The Greenhouse Effect.

What is the Greenhouse Effect?

Life on Earth depends on energy from the sun. Approximately 30% of the sun's light that beams towards the Earth is deflected by the outer atmosphere back into space. The rest reaches the Earth's surface and is reflected upwards as a type of slow-moving energy called infrared radiation. The heat caused by infrared radiation is absorbed by greenhouse gasses such as carbon dioxide, methane and water vapour. Greenhouse gases, usually making up around 1% of the Earth's atmosphere, plays a crucial role in regulating the Earth's temperature and keeping it at levels that appeal to hometostasis. This natural phenomena is vital to our existence and has been named the 'greenhouse effect'. However, there can be too much of a good thing.

Excessive greenhouse gas emissions cause the greenhouse gases being emitted to trap higher amounts of heat, as they are designed to do, hence warming up the Earth's atmosphere to levels beyond what nature can tolerate. Although we are not entirely responsible for this negative change in environment, our activities were fundamental to the acceleration of the natural process in which the greenhouse effect takes place and will be fundamental to its solution, since these environmental issues are directly affecting us; in the short and long term

How are humans emitting excessive greenhouse gas into the atmosphere?

Below I have mentioned a few ways in which humans are emitting excessive greenhouse gases into the atmosphere hence disturbing natural procedure.

•  Burning natural gas, coal and oil (including gasoline) contributes to levels of carbon dioxide
• Specific farming practices and land-use changes increase levels of methane and nitrous oxide
• Factories producing long lasting industrial gases that have just been introduced to today's society are contributing immensely to the enhanced greenhouse effect
• Deforestation. Trees absorb carbon dioxide and with the lack of trees there is an excess of carbon dioxide lingering in the atmosphere.
• Population growth and overconsumption hence ecological overdraft. We want more than we can have,