Green House Gases, Global Warming and Climate Change

Table of Contents

What is Greenhouse effect (GHE)?

Greenhouse effect (GHE) is a natural process that warms the Earth’s surface.
GHE is the warming of earth’s surface and the troposphere
The earth receives the solar radiation in the form of visible light, radiation, infrared rays and many more. When this solar radiation/sun’s energy reaches the earth’s atmosphere, some of it is reflected back to space and the rest is absorbed and re-radiated by greenhouse gases. About 70% of the radiation is absorbed and 30 % is reflected back.
The absorbed energy warms the atmosphere and the surface of the Earth. This process maintains the Earth’s temperature at around 33 degrees Celsius warmer than it would otherwise be, allowing life on Earth to exist.
This process is in fact one of the reasons for the life on the earth
Greenhouse effect is thus the natural phenomena on earth.
Although the greenhouse effect is a naturally occurring, the effect is intensified by the emission of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere due to human activities leading to the global warming
The greenhouse gases include water vapor, CO2, methane, nitrous oxide, ozone and some artificial chemicals such as chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs).and other gases.

Steps of Greenhouse effect:

Step 1: Solar radiation reaches the Earth’s atmosphere – some of this is reflected back into space.

Step 2: The rest of the sun’s energy is absorbed by the land and the oceans, heating the Earth.

Step 3: Heat radiates from Earth towards space.

Step 4: Some of this heat is trapped by greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, keeping the Earth warm enough to sustain life.

Step 5: Human activities such as burning fossil fuels, agriculture and land clearing are increasing the amount of greenhouse gases released into the atmosphere.

Step 6: This is trapping extra heat, and causing the Earth’s temperature to rise.

What is Enhanced Green House Effect?

Enhanced Green house effect refers to increase in the earth’s temperature due to increase in concentration of greenhouse gases.
Enhanced GHE is caused by human activities like uncontrolled burning of fossil fuels (coal, oil and natural gas), agriculture and land clearing.

What is Global Warming?

Global warming is the effect of the greenhouse gases
Simply refers to the increase in overall temperature of the earth.
Global warming refers to the earth’s rising surface temperature
The average temperature of the earth’s surface has increased by 1.6×2 degree Fahrenheit since 19^th century
The primary cause of global warming is human activity that releases carbon into the atmosphere (burning of fossil fuels) and other activity like deforestation

What is Climate Change?

Climate is the average weather conditions that persist over multiple decades or longer. Weather can change in minutes or hours
Climate change refers to the change observed over a time period of decades to centuries or longer.
Climate change encompasses both increases and decreases in temperature as well as shifts in precipitation, changing risks of certain types of severe weather events, and changes to other features of the climate system.
Climate change affects the all the aspects
It is the effect of the global warming.
For more details of climate change, please visit: https://publichealthnotes.com/climate-change-developing-countries/

Causes of global warming:

Greenhouse effect causes the global warming which is further the result of the human activities such as:

1. Burning fossil fuels

Fossil fuel is necessary to run cars, generate electricity
Use of fossil fuel results in emission of the CO₂
CO₂ is one of the greenhouse gas

2. Deforestation

Cutting down of trees in unplanned and haphazard way
Plan absorbs the Co₂ and releases the oxygen
They are the carbon sink
Up to one-fifth of global greenhouse gas pollution comes from deforestation and forest degradation.

3. Farming

Livestock create methane gas which is also a greenhouse gas
Methane is created during the digestion

Effects of global warming in health

Every individual is at the risk of the global warming. Some effects of the global warming are as follows

1. Vector borne diseases are illnesses

Vector borne disease is likely to increase
Warm climates are usually favorable for the arthropods
They are the transmitters of the disease
Decline in the quality of the environmental aspects will to contribute in disease in disease spreading

2. Water related illness

Climate change increases the risk of illness through increasing temperature, more frequent heavy rains and runoff, and the effects of storms.
Water bodies gets easily contaminated
Health impacts may include gastrointestinal illness like diarrhea, effects on the body’s nervous and respiratory systems, or liver and kidney damage.
Waterborne pathogens are also activated

3. Impacts due to weather events

Global warming results to some extreme weather events, such as extreme precipitation, flooding, droughts, and storms,
They threaten the health of people during and after the event.
The number of mortality, morbidity and disability is high in such events
availability of safe food and drinking water is affected
Increases the incidence of mental health impacts such as depression and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

4. Food and nutrition

Global warming has the direct affect on the agriculture
Extreme weather events such as extreme temperature drought, unpredicted rainfall, etc has direct effect on the productivity
Pest invasion is also increased increasing more hindrances on the agriculture
Thus, the food insecurity issue and malnutrition is raised with global warming

5. Mental Health

Change in the physical environment can have effect on the mental health
Extreme events and the consequences followed also affects the mental health, increases depression and anxiety
Those whose livelihood (people at the coastal area, involved in fishery, horticulture) are directly affected are affected financially and are in more risk of developing the depression

Relation between Green House Gases, Global Warming and Climate Change:

Greenhouse gases are increased tremendously by the human actions
These gases in the atmospheres creates the imbalance in the heat absorbing and reflecting process
More heat are absorbed which result in overall increase in the temperature of the planet known as the global warming
Global warming overall alters the pattern of the rain, snowfall, temperature change and then results in overall change in the climate pattern
These three are interconnected
They have cause to effect kind of relationship
Greenhouse effect is the cause and the climate change is the effect

Mitigation strategies for reducing global warming:

Reduce the use of the use of substances or technologies that emits the greenhouse gases
Eco-friendly approach
Save energy
Encourage the afforestation
Set and adapt the climate policy
Aware the people using medias and raise the issue of the global warming
Multi-sectoral approach and cooperation among and between the nations to address the issue of the global warming