How Will Global Warming Be Reduced?

Prevention of Global Warming in points depends on our knowledge base. The world must “take swift action” to avoid a dangerous rise in temperatures, according to a climate change report.

According to a study by the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Global Warming (IPCC), our planet may exceed the ultimate limit of temperature increase of 1.5 degrees Celsius within 12 years. Which is higher than pre-industrial levels.

This will lead to abnormal weather conditions, especially extreme famines, fires, and floods, and increase the risk of food shortages for millions of people. To avoid this temperature extreme, the world must make rapid, far-reaching, and unprecedented changes in every aspect of society.

To easily mitigate global warming, scientists in Europe and America are researching artificial clouds or solar geoengineering. However, it is not possible to say how fruitful it will be. Scientists are hoping that the results will be good.

Researchers working on solar geoengineering say it’s a very simple physics. If we spray small particles of sulfur dioxide into the stratosphere over a long period, at some point they will reflect sunlight. Which will also work against global warming.

But there are many opponents of the study, who feel that making such a change is a terrible gamble. The consequences will be very dire. They are unwilling to accept this system as an alternative.

After several years of continuous research, solar engineering or solar geoengineering is now dominating the discussion table of academics, legislators, and even the United Nations Climate Change Organization (IPCC).

If carbon emissions can be reduced, some believe it is possible to return Earth’s temperature to pre-industrial levels in the process.

US President Joe Biden’s administration has said that while working on solar radiation management, they have no plans for solar geoengineering at the moment.

The European Union, on the other hand, has called on its international partners to discuss possible frameworks for solar radiation management and management.

How does it work?

One of the most effective methods is to spray tiny particles of sulfur dioxide between 10 and 50 km of the atmosphere’s stratosphere above the Earth’s surface.

The 1991 eruption of the Pinatubo volcano in the Philippines proved this theory. The energy level of this explosion was so high that about 15 million tons of sulfur dioxide entered the stratosphere. Due to this, the earth’s average temperature was half a degree Celsius lower until two years after the explosion.

Douglas McMartin, a senior research fellow at Cornell University in the United States, said solar geoengineering modeling suggests that if even one percent of the sunlight reaching Earth could be reflected, it would be enough to return Earth’s temperature to pre-industrial levels.

He also said that the annual cost of this plan is estimated at 16 billion dollars.

What are the downsides?

One of the potential downsides of solar geoengineering is that acid rain from sprayed particles will directly damage the ozone layer.

It is also thought to affect rainfall patterns. As a result, weather systems already disrupted by climate change will worsen.

McMartin notes that unless carbon emissions are reduced rapidly, this solar geoengineering will at least do better than doing nothing to combat climate change.

But even without taking such risky steps, it is possible to reduce the temperature in nature. There is no lack of research on this. Following are some of the important ways that experts have found to reduce global temperature in various studies:

11 Ways To Prevention of Global Warming In Points

01. Use public transport

Walking, cycling, or using public transport instead of using a private car will reduce carbon emissions and help keep you fit.

IPCC vice chairman Dr. Debra Roberts said, “We can choose alternative ways to get around the city. If we don’t have access to public transportation. Make sure you elect politicians who will provide alternative transportation.”

Also, for long-distance travel, use electric vehicles or opt for train journeys instead of airplanes. Besides, the businessman can cancel the trip and use video conferencing.

02. Prevent energy wastage

• If clothes are to be washed in the washing machine, hang them outside in the sun or on a line in the air, rather than in the machine’s tumble dryer. It will save electricity in addition to drying clothes. Besides, the burning of fossil fuels for electricity can be avoided.
• To cool the room, increase the temperature of the AC to 25 degrees Celsius or more. And use the lower temperature of the heater to heat the house.
• The next time you buy an electrical appliance, consider whether the appliance is energy efficient. (Tip: Look for labels with energy-saving stars, eco-friendly technology, or inverters on the appliance).
• You can use renewable energy sources for some of your essential tasks. For example, you can use a solar water heater to heat water.
• Install a cold insulating layer on the roof to control the normal temperature of the house in winter. Take measures to keep the roof cool even in summer.
• Unplug electrical appliances that are not in use and switch them off.

These things may seem like small changes, but each is a very effective way to save energy.

03. Cut Down On Meat And Become A Vegetarian

The production of red meat causes significantly more greenhouse gas emissions than the production of poultry, fruit, vegetables, or grains.

At the Paris Climate Conference, 119 countries committed to reducing carbon emissions from agriculture.

But there was no guidance on how they would keep that promise.

But you can still help reduce these carbon emissions if you want.
And that will be possible if you follow three things.

• Increase your reliance on vegetables and fruits instead of meat in your diet. If that seems too challenging, try going meat-free for at least one day a week.
• You can also help the environment by reducing your consumption of dairy products. Because the production and transportation of these foods emits a large amount of greenhouse gas.
• Choose locally grown seasonal food instead of imported food. And avoid food waste.

04. Try to recycle everything, even water

We are repeatedly told about the benefits of recycling. However transporting and processing the materials needed to make an item recyclable consumes a lot of carbon.

Yet it uses less energy than making new products. But by reusing products, further damage can be reduced. The same applies to water.

According to Aroma’s Revi, “We should conserve and recycle water. We should especially try to engage in rainwater harvesting.”

05. Inform and teach others about these things

Spread the word about climate change and educate common people about it.

Work together with others to establish a sustainable community lifestyle.

Build a partner-based network. So that different resources can be shared and used. For example: lawn mowers or garden tools. It can achieve a green standard of living.

“When billions of people practice these changes daily, they can establish sustainable development with almost no impact on their well-being,” says Aromar Revi.

06. Reduction in the use of fossil fuels

Burning of fossil fuels releases large amounts of carbon dioxide. Constantly we use oil, and gas especially coal as fossil fuels.

Carbon dioxide gas released into the atmosphere increases the temperature by trapping heat from the sun. Fossil fuels are a key issue in keeping global temperature rise below 1.5°C.

Countries must reduce their use of fossil fuels to prevent global warming. However, the leading countries in fossil fuel production (Australia, USA, China, India) are against reducing the use of this fuel and they did not sign this agreement at the COP 26 conference.

07. Reducing methane gas emissions

Recent studies by the United Nations have shown that if methane gas emissions are reduced, it is possible to prevent global climate change to a large extent. Methane gas plays a major role in temperature rise.

Natural gas is burned during oil extraction, which releases large amounts of methane gas. Of course, alternatives to natural gas burning must be found in other environmentally friendly ways.

This will reduce the emission of methane gas. Besides, environment-friendly technology should be developed for the disposal of waste materials. This is because large amounts of methane gas are released from landfilled waste materials.

08. Increasing the use of renewable energy

The energy sector plays a major role in global climate change. The power and thermal power generation sectors affect climate change more than any other sector of the global economy.

There is no alternative to using renewable energy to combat climate change. For this purpose, the leaders of the whole world must work together. As civilization progresses, the use of electricity and heat will increase.

However, if the use of renewable energy increases, on the one hand, the demand for electricity or heat will be met, on the other hand, there will be no adverse impact on the environment.

As a result, we need to change our dependence on the energy needed to produce electricity and heat.

If it can be brought, it may be necessary to shift from dependence on fossil fuels to dependence on clean energy and decarbonization technology. But such a move would be difficult considering recent global goals and demands.

On the other hand, the use of wind and solar energy can meet the energy demand. There is no alternative to the use of renewables such as wind and solar power to achieve net zero by 2050 as proposed by world leaders.

The path to solar energy is not so simple. Because if the wind speed is less, the power generation will be less. In this case, we have to walk on the path of developing advanced batteries so that the required energy can be stored and used as per the need.

09. Use of petrol and diesel

With the development of civilization, the communication system is enriched. The use of new vehicles on road, sea, and air routes is constantly increasing.

And fuel like petrol, diesel, octane is used as fuel. The use of diesel and petrol in vehicles must be reduced to prevent climate change.

One solution could be to reduce the use of these fuels and increase the number of electric vehicles. However, increasing the use of electric vehicles is a complex task.

In this case, hydrogen fuel can be the best fuel for vehicles.
Hydrogen fuel produced through the use of renewable energy can provide a vision for an environment-friendly transport sector in the future.

In addition, scientists are trying to produce new, cleaner fuels for airplanes. However, environmentalists believe that countries need to reduce the number of aircraft to reduce air pollution.

10. Increase in plantation rate

There is no alternative to planting trees to combat climate change. There is no better way to prevent global warming than planting trees.

Even if trees are cut on demand, countries should increase the rate of tree planting.

In a report published in 2018, the United Nations said, “Carbon dioxide gas must be removed from the atmosphere to keep the global temperature increase below 1.5 degrees Celsius”. There is no substitute for trees to remove carbon dioxide from the air.

Plants take in carbon dioxide gas from the atmosphere to produce food in the process of photosynthesis. This is a major argument behind calls from environmentalists and scientists to stop deforestation.

11. Removal of greenhouse gases from the air

Greenhouse gases prevent heat from the Sun from being dissipated into space after it is reflected back to the Earth’s surface. As a result, the earth stays warm.

However, if the level of greenhouse gases is high, the world will be much hotter. As a result, the normal life of the earth is disrupted.

As a result of climate change, the amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere is constantly increasing. Greenhouse gases must be removed from the atmosphere to prevent climate change.

Climate change can be controlled if carbon dioxide or any other greenhouse gas is artificially removed from the atmosphere. If the expansion of greenhouse gases from their source to other places is prevented after they are produced, the impact of these gases on the environment can be prevented to a large extent.

In the past, several companies have developed technologies to remove greenhouse gases from the atmosphere. Among these are ‘Carbon Engineering’ of Texas and ‘Climworks’ of Switzerland.

They absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere by blowing air through a chemical filter with a giant fan.

Another method is carbon capture and storage. In this method, special equipment absorbs the gas from a carbon-dioxide source such as a coal-fired power plant, and the absorbed gas is vented underground. But all these technologies are quite complex and costly.

Source: BBC Bangla, Deutsche Welle (DW)