You will probably be saturated to hear about climate change, global warming, the growing greenhouse effect, the dire consequences that they all have on our planet and the urgent need to take measures in this regard. But do you know exactly how to do it? Do you know what solutions could be taken? Surely have some idea, but if not, don’t worry. Since there are many measures to be taken based on the problem we are dealing with, in ecology, we will deepen in concrete in the dreaded greenhouse gases. Next, we tell you How to reduce greenhouse gases.
What are greenhouse gases or GHG
The Greenhouse gases (GHG) They are gases that are found in our atmosphere and whose function is to absorb and emit the radiation from sunlight within the infrared range. These gases are the fundamental responsible for the so -called “greenhouse effect”; Which, despite its current negative connotation, is a natural phenomenon without which the temperature of the earth’s surface would be around the -18ºC on average, that is, they are necessary for life to develop on our planet. However, today the concentration of these GHG is becoming too high, which is causing the environmental ravages that we know today.
Some of these gases are water vapor, the famous Carbon dioxide (CO2)methane (CH4), nitrogen oxide (NOX) and ozone (O3). Discover more in this other ecology article Verde about how long the greenhouse gases in the atmosphere remain.
What are the sources of greenhouse gases
As we mentioned earlier, greenhouse gases are in the atmosphere naturally in small quantities, such as water vapor, carbon dioxide or methane. However, from the industrial revolution, due to use of machinery and increased factoriesmany other greenhouse gases are produced exclusively from anthropogenic actions, that is Human actionsas is the case of Aerosols.
While it is true that, if the amount of greenhouse gases begins to be high, there are natural processes that absorb a part of them to re -balance the atmosphere, but with the emissions produced by man the natural mechanisms of “restoration of the atmosphere” have been saturated.
Discover more in this other article about the main sources of CO2 issuance.
How to reduce greenhouse gases
The most immediate measure, and that you surely had in mind, to reduce these GHG is to reduce as much as possible emissions of this type of gases, such as carbon dioxide, which is generated from burning fossil fuels. Here we explain how to reduce my carbon footprint, that is, the amount of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases that we generate in a particular way.
From this previous point we deduce, therefore, another measure that can be taken to reduce these emissions, and is the Use of renewable energysuch as solar or wind energy.
From the United Nations Organization (UN) suggest other actions that we can take ourselves to contribute to the Reduction of greenhouse gases emissionswhich are:
- Promote the use of public transport or other means of sustainable transport such as bicycle or simply, traveling to places close to which we often go by car or other means that produce gas emissions. In addition, moving by bicycle or foot helps to stay in good shape, and your health will be rewarded.
- If you use the car inevitably, regularly check the pressure of your tires, because if you keep them at adequate pressure you will optimize fuel performance.
- Recycle the waste you generate and reuse containers or other products before throwing them.
- It contributes to reforestation work. Calculations ensure that a tree absorbs between 350 and 3,500 kilos of atmospheric carbon throughout its life.
- You isolate your home, because cold or heat will be better preserved inside and we will contribute to improving energy efficiency. In addition, you will reduce the expenses that occur with air conditioning and heating devices.
If GHGs are not reduced with actions such as these, the consequences of what they already produce can worsen much more, as we explain below.
Consequences of excessive emission of greenhouse gases
The most immediate consequence of these GHG is the Increased greenhouse effectby which the average surface temperature of the earth’s surface is increased. This weather heating with its corresponding increase in temperatures is responsible for some consequences such as:
- The thaw of the poleswhich raises sea level and increases the risk of floods, with everything they have associated.
- Drought increaseso air and water pollution will occur due to the absence of rains that “clean” the atmosphere.
This increase in the greenhouse effect seems to have been accelerated due to the rapid rise in the amounts of CO2 in the atmosphere. The reason for this seems to reside that, probably, the amount of carbon dioxide absorbed by the earth’s biosphere (plants, oceans …) has been reduced.
Other serious consequences that derive from the increase in the greenhouse effect are:
- Health problems such as skin cancer due to the increase in solar radiation.
- Atmospheric phenomena of great intensity, such as storms, hurricanes, tsunamotes …
- Biodiversity problemsbecause Flora and Fauna species will be affected in their different ecosystems.
- Ocean acidification. The oceans absorb a large amount of atmospheric CO2 to cushion their high atmospheric concentration, however, when the ocean is saturated, the acidification process begins, which will affect marine species producing diseases, deaths and, in extreme cases, extinctions.
If you want to read more articles similar to How to reduce greenhouse gaseswe recommend that you enter our ozone layer category.
