GREEN HOUSE GASES

Greenhouse gases, their effects, and reduction measures.

Do you know what a greenhouse is?

These are places where intensive agriculture is done. The greenhouse is a shelter covered by a transparent or semi-transparent substance. Mostly glass or transparent plastic. Selected plants are growing inside it with intensive care, which is free from pests and harsh weather conditions. It has a favorable environment, and the plants are supplied with the needed nutrients.

When plants grow in a greenhouse, the gas exchange will be balanced. That is, plants absorb oxygen gas in their respiration and release carbon dioxide. In photosynthesis, plants absorb carbon dioxide and release oxygen. The heat can be absorbed by the glass covering and warm the inside. So, a greenhouse is a perfect place for growing plants. This absorbed heat by the air in the greenhouse cannot be radiated back to the environment. So, even in winter, a considerable warmness is prevailing inside the greenhouse.

Likewise, solar heat radiation heats the land and water. Some of them radiated back to the space. When there are some types of gases (namely greenhouse gases) in the atmosphere that are mostly released due to human activities, they can absorb some of the heat energy that is radiating back. So, extra warmth will be generated in the atmosphere. So, the temperature rises up.

According to the comparison between a greenhouse and the earth, we can see the similarities between them. So, the term greenhouse effect is used in explaining the global warming concept.

There are two types of greenhouse gases: natural gases and industrial gases. For natural gases, there are carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and water vapor. Methane is naturally produced in marshy lands. But marshy lands are very important in controlling floods and providing a good habitat for various animals, including birds. On the other hand, cattle farming also contributes much to the methane percentage in the atmosphere.

As for industrial gases, chlorofluorocarbon (CFC), hydrochlorofluorocarbon (HCFC), hydrofluorocarbon (HFC), and sulfur hexafluoride (SF₆).

Both types of the above gases trap heat energy. That is, these gases prevent the radiating back of heat energy to the space. So, the result is global warming.

The contribution to global warming is different in the above gases. The gas that contributes most is carbon dioxide. Secondly, the methane.

Now we can consider the bad effects of global warming. Due to rising temperatures, glaciers and ice caps in the Polar Regions start to melt. It will cause an increase in the water levels of oceans. Further, the volume of water masses will increase due to the expansion of water, which results in increased temperature. This will cause the drowning of coastal cities and lowland lands. Further, seawater will mix with brackish water in estuaries and fresh water in rivers. In this way, those ecosystems may be unfavorable for the dwellers in them.

Climate change is also a result of global warming. So, unexpected frequent storms, hurricanes, wildfires, heatwaves, and droughts are some of the climatic changes. Some animals are directly affected by these changes. In the last 2 decades, we experienced a large number of wildfires. When a wildfire occurs, an uncountable number of living beings will get destroyed. The damage done to the flora and fauna of those places cannot be estimated.

Following are the regions of the world that experienced mostly this situation in the last 2 decades.

Australia, Russia, Canada, USA, Amazon Forest.

In 1972, all the state leaders in the world gathered and discussed the ecological crisis and destruction of the environment. They have declared the 5^th of June as World Environment Day. Accordingly, so many activities are done to protect the environment.

The measures should be taken to reduce the production of greenhouse gases, hence global warming.

As a country and as citizens, we can do more to reduce global warming.

We know that we are burning fossil fuels in many ways to get our power supplies. For example, diesel powerhouses and coal powerhouses are used to get electricity. The vehicles are using petrol and diesel. These are the main methods of emitting carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. By reducing the power consumption and going to a simple lifestyle like our grandparents, we can help with this issue.

In our day-to-day lives, we can contribute much to reducing the emission of carbon dioxide. Some of them are here. If we use public vehicles instead of private, it helps to reduce fuel consumption. At home, we can reduce power consumption by using natural resources like sunlight, bulbs, and fresh air by replacing fans and air conditioners. We can reuse and reduce the consumption of plastic shopping bags, which are used daily in large amounts.

We can limit the consumption of processed food, which uses more energy in processing. Planting fruit trees and vegetables in our own gardens (if we have them) helps us to add more fresh things to our diet and is a better way to reduce carbon dioxide.

At the country-level, heads of the states can take many measures to reduce the addition of carbon dioxide to the environment. In tropical countries, they can go for renewable resources to produce electricity like solar power (light energy), wind power (kinetic energy), and hydropower (kinetic energy of flowing water). The kinetic energy of tidal waves can also be used to generate electricity. Some countries that have good technology use geothermal energy as their energy resource to produce electricity. Some of the countries are the US, New Zealand, the Philippines, and Mexico. These methods reduce fuel consumption. Windmills are mostly found in Denmark and use the kinetic energy of blowing wind to generate electricity. The freely obtainable renewable energy resources are very important for countries because non-renewable fossil fuel is very expensive these days.

It is a very easy and useful way of reducing carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere: reforestation. Trees absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere for photosynthesis, which is a natural process, and the whole biosphere depends on that. Therefore, reforestation could be the best solution to reduce the extra carbon dioxide percentage in the atmosphere. (The normal carbon dioxide percentage of the atmosphere is 0.04%.). Trees can absorb carbon dioxide for photosynthesis and release oxygen.

Some large cities are completely dependent on renewable resources for their energy consumption. For example, Stockholm, Sweden. The concept of green cities is a good solution for a clean atmosphere. Many countries are practicing this for a sustainable lifestyle. For example, Stockholm in Sweden, Berlin in Germany, and Amsterdam in Netherlands.