“We are in a race against time. Newspaper and magazine articles, television specials, and film documentaries all predict a terrible future: global warming will bring to the world melting ice sheets, flooded coastal regions, powerful hurricanes, droughts, and dislocated populations.” Brian Dumaine. The Plot to save the Planet. Global Warming/Climate Change/Greenhouse Effect. We all know the meanings of those terms but why haven’t we done much about it? Humans are causing it and Humans can stop it getting worse. We are causing this by releasing immense amounts of CO₂ and greenhouse gasses like Methane, Nitrogen Oxide and Fluorinated gasses into to our precious atmosphere. (Methane leaks out of our coal mines and natural gas wells.) It is scientifically proven that the CO₂ levels in the Earth’s atmosphere increases by 10% each year. Last year around 28 billion tons of CO₂ was released into our atmosphere. This is harmful and it is having a massive effect on countries and cotenants ALL over the world, causing Droughts, rising Water levels, Hurricanes and extreme Temperature increases. The temperatures on Earth are increasing because of the Gas overload in our Earth’s atmosphere. Think of a greenhouse, it traps in the heat from the sun and sustains the life that’s inside. The changing Temperature is bad for our economy and our environments. For example, in February 2009 Victoria witnessed some of the worst bushfires on record in Australia and Professors from the University of Melbourne have directly linked this event to Global Warming. This incident claimed 173 lives, injured 5,000 people, destroyed 2029 homes, killed wildlife and burnt over 4,500 square kilometres of land. This incident caused the Australian Government 500 billion dollars to fix. This is a result of a long period oppressive heat and drought. The Ocean’s levels are rising because of the rapid melting rate of our icy continents. Antarctica and Alaska are the ones at risk. Over the past 100 years it has been recorded that the Water Level has risen by 1-2 millimetres per year on average. It has been steadily rising since the 1970’s and that was when the rising Greenhouse Gas levels became more serious. These two pictures (above) shove the Larson B iceshelf in Antarctica on February 2002 and amazingly, between the two pictures are only 17 days difference. The temperature in our Oceans are rising, causing Coral Bleaching and Hurricanes. Coral bleaching can occur with the slightest water temperature change like 1.5-2°C more than the usual temperature. Hurricanes can occur as the storm or hurricane passes over the sea and it absorbs the warm water. The water is pushed outward and upward and the upward water cools quickly, absorbing moisture which turns into rain. As the air falls and rushes around, the process repeats itself building up the pressure and the speed of the storm. The water can reach up to 26°C, which is a direct contributor to Hurricanes, acting like the Fuel of the storm. Australia is witnessing its worst drought on record and this is caused by the warming temperatures in our Earth’s atmosphere. They nicknamed the 2002present drought “The Big Dry”. We are often affected by drought because of our geography and the change of weather patterns. These colours (right) represent the rainfall in Australia from 1970-2009. Here are some ways we can contribute to reducing Global Warming by: -Saving the Rainforests -Using Hybrid cars -Buy a Fuel Efficient Car -Build an Energy Efficient home -Inflate your tyres -Use recycled things -Reduce Garbage -Buy Minimally packaged goods -Planting Trees -Using Compact Fluorescent Light bulbs -Un plug unused energy appliances -Fill your dishwasher -Adjust your Thermostat -Check your water heater -Change the AC heater -Take short showers -Install a Low-Flow shower head -Buy local products -Insulate your water heater -Insulate your home -Put on a sweater -Air dry your clothes -Switch to a Tankless Water Heater -Switch to double pane windows -Buy organic food -Buy cloths bags when shopping, instead of using plastic bags If we use some or all of these conditions, then we can help reduce the impact that Global Warming has on Earth. Please, help and Save Our Planet!