!ardous in
concentrated volumes. 6arge 2uantity of
carbon dioide is produced by the combustion
of carbonaceous fuels. ,arbon dioide
emissions from fuel burning, responsible for
about 78 percent of global warming, have
increased by about 48 percent since the
industrial revolution.
b. 9itrogen oides %9"& 9itrogen oides
are naturally occurring from microbial action
in soil. 9" is also produced by fuel burning.
0cientists say its production is increased by
the use of nitrogen based fertili!ers in
agriculture, as well as by the use of catalytic
converters in automobiles.
c. )ethane %,:;& )ethane is a naturally
occurring, in-flammable gas. )ethane is
produced by geological coal formations and by
the decomposition of organic matters. 6eading
man-related sources of methane are landfills3
livestoc. digestive processes and waste,
especially ruminants %cud-chewing animals&3
and wetland rice cultivation.
d. :ydroflurocarbon gasses %:',s&
,hlorofluorocarbons %,',&, the coolant,
cleaning, and propellant gases were blac.listed
internationally due to its o!one-eating
characteristics. :',s do contribute to global
warming. Global warming potential of :',s is
;,<<< to 1<,<<< times that of ,"4.
e. /erfluorocarbons %/',&, or
perflurocompounds )an-made replacement
gases for ,',s but result also as a by-product
of aluminium smelting. /',s also used as a
purging agent for semi-conductor manufacture
and small amounts are produced during
uranium enrichment processes. Global
warming potential of /erfluorocarbons %/',&,
or perflurocompounds is =,<<< to 1<,<<< that
of ,"4.
f. 0ulfur heafluoride %0'=& - *ery low
atmospheric concentration ma.es it an ideal
test gas for gas concentration monitors.
/rinciple uses$ insulating material for high-
voltage e2uipment li.e circuit brea.ers at
utilities. #lso used in water lea. detection for
cable cooling systems. 0'= is a man-made gas.
4. The adverse effects of global warming -
"ver last 1<<<< years temperature remained
remar.ably stable across the globe, changing
by little more than 4 degree 'ahrenheit on an
average. (ven during the 6ittle 5ce #ge, which
lasted from the 1><< #D to 17?< #D, which
resulted advancing of glaciers, average
temperatures were little more than 4 degree
'ahrenheit. The effects of global warming
could change average temperatures five times
as much as little ice age did though in the
opposite direction. "ver the net century, the
rate of the effects of global warming should
follow a steep upward curve.
The adverse effects of global warming are
enormous. The effects are already being felt on
our planet, on human life, plants and animals
worldwide. The predicted effects of global
warming on the environment and for human
life are numerous and varied. 5t is generally
difficult to attribute specific natural
phenomena to long-term causes, even though,
some effects of recent climate changes already
we are witnessing3 rising sea levels, glacier
retreat, arctic shrin.age, and altered patterns
of agriculture are cited as direct
conse2uences. #mong secondary and regional
effects etreme weather events, epansion of
tropical diseases, changes in the timing of
seasonal patterns in ecosystems, and drastic
economic impact are predicted.
)a-or adverse effects of global warming are
listed below$
%i& /olar ice caps melting The ice caps
melting is a four-pronged danger.
%a& 5t will raise sea levels. There are more than
?,88>,<<< cubic miles of water in ice caps,
glaciers, and permanent snow. #ccording to
the 9ational 0now and 5ce Data ,enter, if all
glaciers melted today the seas would rise about
4>< feet. This may not happen at once3 but sea
level will rise certainly and conse2uently, low
lying areas will be submerged.
%b& )elting ice caps will throw the global
ecosystem out of balance. The ice caps are
fresh water, and when they melt they will
desalinate the ocean, or in plain (nglish
ma.e it less salty. The desalini!ation of the gulf
current will distort ocean currents, which
regulate temperatures. 5t will give very
confusing and irregular pattern of cooling and
warming effects in some areas.
%c& Temperature rises and changing landscapes
in the artic circle will endanger several species
of animals. "nly the most adaptable will
survive.
%d& Global warming will certainly reduce ice
caps substantially. 5ce caps are white, and
reflect sunlight, much of which is reflected
bac. into space, further cooling (arth. 5f the
ice caps melt, the only reflector is the ocean.
Dar.er colors absorb sunlight, further warming
the earth.
%ii& 5ncreased probability and intensity of
droughts and heat waves #lthough some
areas of (arth will become wetter due to global
warming, other areas will suffer serious
droughts and heat waves. #frica will receive
the worst of it, with more severe droughts also
epected in (urope. Water is already a scarce
commodity in #frica, and global warming will
worsen the conditions.
%iii& Warmer waters and more hurricanes
#s the temperature of oceans rise, so will the
probability of more fre2uent and stronger
hurricanes.
%iv& 0pread of disease #s northern countries
warm, disease carrying insects migrate north,
bringing plague and disease with them.
%v& (conomic conse2uences )ost of the
effects of global warming will not be good.
These effects bring economic conse2uences
badly for almost all the countries of the world.
>. 1ise in global warming "cean might
have become saturated with our emissions
#n alarm bell$
When the industrial revolution started, the
level of ,"4 in the atmosphere was around
47< parts per million by volume %ppmv& but
that has risen to around >7<ppmv due to our
burning of fossil fuels. +ecause of tremendous
rise in ,"4 %about >?@ rise& the global
warming scenario has been deteriorated or
faster. The melting of arctic ice, severe climate
changes are some of the effects among many,
of the global warming. This unepected growth
of ,"4 level in the atmosphere, scientists
suspect, is due to mainly two reasons
%i& 5nefficiency in the use of fossil fuels which
increased the ,"4 level by 18@ and
%ii& "ther 17@ came from a decline in the
natural ability of land and oceans to soa. up
,"4 from the atmosphere, i.e., decline in
global carbon sin.s. 5n addition, the growth of
global population is responsible for significant
growth of atmospheric ,"4, as well.
#. The decline in global sin. %there are two
ma-or carbon sin.s in the biological cycle$ the
oceans and the land biosphere, which
includes plants and the soil& efficiency suggests
that stabili!ation of atmospheric ,"4 is even
more difficult to achieve than previously
thought. 0tudy suggests, about half of
emissions from human activity are absorbed
by these natural ,"4 sin.s but it has been
observed that, the efficiency of these sin.s has
fallen. 0cientists believe global warming might
get worse if the oceans soa. up less of the
greenhouse gas.
+. The wea.ening of the (arths ability to cope
with greenhouse gases is thought to be a result
of changing wind patterns over seas and
droughts on land. 9early half of the decline in
the efficiency of the ocean ,"4 sin. is,
epected, due to the intensification of the
winds in the 0outhern "cean, study suggests.
The declining effect is also being seen in the
9orth #tlantic, as per the recent study.
,. 5n fact, the researchers are clueless about
the eact reasons, whether this change in
behavior of ocean is due to climate change or
to natural variations. 5t is a tremendous
surprise and troublesome factor because there
were grounds for believing that in time the
ocean might become saturated with our
emissions unable to soa. up any more. This
phenomenon of ocean being saturated, leave
us with all our emission to heat-up our globe
results rapidity in global warming.
D. We have to find out the ways to deal with
this rapid pace in global warming.
5mplementation of carbon sin. technology,
iron fertili!ation of 0outhern oceans etc., have
to be thought of. The ma-or responsible factors
such as, the issues li.e reduction of emission
of greenhouse gasses in the atmosphere are to
be tac.led efficiently.
;. ,limate change due to global warming
#. ,limate change is a global issue that affects
us all. ,hanges in climate patterns mean that
etreme weather events such as heat waves,
floods, storms, droughts and bushfires will
become more fre2uent, more widespread or
more intense. ,limate change science is
providing a better understanding of the causes,
nature, timing and conse2uences of climate
change. ,limate change science is a very
comple sub-ect. *arious investigations,
studies, reports suggest that world is warming
up, but how this will affect us in the future is
difficult to 2ualify. ,limate change is the result
of changes in our weather patterns because of
an increase in the (arths average temperature.
The weather elements at a given location vary
from time to time throughout the year, but
generally are epected to remain within set
limits over a long time period. This is .nown
as our climate. This natural variation in
temperature ensures we have cold and warm
years. This is actually a natural and essential
feature of our atmosphere without which our
planet would be uninhabitable.
+. 5f go bac. to history of climate change and
find people behind postulating the probable
cause of it3 we may more or less say that in
the 1A><s people started reali!ing that the
United 0tates and 9orth #tlantic region had
warmed significantly during the previous half-
century. 0cientists supposed this was -ust a
phase of some mild natural cycle, with
un.nown causes. "nly one lone voice, the
amateur G.0. ,allendar, insisted that
greenhouse warming was on the way. 5n the
1A?<s, ,allendars claims provo.ed a few
scientists to loo. into the 2uestion with
improved techni2ues and calculations. The new
studies showed that, contrary to earlier crude
estimates, carbon dioide could indeed build
up in the atmosphere and should bring
warming. /ainsta.ing measurements drove
home the point in 1A=1 by showing that the
level of the gas was, in fact, rising, year by
year. 5n the early 1A8<s, the rise of
environmentalism raised public doubts about
the benefits of human activity for the planet.
,uriosity about climate turned into anious
concern. #longside the greenhouse effect,
some scientists pointed out that human activity
was putting dust and smog particles into the
atmosphere, where they could bloc. sunlight
and cool the world. )ost scientists agreed on
that they scarcely understood the climate
system, and much more research was needed.
1esearch activity did accelerate, including huge
data-gathering schemes that mobili!ed
international fleets of oceanographic ships and
orbiting satellites. /eople have come to .now
that, this is caused by increases in greenhouse
gases in the (arths atmosphere. +y 4<<<,
scientists .new the most important things
about how the climate could change during the
present century.
,. Therefore, when we tal. about global
warming, as described above, we generally tal.
about the greenhouse effect. This process
wor.s by the principle that certain atmospheric
gases %called greenhouse gases& allow short
wave radiation from the sun to pass through
them unabsorbed, while at the same time
absorbing some of the long wave radiation
reflected bac. to space. The net result3 more
heat is received from the sun than is lost bac.
to space, .eeping the earths surface warmer
than it would otherwise be. )an, in the
process of industriali!ation and development,
is adding to and changing the levels of the
gases responsible for the greenhouse effect
and is therefore enhancing this warming.
D. The effect of global warming is that, global
ice sheets have decreased, so has global snow
cover. There have been warmer periods in the
history some millions of years ago. :owever,
the present rise is the most rapid rise in
temperature since the end of the last ice age.
,arbon dioide %,"4& is the gas most
significantly responsible for greenhouse effect.
/lant respiration and decomposition of organic
material release more than 1< times the ,"4
than released by human activities, but these
releases have generally been in balance during
the centuries. 0ince the industrial revolution
amounts have increased by ><@. "ther
greenhouse gases include )ethane, 9itrous
oide, ,',s %manmade& and "!one. The ma-or
problem is that these gases can remain in the
atmosphere for decades. The combustion of
fossil fuel %oil, natural gas and coal& by heavy
industry and other human activities, such as
transport and deforestation, are the primary
reasons for increased emissions of these
harmful gases. #erosol, from human made
sulfur emission, also increases in the
atmosphere along with ,"4. The small
particles of aerosol have a property to reflect
bac. some of the sunlight and hence act to
slow down the cooling. :owever where carbon
dioide can remain in the atmosphere for 1<<
years, sulfate aerosols only last a few days and
can be easily removed by rain %acid rain&.
Therefore they only temporarily mas. the full
effect of ,"4.
(. 5n order to try and predict possible
conse2uences of this warming for the future,
researchers use climate modeling to simulate
the climate and oceans over many decades.
,limate models also predict changes in rainfall
and rise in sea level. 0ea level rises will be due
to thermal epansion of the ocean along with
the melting glaciers and mountain snow and
ice. The recent estimate of sea level rise is by
more than ?<cm by 41<<, but this will vary
considerably with location.
?. (pected impacts of global warming
would certainly be very harmful and
dangerous$
# large body of scientific studies, ehaustively
reviewed, has produced a long list of
possibilities of impacts of global warming.
9obody can say that any of the items on the
list are certain to happen. +ut most of the
climate eperts agree that the impacts listed
below are more li.ely to happen. The eact
timings, for them, are difficult to predict, but
they are in the opinion that, if humanity
manages to begin restraining its emissions
within the net few decades, so that
greenhouse gases do not rise beyond twice the
pre-industrial level %we are already >?@ above
it and rising each year, at an accelerating rate&
the conse2uences would certainly be very
dangerous probably including a radical
reorgani!ation and impoverishment of many of
the ecosystems that sustain our civili!ation.
(pected impacts are$
%i& )ost places will continue to get warmer,
especially at night and in winter. The
temperature change will benefit some regions,
at least for a time, while harming others li.e,
patterns of tourism will shift. The warmer
winters will benefit health in some areas, but
globally, mortality will rise due to summer heat
waves and other effects.
%ii& 0ea levels will continue to rise for many
centuries. The last time the planet was >B,
warmer than now, the sea level was roughly ?
meters higher. That submerged coastlines
where many millions of people now live. #lso,
storm surges will cause emergencies.
%iii& Weather patterns will .eep changing,
probably toward an intensified water cycle with
stronger floods and droughts. )ost regions
that are now sub-ect to droughts are epected
to get drier %because of warming as well as less
precipitation&, and most wet regions will get
wetter. ,hanges in etreme weather events are
hard to predict, but in some regions storms
with more intense rainfall are liable to bring
worse floods. )ountain glaciers and winter
snowcap will shrin., -eopardi!ing many water
supply systems. (ach of these changes has
already begun to happen in some regions.
%iv& (cosystems will be stressed, although
some managed agricultural and forestry
systems will benefit, at least in the early
decades of warming. Uncounted valuable
species, especially in the #rctic, mountain
areas, and tropical seas, must shift their
ranges. )any that cannot will face etinction.
# variety of pests and tropical diseases are
epected to spread to warmed regions. (ach of
these problems has already been observed in
numerous places.
%v& 5ncreased carbon dioide levels will
affect biological systems independent of
climate change. 0ome crops will be fertili!ed,
as will some invasive weeds %the balance of
benefit vs. harm is uncertain&. The oceans will
continue to become mar.edly more acidic,
gravely endangering coral reefs, and probably
harming fisheries and other marine life.
%vi& There will be significant unforeseen
impacts. )ost of these will probably be
harmful, since human and natural systems are
well adapted to the present climate.
=. #bnormal rise in greenhouse gas,
methane, in the earth atmosphere causing
arctic ice to vanish in a couple of yearsCC
5t has been reported that, due to rapid,
unchec.ed and unethical industriali!ation in
many parts of the globe, the concentration of
methane, a very prominent greenhouse gas,
has been rising and in last one year alone it
has risen by about <.?@. We all .now that,
methane is the second most important gas
causing man-made climate change. (ach
molecule causes about 4? times more warming
than a molecule of ,"4, though it survives for
shorter times in the atmosphere before being
bro.en down.
'urther, it has also been .nown to us that,
already global climate is at great disastrous
condition because of present rise in carbon
dioide %,"4& levels, which is significantly
higher than the average annual increase for
the last >< years. 5t has also been recently
reported that, ,"4 concentration has risen by
4.; parts per million %ppm& in last one year3 as
against the average annual increase of
1.=?ppm between 1A8A and 4<<8. Thus, it
shows evidence that, concentrations of
greenhouse gases are rising faster than they
were a decade ago. The methane concentration
figure is more awesome and potentially of
more concern.
+ecause of the above abnormal rise in
greenhouse gases in last one year or so,
scientists fear that, it could reflect melting of
permafrost and drying of tropical wetlands
more rapidly. 5t has also been reported that,
concentrations of greenhouse gases have been
more or less stable since about 1AAA and
thereafter rapid increases.
5ndustrial reforms in #sia, (urope and 0outh
#merican countries in last one decade reflected
abnormal rise in greenhouse gases, especially
of carbon dioide and methane. ,hanges of
methods rice farming processes and the
capture of methane from landfill sites
contributed to this rise, it is felt. #lso,
possibilities of release of methane from fro!en
!ones of the world, notably the #rctic
permafrost, as they warm cannot be ruled out.
The rapid unchec.ed increase in coal fired
industries %without cleaning coal& such as
power plants, steel plants etc., are mostly
responsible for rise in concentration of ,"4.
The sustained rise of greenhouse gases along
with (l 9ino and 6a 9ina %opposite of (l 9ino&
conditions, the earth is eperiencing warming
effects. #s per the new scientific analysis,
because of the warming, the arctic snow
melted most rapidly in last one year. They also
predict that, the sea level could rise by more
than one and half meters by another half
century or so. 0ea level rise of this magnitude
would have ma-or impacts on low-lying
countries such as +angladesh. 0cientists also
fear that, due to abnormal rise in average
global temperature, in net five of si years
there may not be any arctic ice left during
summer.
8. 'aster ocean warming due to climate
change "ne of the reasons of
catastrophic sea level rising$
#. 5t has been reported recently by some of
the climate research agencies in U0, #ustralia,
UD etc. that, oceans all over the world are
getting warmed at a much faster rate than it
used to be earlier or what was thought to be.
5t is estimated that, the rate of warming of
worlds oceans is about ?<@ faster over the
last half century than it was thought
previously. Thus, worlds oceans have warmed
more 2uic.ly due to climate change than
epected.
+. 5t may be noted, higher the ocean
temperatures, higher the epansion of ocean
water which contributes to rise in sea levels.
(pansion ocean water means more floods,
submerging smaller island nations, threatening
to wrea. havoc in low-lying places and
densely-populated delta regions around the
globe. # third of the worlds population living
within ?< .m of the coasts and a great
proportion and a large proportion of them live
much closer to the shoreline. (ven a modest
sea level rise could inundate low-lying regions,
accelerate coastal erosion and force the
relocation of communities and infrastructures.
,. 1ising sea levels are driven by two things
%i& the thermal epansion of sea water, and %ii&
additional water from melting sources of ice.
+oth these processes are caused by global
warming.
D. 'or eample, the glaciers or ice sheet that
cover #rctic region contains enough water to
raise world ocean levels by seven meters,
which would bury sea-level cities from Dha.a
to 0hanghai in #sia and many more similar
cities in other parts of the world. 5f the
Greenland and the West and (ast #ntarctica ice
sheets were to melt, it would be enough to
raise the sea level by approimately =? meters.
# one-foot rise in sea level might well translate
to a 4<<-foot retreat of shoreline. Therefore, it
could be imagined about the future coastal
map how catastrophic it would be. #mong the
most vulnerable are countries with large
populations in deltaic coastal regions such as
+angladesh, *ietnam, ,hina and (gypt. Two
populous island nations, the /hilippines and
5ndonesia, have millions who face
displacement from their homes from sea level
rise. 0everal small island state nations
including the )aldives in the 5ndian "cean and
the )arshall 5slands and Tuvalu in the /acific
could face etinction.
(. Global heating effects are strong in melting
of snow and ice, rising global mean sea level,
widespread changes in precipitation amounts,
ocean salinity, wind patterns and aspects of
etreme weather including droughts, heavy
precipitation, heat waves and the intensity of
tropical cyclones. The rate of rise in
temperatures depends on if and how fast
emissions are reduced and on possible adverse
feedbac.s in the climate system. Temperatures
are sure to rise faster in the net decades as
well. (perts opine that, hot etremes, heat
waves, and heavy precipitation events will
continue to become more fre2uent. 5t is
certain that the ocean would become more
acid from ta.ing up more carbon dioide.
'. Therefore, it is very important, now, to
figure out and estimate how much each of
these factors contributes to rising sea levels.
'urther, it is critically important to understand
global warming, climate change and forecasting
future ocean temperature rise, as well. The fact
is, up to now there has been a perpleing gap
between the pro-ections of computer-based
climate models, and the observations of
scientific data gathered from the worlds
oceans.
7. Global Warming (ach one degree rise in
the temperature of the worlds oceans is
e2uivalent to 1.; +5665"9 one )egaton
atom bombsCCC
We all .now, the earth is surrounded by a
cover of gasses as atmosphere. This
atmosphere allows most of the light to pass
through, which reaches the surface of earth.
This light from sun is absorbed by the earth
surface and converts into heat energy. This
heat energy is re-emitted by the surface of the
earth during night.
Due ecessive presence of some gasses in the
atmosphere, this escape of heat from earth
surface is prevented, resulting in heating of
earth called global warming.
The gasses which are responsible for causing
global warming are called greenhouse gasses.
,arbon dioide is one of the most important
greenhouse gases. This carbon dioide mostly
comes to atmosphere as air pollution from
vehicles, coal-fired power plants and other
industries burning fossil fuels. :uman
population increase and large scale
deforestation are also responsible for carbon
dioide generation.
Thus, Global Warming adds energy to the
(arths biosphere.
The climate change which we are eperiencing
is due to global warming.
:eat is the fuel of weather systems. )ore heat,
more etreme weather.
(nergy drives the water cycle.
The more energy there is the faster the water
cycle is driven and the more etreme the
weather patterns become.
(ach one degree rise in the temperature of
the worlds oceans is the e2uivalent to 1.;
+5665"9 one )egaton atom bombs3 that is
a lot of energyC This tremendous amount of
devastating energy, generating because of
our faulty creation Global Warming is
responsible for the present climate change.
Thus, it shouldnt be surprising that the result
is more etreme weather. )ore rain, more
drought and more storms.
The harmful effects of presence of greenhouse
gasses in atmosphere are global warming,
climate change, o!one depletion, sea level rise,
adverse effects on biodiversity etc.
Therefore, our prime responsibility is not to
promote any industriali!ation which enhances
carbon emission, rather than reduction.