Time is running out: climate change is causing harm

Sufia Iqbal

Trees serve as one of the solutions of reducing climate change but at the same time, they are being impacted by climate change in the fall. In the fall of 2021, many trees were delayed in changing colors due to the more mild temperatures.

Sufia Iqbal, Contributor

Climate change is real. It is happening right now; it is the most urgent threat facing our entire species and we need to work collectively together and stop procrastinating.

Currently, the U.S. has been dealing and combating climate change which has negatively affected the environment. Recently, food rotting has been causing emissions in California since it produces methane. This is being handled by a food waste management recycling program that will take place next month.

This program is designed to reduce food waste that would otherwise harm the atmosphere and environment. The food waste emits methane into the air which is more damaging to the atmosphere than carbon dioxide emitted from fossil fuels. This is a serious problem for the rest of the U.S. because other states may not have methods like a program to regulate this issue.

There have been bad effects of climate change across the country. The hotter climate in New York has resulted in increased rainfall and flooding of subways and streets. The high rising ocean water has invaded basements in Miami. Illinois’ hotter climate is bringing more serious, damaging and dangerous weather. In the month of May, Chicago had a high record of rainfall resulting in sudden floods due to the heavy rain.

In June, Metro East bursted temperature records, and the northern part of Illinois was hit with extreme heat which caused a drought.

According to Pew Research Center, climate change is one of the most serious concerns in the United States. Climate change has been one of the most major problems since it has been drastically affecting humans and wild animals negatively. Effects of the warming of the atmosphere caused by climate change are affecting the environment. There have been more recurring droughts and rising sea levels which are affecting the amount of food production and biodiversity. Climate change along with human activity has been providing these negative results that would impact humans and the environment on Earth.

In the 1800s, it was first brought up by experiments of records of immoderate weather patterns from experimental forestry stations that produced carbon dioxide which then began to insulate the Earth. Climate change is the warming of our climate which is caused by greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide. The basic understanding of this problem is that these greenhouse gases wrap around the Earth like a warm blanket which causes Earth’s temperature to rise.

Greenhouse gases are increasing in our atmosphere mostly because of fossil fuels and deforestation. Fossil fuels are a major greenhouse gas that release large amounts of carbon dioxide into the air after being burned. Deforestation leads to climate change because there aren’t many trees to filter out carbon dioxide in the air.

Luckily, the Morton Arboretum is a place dedicated to plants, trees and gardens in Lisle, Illinois and it was designed by Joy Morton. The Morton Arboretum has shown reports that trees help out with climate change by helping with air pollution which boosts mental health. Trees serve as a support system for managing water and reducing rising temperatures which helps with climate change.

Unfortunately, climate change has also been killing off or slowing down the health of trees because of its destructive effects like droughts and heat waves.

Climate change is impacting our lives negatively because it affects many lives and its effects are terrible such as lack of food production and spreading of illnesses. Climate change is a concern because it directly impacts the way we live and breathe. Many crops are becoming more scarce due to the increased heat, dreadful weather and droughts. The future is very unpredictable but there are two possibilities: our community using renewable sources of energy or dealing with heat waves.

While others think that climate change isn’t real, one of the reasons that they think this to be true is because climate change is part of a natural cause or process. Many scientists believe that natural causes cause climate change because of the solar changes and differences in Earth’s orbit.The greenhouse effect that takes place in climate change is often thought to be necessary because the capturing of heat gases is what keeps our Earth surface temperature warm.

According to most peer-reviewed scientific papers, 97 percent of scientists studying climate agree that the rising temperatures from climate change is mostly due to human activity that has increased the amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. How is this believed to be correct?

Humans are constantly impacting the climate and temperature by deforestation, fossil fuels and the amount of food waste emitting methane. Because of human activity, large amounts of greenhouse gases are added to the atmosphere which causes warming of the atmosphere and then leads to the harmful effects like flooding and hotter temperatures.

If nothing continues to be done for climate change, then we can’t even have clean air to breathe which affects human health like asthma and heart disease. The U.S., specifically Illinois, would have to deal with more heat waves every year. There would be less food production and the ecosystems would get ruined. There would be many health risks for us like spreading of diseases and safety risks with climate change.

Safety risks include the death and casualties of utmost weather events. In addition, there are also health risks of less food production and illnesses from the burden of shifts as there is increased warming. This would impact the United States by ruining our economy and causing the effects of unemployment, suffering and increased costs of healthcare. Climate change caused by humans is a major conflict that has led to extreme weather conditions that would negatively impact our lives and the environment.