3 ways WE can defeat climate change

As 2021 arrives, some things will continue to disturb us, including covid 19, the loss of jobs, and climate change. Due to the effects of covid 19, many have forgotten about climate change, and how it is going to change the lives of future generations to come. Climate change is the change in regional climate patterns. This can do major destruction to modern-day societies, including the destruction of homes near the coast due to the rising sea levels, the annihilation of many species of animals due to habitat loss, and more. In order to keep a healthy environment for everyone living on this planet, we need to take proper climate actions. These actions include protecting forests and restoring them, using reusable energy, and switching to a more plant-based diet.

Forest restorations are great ways to help climate change. Climate change is caused by trillions of pounds of carbon dioxide build-up in the atmosphere, which causes things like global warming and air pollution. While carbon dioxide is not beneficial for us, trees need it in order to survive, just like we need oxygen. Restoring forests can help reduce the amount of carbon dioxide in the air, as well as release more oxygen. According to greenamerica.org, “751 million acres of land in the tropics could be restored to intact forests, reducing 62.1 gigatons of CO2.” 1 gigaton of co2 is equivalent to about 2.2 trillion pounds of co2! Planting trees may be very important to help reduce the effects of climate change, but this is something that might be more important, which is to protect trees from natural and economic causes. Trees store carbon, but when they die, a lot of the carbon goes back into the atmosphere. If people just keep planting trees and then cutting them down, the issue of climate change will be much harder to achieve. Therefore, saving trees from being cut down or destroyed by natural causes can help more carbon to be stored in those trees for longer periods of time. Leaving the forests alone is a very smart plan for climate change. Many studies have shown that leaving forests to take care of themselves is better than human interaction with forests. Forests prevent soil erosion, offer watershed protection, and provide many homes to animals without humans. Ecosystems are very complex, and many have been destroyed since the industrial revolution. Leaving them alone might be the best decision.

Reusable energy is another way to conquer climate change. As fossil fuel may be very efficient, it produces carbon dioxide as a by-product. Not only do fossil fuels contribute to climate change, but they are also running out. These resources take earth millions of years to create, and humans are using them very quickly. A replacement for these resources that we use so often is reusable energy. Reusable energy includes solar, hydro, wind, geothermal, and biomass energy. Reusable energy is more beneficial for climate change because it emits less carbon into the air, is more reliable, and helps conserve the world’s fossil fuels. Solar energy is probably the best known reusable energy. There are many solar-powered products, such as solar panels and solar air conditioners. Solar energy is energy from the sun, and they produce a lot of energy in many places around the world using things like solar farms. Hydro energy is energy from water and is used by converting falling water into electricity by things like turbines. Turbines convert the kinetic energy from the water to mechanical energy, and then a generator converts that into electrical energy. Wind energy is the energy that is made from wind using wind turbines, and they work just like hydro turbines. The wind causes the blades of the turbine to move, which causes the generator inside to spin, creating electrical energy. Geothermal energy is thermal energy stored in the earth. Geothermal energy is created by power plants using heat from deep inside the earth to generate steam. The steam is then used to generate electricity. Biomass energy is energy produced by living or nonliving organisms, the most common being corn and soy. This is then burned to create to then turn into electricity. These are the main ways that reusable energy is used.

It may not seem that important, but switching to a more plant-based diet is very beneficial to the earth. Factory farming is one of the most serious and biggest problems in climate change. Animals raised for meat, eggs, and milk create an enormous amount of greenhouse gas emissions. For example, a single cow burps liters of methane a day, which gets stuck in the atmosphere. All of the animals in factory farms generate billions of pounds of Drug-Laced waste a year, which causes a lot of harm to many habitats by the waste spilling into local streams and rivers. This kills millions of fish and causes serious effects to the environment. Eating meat is also less efficient than eating a plant-based diet. For example, it takes about 16 pounds of grain to produce one pound of meat, and it takes 1 thousand gallons of water to produce one steak. Millions of acres of land are used to produce enough grain for meat. 56 million acres of land is used to feed and grow the animals, while only 4 million acres supply the world for plants to eat. For an average meat-eater, about 10 percent of their daily energy comes from meat, and the other 90 percent comes from plants. Meat gives you less energy because animals eat plants, and the energy pyramid shows that only 10 percent of the energy is passed onto the next section of the pyramid. Switching to a plant-based diet is much better for the environment and the people. Switching can reduce greenhouse emissions and save many resources needed to produce meat, like water and grains. There are also many health benefits to a plant-based diet, including less inflammation. If everyone in the world switched to a plant-based diet, then the world could feed an additional 3.5 billion people. This could also reduce carbon emissions to help climate change since 26 percent of carbon emissions are made by food. This is why switching to a plant-based diet is beneficial for climate change.

Climate change is a serious threat in today’s world. Maintaining and planting trees, using renewable energy, and switching to a more plant-based diet is beneficial to help stop the effects of climate change. Doing these things will help make the earth a better place to live in for billions of people around the world.

Sources: https://www.solarschools.net/knowledge-bank/non-renewable-energy

https://www.ucsusa.org/resources/benefits-renewable-energy-use

https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-49238749

https://www.peta.org/issues/animals-used-for-food/meat-environment/

https://www.peta.org/videos/meat-wastes-water/https://www.peta.org/videos/meat-wastes-water/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-k-V3ESHcfA&list=PL7owa-atAmdqTF-P5Hb3nZM3tTNb_zZN0 — mark rober