Rough Draft

There has been a controversy at the environmental science circles as scholars and the civil society try to address the concept of global warming.

On one side, there are proponents who have come up with a litany of theories and propositions as to the reality of the concept of global warming. In this respect, they point at the major changes in the world’s major geographical and climatic variables that are indicative of a significant climate change that threatens the longevity of the earth to continue to support the life of man on earth. Among the evidence attributed by this group of people is the declining number of glaciers on the major high mountains seen the past few decades (Pachauri & Reisinger, 2007). Also pointed at by this school of thought is the rising sea water level which they attribute to the melting of glaciers as well as the changing ocean water gaseous composition that changes the level of water in the seas (Pachauri & Reisinger, 2007). Also, they point at the increasing ocean acidification which they believe to be the result of the ocean waters continued absorption of the greenhouse gases that are emitted into the atmosphere.

On the other side of the controversy are the skeptics who point at the trends in the world temperature movements. According to them, temperatures of the world have undergone changes and cycles of ups and downs and that no cycle is permanent and will always converge to the time series average. According to this school of thought, the global warming forecasts are based on the climate models which have failed for periods on end in the past (Pachauri & Reisinger, 2007).

The Major Players

Global warming is a concept that affects all categories of people across the globe. These categories include the governments, research institutions, international environmental bodies, the industrial producers which rely o the energy, and the subjects of the consequences of the aspect of global warming (Bruce & Lee, 2015).

The governments of different countries have the responsibility of formulating and implementing environmental policies. These policies could take the perspective of protecting environmental pollution and also to control the type of energy source used in various production activities. Respective governments should mobilize their resources to work for the common good of seeing to it that the environment is clean and not harmful and also that the threat to the depletion of the ozone layer is minimized (Bruce & Lee, 2015).

On the other hand, the international environmental bodies such as the United Nations Environmental Program (UNEP), should continue to collaborate with respective governments so as to design and come up with environmental policies that are aimed at protecting the environment. They should fund various institutions and civil society groups in their endeavor to protect the environment (Bruce & Lee, 2015). The civil society on the other hand must lobby the respective governments to pursue environment-related policies. They should also take part in the education of the people on how to make use of the policies and to ensure that the existing community groups that are of the agenda of environmental protection are operational and are updated on the issues relating to the use and application of international standards in the application and implementation of their policies. Such approaches will ensure that there is a global mechanism for joint environmental law enforcement (Bruce & Lee, 2015).

Important Facts

There are a number of facts surrounding the concept of global warming. First, it is believed to be the result of rise in the earth’s average temperature resulting from the emission of greenhouse gases such as methane and carbon dioxide. The over-emittance of these gases into the atmosphere depletes the ozone layer thus making the earth lives vulnerable to the effect of global warming (NASA, 2016). Secondly, it is factual that these toxic gases will stay in the atmosphere for so long a period of time so that it will be impossible to eliminate the effects of global warming for decades on end (NASA, 2016).

Third, it is believed that by the end of the 21st century, the sea levels will rise by between 7 and 23 inches as a result of global warming. Fourth, it is believed that the average temperature of the earth has risen by about 1.4 Fahrenheit degrees (NASA, 2016). Fifth, the two decades ending the 20th century marked the hottest in a span of 400 years. Sixth, it is believed that of all the places in the world, the arctic will be the most affected place of the world by global warming.

The other important fact about global warming is that between the years 2000 and 2004, the average temperature of Western Canada, Russia, and Alaska had risen twice that of the global average. It is also said that the arctic ice has been undergoing a rapid melting and it is approximated that by the year 2040, the region will have an ice free summer (NASA, 2016). Also, the Montana Glacier National Park which as of 1910 had 150 glaciers only has 25 currently.

Side One: Arguments for Global Warming

There are a lot of evidences in show of the fact that global warming is really taking pace. First, there is the concept of the rising sea levels in many parts of the world. This is believed to be owed from the melting of ice caps as well as glaciers and also due to the gases that are contained in the seas. In the 20th century, it is believed that the global average sea levels have doubled at an annual rate of 1.6mm (Rinkesh, 2010).

Secondly, the rise in the average temperature of the earth is believed to be the other cause. During the past one and a half century, the global temperatures have risen by about 1.4 Fahrenheit degrees. This is evidence in support of the concept of global warming. The other point in support of the concept of global warming is that of the rising ocean temperature (Rinkesh, 2010). As the greenhouse gases continue to be emitted into the atmosphere, they get trapped there thus they get absorbed by the oceans.

Third, there is the evidence of the shrinking glaciers on a couple of mountain ranges such as in the Antarctica and Greenland. The decrease in the size of the glaciers is believed to be due to the reduction if the gases that are used in maintaining the temperatures and this rise results into climate change. Lastly, there is the evidence of a rise in the ocean acid levels thus making them more and more acidic by the day (Rinkesh, 2010). This is believed to be a result of the emission of the toxic gases into the atmosphere and when they are absorbed by the oceans, they make the ocean water acidic.

Side Two: Arguments against Global Warming

There are, on the other hand, skeptical arguments as far as the issue of global warming is concerned. First, it is argued that there has never been any global warming since the year 1997. It is believed that the earth’s temperature has been flat essentially in the 18 years past. The failure to register any rise in the global temperatures since this year can be a direct testimony that the global warming concept is but a fiction (Hawkins, 2014).

Secondly, there has never been a scientific proof that global warming is either occurring or even caused by the activities of man on the globe. There is a large body of scientific consensus that the earth has undergone periods of global warming and global cooling. For example, in the 1700s, the earth was experiencing massive global cooling and this issue caused a global scientific concern as the scientists raised a red flag in the same concern (Hawkins, 2014). Later, in the 1970s when the global temperatures were on the rise, scientists again raised a red flag on the same. These conflicting views fail to attribute the changing global temperatures to any act of man on the surface of the earth.

Third, as of 2012, the Arctic ice was up 50 per cent. There is even evidence that the Arctic is more capped today than it was a few decades ago. This means that there is a gap in the diagnosis of the actual variations in the global temperatures so that scientists keep shifting goal posts from one point to the next. This is congruent with the scientific argument that the climate models for global warming have failed to capture their intended predictions from time immemorial (Hawkins, 2014).

Your Opinion and Rationale

Even though there skeptics argue that there is lacking evidence as to the actual causes of global warming, it is proved in the fields of chemistry and physics the way water and other chemical components of the ocean water can react to different gases and gaseous components. There is need for restraint, policy, and regulation in terms of emission of certain gases in the atmosphere (Houghton & Ding, 2015). This can be done through the imposition of strict controls with regard to pollution, industrial or personal. Nations over the world can look into the ways in which they can pursue other sources of energy.

The new energy revolution should focus on the reduction of reliance on hydrocarbon energy such as fossil fuels among other categories. Instead, clean energy use should be emphasized to ensure that there is no wanton pollution (Houghton & Ding, 2015). Personally, I am of the belief that emission of greenhouse gases and gaseous components into the atmosphere is not good both for the live of man and for the longevity of the atmosphere in terms of how it can support the life of man.

I disagree with the skeptics of the concept of global warming on their argument that since 1997. This is not informed enough because since the red flag was raised on this concept, there have been put in place a number of interventions so as to minimize the effects of emissions of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. It cannot be rules that the decline in the global warming index of the earth can be attributed to these interventions. Some of the interventions include the reliance on wind power such s in Korea and Germany where industrial production energy is 23 per cent and 12 per cent respectively wind power.

References Bruce, J., & Lee, H. (2015). Contribution of Working Group III to the Second Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Economic and Social Dimensions of Climate Change . Hawkins, J. (2014). 5 Scientific Reasons That Global Warming Isn't Happening. http://townhall.com/columnists/johnhawkins/2014/02/18/5-scientific-reasons-that-global-warming-isnt-happening-n1796423. Houghton, J., & Ding. (2015). Contribution of Working Group I to the Third Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Cambridge University Press . NASA. (2016). Climate change: How do we know? Global Climate Change , http://climate.nasa.gov/evidence/. Pachauri, R., & Reisinger, a. (2007). Contribution of Working Groups I, II and III to the Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. IPCC . Rinkesh, J. (2010). Is Global Warming Real? http://www.conserve-energy-future.com/is-global-warming-real.php.