Gonzalez 1

Kevin Gonzalez

Carrie Hatfield

ENGL1302

August 1st, 2018

Climate Change Proposal

Climate change is a problem which has plagued society. Climate change can have

devastating effects, from the melting of various ice sheets, to rising temperatures all

across the world. These things happen as a result of the greenhouse gas effect. When a

greenhouse gas, such as the extremely common carbon dioxide (Co2), gathers in large

amounts in the atmosphere, the gases trap in heat from the sun. This process already

occurs, but in manageable amounts. The Infared rays from the sun pass through the

atmosphere and after absorption into the nearest land mass, the heat releases back into

outer space (Baum et al). However, this process can be unhealthily interrupted by excess

clouds of gas which restrict this flow of heat back into outer space, causing global

heating (Baum et al). The severity of this climate change is possibly life threatening to

the human species. As the sea levels rise with the melting of the enormous ice sheets,

millions of lives could be disrupted or even lost (Foss). The rising heat would change the

way of life for billions of wildlife creatures, depleting their food sources due to drought,

and drastically disrupting the food chain and the way of life for regular humans

(Kabish). In order to prevent these things from occurring, the process of harvesting

trees needs to be reformed to better control those who harvest the lumber, the civilian

gasoline motor market must be phased out over the time span of a century through a bill

passed by Congress, every state in the United States needs a mandate requiring them to

record and meet a certain recycled waste requirement per capita, renewable energy
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needs prioritization from energy producing companies, and green and blue areas need

to implementation in developing urban areas.

Tree harvesting companies must replant the massive amounts of trees they are

cutting down. These trees not only convert carbon dioxide into oxygen, they also release

their stores of carbon dioxide from within them. Not only is the planet losing its ability

to recycle the waste that humans produce, the planet is also increasing its emissions of

carbon dioxide. Each tree which is cut down must have a seed planted in its place. The

tree harvesting companies would be required to hire, using their own finances, a team of

laborers who ensure the new seed’s growth to adulthood, this action financially possible

through the massive profit these companies make through outsourcing their labor to

third world countries.

Automobile emissions contribute greatly to the total carbon emissions in the

atmosphere, seeing as vehicular transport is needed by many for simple tasks, such as

going to work, or dropping off their kids at school. The carbon emitted by these

automobiles contribute to the greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, which trap heat on

Earth. Although increasingly eco-friendly options for transport are being created using

hybrid electric engines, or even completely electric engines as seen in Tesla's design, in

the majority of countries on Earth, there is no plan to officially phase out the gasoline

engine for a friendlier counterpart. The governments of the world need to pass bills

which require vehicle manufacturing companies to phase out production of their

civilian, gasoline powered engines for much more ecofriendly options. The only way this

could come to fruition is if the phase-out is legally required. These manufacturing

companies operate at maximum efficiency for the highest profit, meaning that if they

would have to go out of their way to create a completely new design of cars, they will not.
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However, if the phase-out is required, and well designed to avoid loopholes, the

companies will have to comply and proceed to modernize. The manufacturers need to

improve their standards within cars to reduce the effects of climate change and

eventually lessen the carbon emissions in the atmosphere. The reason the bill would be

a phase-out and not a ban, is because not everyone is able to pay for a brand-new

vehicle, and the banned vehicles, which in turn may then reside in the scrap yard, would

produce mass amounts of waste for no reason. This means that gasoline engines will still

exist in one hundred years, just not as something the civilian market can purchase. The

gasoline engines which already exist should still be able to operate freely. The phase out

would grandfather the current and the future gasoline engines that will be produced

before a more ecofriendly option can be developed.

Green and blue spaces should be required in every urban area to reduce the

effects of climate change. A green or blue space is simply an area of ecological value

within an urban area, such as a wildlife preservation area or a public park. These areas

not only alleviate the eyesore created as a result of miles of paved roads, they also

preserve ecosystems and promote biodiversity. As industrialization increases along with

the modernization of the developed world, urban areas will continue to pop up around

the world. These densely packed urban areas can either contribute to the environmental

degradation associated with industrialization, or they can compromise and help sustain

biodiversity in developed areas. So long as the total population on Earth increases

exponentially, the need for urbanization will continue. This urbanization reduces the

vegetation available to convert greenhouse gases into oxygen. Along with this, more

waste is created with the increased population, requiring some sort of wildlife to offset

the increased waste. Creating green or blue spaces in already developed urban areas
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would invite many “potential challenges for successful implementation,” meaning that

well established areas are out of the question (Raskin). If future urban areas were

required to build or preserve a green and blue space within city limits, the negative

ecological effects of urbanization could then see a reduction in terms of impact.

The dependency on fossil fuel for production requires a drastic reduction before

it is too late. The burning of fossil fuels is the largest contributor to “atmospheric Co2”

(Bala). Since the early 1990’s, the global Co2 amount has increased by “65%”, resulting

in an annual emission rate of over “40 billion tonnes” (Bala). Innovations in renewable

energy technology could reduce the global dependency on fossil fuels. Unfortunately, the

current energy output and accessibility of renewable energy is greatly overshadowed by

the energy produced from the burning of fossil fuels, evident by the amount of Co2

waste created every year. A dependency on renewable energy could also alleviate the

threat of dangerous nuclear meltdowns in nuclear power plants. When there is a nuclear

meltdown, toxic waste and radiation render entire cities uninhabitable, endangering the

wildlife and inhabitants in the surrounding area. This, only somewhat preventable

through placing plants out of reach from high activity areas, such as the San Andreas

fault line. However, nothing is fool proof, and accidents will happen. If the advancement

of safe, renewable energy can reduce the possibility of a nuclear meltdown, along with

reducing the yearly Co2 emissions, then renewable energy needs prioritization.

To increase the amount of waste being recycled, states must be held to a recycle

standard for every year. The recycle standard would cut the state’s funding to their

highest yearly expenditures if not properly met, encouraging states to raise the

awareness of their citizens. In response, the states would then have to start campaigns

to increase awareness, spreading facts and eye-opening evidence about the changing
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climate. It is currently understood that many people will not accept the reality of climate

change, unless “the effects can be seen locally” (Castree). The actions by the state could

be seen as a local effect by many Americans. Since the states would receive budget cuts

to their most important expenditures if the requirement is not met, they would prioritize

the awareness campaign over all current activities, being that many more changes would

have to be made to accommodate the lost budget. The ad campaign would then become

a day to day reminder of the importance of recycling, engraining the importance of

recycling in the minds of millions. Currently, the inhabitants of the world create such an

abundance of waste, that the Earth cannot meet the requirements needed to recycle this

amount every year. This waste stacks onto the current waste on Earth, resulting in worse

climate change as time continues. The effects of such vast amounts of waste can see

mitigation though, through the collective actions of the masses. If every person in

America were to recycle every bit of waste they could, then the total amount recycled

would be enormous. Such effects can be seen in the revenue collected by taxes, the

government has the ability to spend billions on a whim, only through the yearly

contribution made by the millions that pay taxes. Due to the increased recycling and

need for more convenient methods to do so, someone will likely innovate and create new

ways to recycle products. Innovation comes from a need for convenience and the large

amounts of recycling would attribute to that, helping to alleviate the effects of climate

change.

Climate change is an extremely serious problem, not to the Earth, but the

humans which inhabit it. The human species as a whole will need to adapt to the drastic

conditions that are setting upon the Earth, or face extinction. To avoid doing so,

gasoline engines need to be phased out, awareness of recycling must be raised, the tree
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harvesting process currently seen on Earth must be reformed, development of urban

areas must come with the addition of green and blue spaces, and renewable energy must

see prioritization. The results of these will help mitigate the negative repercussions and

possibly even reverse climate change.

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Works Cited

Bala, G. "Why Is a Solution to Climate Change, Environmental Degradation and the

Sustainability Crisis Eluding Us?." Current Science (00113891), vol. 112, no. 7,

10 Apr. 2017, pp. 1307-1308. EBSCOhost,

search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=123744694&site=eh

ost-live.

Baum, Seth D., et al. “Climate Change: Evidence of Human Causes and Arguments for

Emissions Reduction.” SpringerLink, Springer, Dordrecht, 23 Apr. 2011,

link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11948-011-9270-6.

Castree, Noel. "Book Review: Visualizing Climate Change: A Guide to Visual

Communication of Climate Change and Developing Local Solutions." Progress in

Human Geography, vol. 39, no. 1, Feb. 2015, pp. 115-118. EBSCOhost,

doi:10.1177/0309132513516916.

Foss, Andrew. "Notes on the Essay Review by Henry Bauer of Climate Change:

Evidence and Causes." Journal of Scientific Exploration, vol. 29, no. 4,

Winter2015, pp. 649-658. EBSCOhost,

search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=112400479&site=ed

s-live.

Kabisch, Nadja, et al. "Nature-Based Solutions to Climate Change Mitigation and

Adaptation in Urban Areas: Perspectives on Indicators, Knowledge Gaps,

Barriers, and Opportunities for Action." Ecology & Society, vol. 21, no. 2, June

2016, pp. 634-648. EBSCOhost, doi:10.5751/ES-08373-210239.

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Raskin, Ellis. "Urban Forests as Weapons against Climate Change: Lessons from

California's Global Warming Solutions Act." Urban Lawyer, vol. 47, no. 3,

Summer2015, pp. 387-417. EBSCOhost,

search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=112460170&site=eh

ost-live.