We’re Not Killing the Earth, We’re Killing Ourselves
As every one of us is aware, the “Earth Day” is celebrated on 22nd of April. What’s the need to celebrate this? Well, we would say that this is the biggest ever moment that can reflect the damages that are being done on our planet. This also would tell us how our humanity could help save it. In this line, try to recall the fact that we are not actually killing our planet, but all we do is killing us. The UN believes that this Earth Day could save our environment, as well as the people relying on it. Thus, it’s intended to help alter our behavior so as to work on protecting the planet.
Now, see how we are killing our Earth here:
Vanishing Sea Ice:
Many of the human activities have led to the increase in global temperatures. As a result of these increased temperatures, the sea ice has started to melt. As a consequence, the sea levels are affected, which in turn would affect the habitats for the sea creatures. One of the most affected animals is the polar bear as their habitat is revolving around the ice.
Rising Waters:
A recent report shows that sea levels have been increased dramatically over the past few years. This is another impact of global warming. As mentioned above, the hotter the planet turns, the more the sea ice melts. As a consequence, the sea waters are increasing thereby, leading to disasters like flooding.
Rising Temperatures:
Again, the impact of global warming is the warmer planet. As a result of heating up of the planet, there are many knock-on effects. Some of the important impacts of rising temperatures include the melting of polar ice caps and droughts.
Increasing Population:
Yes, there’s no secret! The world population is rapidly increasing and this is putting more and more pressure on the earth and its natural resources. It’s shocking to note that there are more than 2000 million more people on the Earth when compared to 25 years back.
Disappearing Rainforests:
As some of you might be aware, the deforestation of the giant Amazon rainforest is taking place since the 1970s. People are doing this continuously for the purpose of gathering wood and for creating living space for the cattle. The impact is that rainforests are deteriorating in a rapid phase, thus affecting habitats and climates.
So, we have got an idea how we are destroying our planet. Also here, we have to understand that one of the most important that has changed and is changing is the global climatic conditions. You will understand that our title is 100% true after reading the following contents. Here, we are going to show how the changes in global climatic conditions are killing us. Are you ready to go? Well and then, read on…
Heat Extremities:
Do you know too much heat kills people? The heat extremities are sending millions of people to emergency rooms every year. With the change in global climates and the increase in overall temperatures, what we are seeing is severe heat waves than before. Although there will be a distribution difference in the heat extremities, there will be worst impacts in some parts of the globe. Those, of course, are the places with the hottest summers already.
As a result of harsher heat waves, we would face an increasing number of casualties widely across the globe. Thus, there will be more hyperthermia and other heat-related deaths. The global climate experts are also saying that the climate changes are causing a higher degree of humidity to accompany these heat waves, thereby, making them more dangerous.
Drought and Rainfall Extremities:
Overall, the global warmth would lead to higher degrees of evaporation and thus, contribute to more and more water shortages. The conditions will be worse in the already drier regions, which are already experiencing a severe, multi-year drought. Remember, the drought could lead to an array of other effects as well. Some of the most important effects of drought are:
- Health hazards
- Wildfires
- Dust storms
- Extreme heat events
- Flash flooding
- Decreased water quality
- Decreased water quantity
But, the increased levels of evaporation could also result in higher degrees of rainfall, thus, leading to the following disasters:
- Flooding
- Property damage
- Drowning
- Deaths
- Water-borne diseases
Impacts on Agriculture and Food:
The increasing heat extremities and more precipitation will be horrifying for farmers at first hand. Several crop yields will decline because of the changes in temperature and rainfall. These weather events will not affect only the agriculture and vegetation but also they would affect the livestock, as well as fish production. The people from across the globe with a particular dietary pattern are going to face shortages over their key food products.
As food supply decreases, the costs of foods will increase, thus, leading to the insecurity in our food supply. When we start encountering a situation like this, we would tend to consume calorie-rich diet rather than going for nutrient-rich ones. Consequently, several people are going to encounter obesity and in turn, several other health disorders associated with obesity.
There is another important impact of pollution on the crops and vegetation. The increased carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere would lead to decreased nitrogen concentration in the plants. Therefore, there will be decreased levels of proteins in many of the plants.
Insects and Diseases:
You might be wondering how the global warming is going to affect insects. Remember, the diarrhea-causing bacteria are not the only things that we need to worry about. The increase in global temperatures will increase the levels of disease-causing bugs depending on the geography of the region. Thus, we could encounter an overall increase in trouble-causing ticks, as well as mosquitoes. The insects in warmer climate zones would also bring some deadly organisms like “West Nile Virus”.
Therefore, global warming due to an increased amount of manmade activities has several negative impacts on us. Now, you would agree with us that we are not killing our Earth but ourselves, isn’t it? All we have to do is to care about this dramatic climate change and look out for the effective solutions as soon as possible. Will you?