Greenhouse gas effect

What is the Greenhouse gas effect? What is Global warming and Climate change all about? Why are people so concerned and why are the so-called intellectuals talking about it all the time and why are Politicians trying to capitalise on this ‘hot’ subject. It must be something really important to cause so much of a ruckus round the world. There are summits and conferences just to discuss this phenomenon.

So how many of us actually understand this phenomenon? Not many to be precise. Some of us pretend to understand it; there are others who know something related to this but surprisingly most others are still quite ignorant and prefer to keep things that way. One example is my very own wonderful partner. She prefers not to believe the hundreds of scientists who are shouting at the top of their voice to be heard or anyone else for that matter, simply because to understand this concept is to accept that we as human beings have significantly contributed to this, one way or another and to make some amends at this late stage, which will mean to give up some of our cherished luxuries. And so my Partner feels, that she will wait till there is enough evidence beyond reasonable doubt and until such time, continue as before.
That is one way of looking at things and I have to say, this kind of attitude is what will lead to ‘doom beyond reasonable doubt’. But hey, she is just an example of the different sort of people that I come across and who has a differing opinion on worldly aspects.

So what is the Green house gas effect? From what I can recollect of my school days, a good example to understand this concept is one that follows. Imagine you leave a car with the windows up and secure in an open-air parking space on a hot sunny day and go away shopping. What you will find on getting back is a hot roasting car. This happens before the infrared rays from the Sun get in to the car through the windows, but cannot escape. So keeping the windows shut will cause a sort of one-way traffic for these rays. The infrared rays are the ones, which cause the heat that is generated and keeps the interior warm.
Now a blanket of clouds and layers of gases cover the Earth, all of which protect the livings organisms on this planet from the harmful effects of the Sun’s rays and other cosmic radiation. They have a very protective role.
But over the years manmade activities and also Earthly phenomenon (like volcanoes etc.) have resulted in pollution on an unimaginable scale with gases like carbon dioxide, methane etc. getting trapped within the Earth’s atmosphere. The plants use some of the carbon dioxide up and the water bodies absorb quite a lot of it.
The remaining gases cause a similar effect to that done by the car windows, trapping heat from the Sun and preventing them from escaping back in to space.

What that has amounted to is the rise in Earth’s temperature by a degree or two. In turn that has caused the frozen polar icecaps to melt thereby increasing the water level of the oceans and seas.
This has resulted in low-lying areas by the seas getting submerged and causing the destruction of thousands of livelihoods.
Scientists have also predicted that the hurricanes seen in America recently, the unexpected floods in the UK, floods in Oman, heat waves in Europe and other countries may have some link with the Green House gas effect and resulting climate change.

So how has man contributed to all this?
Man made activities like industrialisation, mining, manufacturing, use of motor transport, wars, uncontrolled use of natural resources like water, petrochemicals and natural gas, deforestation, use of nuclear power, and pollution through various other means have all made their due contribution to this effect.

Is there something that can be done about all this?
Well, that only time will tell, but I guess it’s never too late to make a start and even if we cannot completely reverse the effect, at least to slow the pace may well be worth the effort. Some of the little things that I have come across which I believe can make some change are as follows.
1. Use of public transport. If one can walk the distance, i.e., if they have time on their hands, then there is nothing like it. It could also help you stay fit.
2. Switch off electrical appliances not in use.
3. Try and minimize the use of water by, for instance taking bath in a shower as opposed to a bathtub.
4. Try and recycle as many items as you possibly can. Austrians recycle much more than the English.
5. Try composting suitable household waste if possible.
6. Use energy savings bulbs and other devices.
7. Try not to leave electrical appliances on standby if possible.
8. Try and recycle clothes, furniture, books etc. that you may not require anymore by either selling it or by donating it to charity.
9. Reinforce and insulate your home during the winter months thereby saving on heating bills.
10. Use alternative renewable sources of energy like solar or wind energy to generate power. A good example is a solar water heater.

Well these are some of the measure that I could think of, but there are enough resources out there if one is in search of information. But the most important aspect in all this is the attitude of people. That has to change. Each one of us has to contribute something to help. There is no point in waiting to see what others do.

Politicians as a general rule do not make a move until and unless there is a potential for votes. So to try and think they are the answer to it all is to live in a world of fantasy. In-fact politicians are the ones who have contributed to the problem in a big way by their indecision. If we believe that Climate change and the Greenhouse gas effect has contributed to the mess that we see today and if we believe we can do something about it, then there is a small but real chance that we may just save this beautiful planet of ours from near destruction.