Anthropogenic and natural causes of climate change with mitigation strategies

Climate Change -- Cause and Mitigation

There are several ways to look at climate change because there are natural causes and there are also human-influenced causes for the global climate to change. This paper defines anthropogenic climate change and it defines natural climate change and the historic record of the earth's changing climate over the millennia. This paper also provides strategies for mitigating global climate change and speculates as to the possible stabilization of climate change vis-a-vis the business and economic fields.

What is Anthropogenic Climate Change?

The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines anthropogenic as "…relating to, or resulting from, the influence of human beings on nature"; the first use of this team was in 1923.

Meanwhile, the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research lists three ways in which the evidence points toward humans having influence over the rising temperatures on earth. The "…concentration of carbon dioxide (CO2) is rising," which is a proven fact based on empirical evidence ("direct measurement in the atmosphere dating back to the 1950s") (Rahmstorf, 2007). Scientists use data from ice core data of concentrations of CO2 that date back hundreds of thousands of years (at least 650,000 years) to point out that there have "never" been such high concentrations of CO2 -- "not even close to as high as it is at present" (Rahmstorf, 36).

Secondly, the amount of fossil fuel that has been burned is verifiable, and hence the amount of CO2 that has been "…injected directly into the atmosphere" is precisely known (Rahmstorf, 36). The observed increase in CO2 concentration over the past many decades is "…equal to 57% of our cumulative emissions," and the ocean and land biosphere "…have absorbed the remaining 43% of emissions from the atmosphere" (Rahmstorf, 36). The third part of Rahmstorf's chapter is that since carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas, doubling the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere will in fact "…warm the global climate in equilibrium by 3 degrees Centigrade plus or minus 1.5 degrees (Rahmstorf, 387).

What is Natural Climate Change?

Studies referenced by NASA show that "solar variability has played a role in past climate changes"; in fact a decrease in solar strength likely "…triggered the Little Ice Age" between the years 1650 and 1850 (NASA). In other words, through the thousands of years that can be monitored by using empirical studies (ice core science) the earth has heated up and cooled down in cycles that are related to the sun's impact on the planet. This is natural climate change.

Is Global Warming Actually Taking Place?

"A comprehensive analysis of peer-reviewed articles on the topic of global warming and climate change has revealed an overwhelming consensus among scientists that recent warming is human-caused" (Institute of Physics, [IPO] 2013). '

The Institute of Physics reviewed over 2,000 pages of scientific findings vis-a-vis existing empirical research on global climate change and reported that "…97%…endorsed the consensus that we are seeing man-made, or anthropogenic, global warming" (IOP). Notwithstanding that a pool in 2012 showed that "…more than half of Americans either disagree, or are unaware that scientists overwhelmingly agree…" that there is climate change and that the source of the warming climate can be traced to human activity (IOP).

The study of existing empirical science on global climate change is in sharp contrast to the public perception that the issue is still in doubt -- or that there is no climate change at all, according to the Institute of Physics. "It's staggering given the evidence for actual consensus that less than half of the general public [believes] scientists agree" that humans are the basic cause for the warming of the planet, the IOP reports.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is the principal group that is studying and monitoring climate change. They have published updated reports for several years and in 2007 they reported that "…The evidence from surface temperatures is strong" that climate change is due to anthropogenic dynamics:

"The widespread change detected in temperature observations of the surface free atmosphere and ocean, together with consistent evidence of change in other parts of the climate system strengthens the conclusion that greenhouse gas forcing is the dominant cause of warming during the past several decades. This combined evidence, which is summarized in Table 9.4 is substantially stronger than the evidence that is available from observed changes in global surface temperature alone…" (IPCC, 2007).

Indeed, the IPCC narrative continues, noting that the "simultaneous increase in energy content of all of the major components of the climate system" -- along with the pattern "and amplitude of the warming in different components" -- reflect the scientific fact that it is "extremely unlikely" that the cause of global warming is due to "internal" [natural] causes alone (IPCC).

NASA research shows "certain facts" that are not in dispute because with available science data, the current warming trends show the "big picture": a) "…scientific evidence for warming of the climate system is unequivocal"; and b) the "heat-trapping nature of carbon dioxide…" and increased levels of "…greenhouse gases must cause the Earth to warm in response"; c) sea levels are rising (and have risen 6.7 inches in the last century); d) the ten warmest years on record have occurred "…in the past 12 years"; e) the ice sheets in Greenland and Antarctic are losing mass (Greenland lost up to 60 cubic miles of ice between 2002 and 2005); f) glaciers "…are retreating almost everywhere around the world," in Africa, the Himalayas, Alaska, the Andes, the Rockies, and the Alps; and g) the acidity of surface ocean water "…has increased by about 30%" since the Industrial Revolution (NASA).

Policy Changes to Stabilize Global Climate Change

Since there are currently no federal standards that seek to reduce the carbon pollution from power plants, a new policy must be created (to set reasonable standards) because power plants (notably coal-fired plants) produce nearly 40% of all American greenhouse gas pollution (The White House). This process will be politically controversial because the energy companies spend millions of dollars on lobbying Congress and in addition, there are still "global warming deniers" in Congress who are fighting any policy that seeks to reduce the nation's carbon footprint. I would also put great pressure on the auto industry to produce affordable vehicles that emit a fraction of the greenhouse gas emissions that they currently emit. The big energy companies that scrape the tops of mountains in Kentucky and West Virginia for coal will spend extraordinary amounts of money fighting every policy that seeks to reduce the carbon emissions from coal-fired plants. But the environmentally smart policies must be pushed through if the U.S. is going to take responsibility for reducing its enormous contribution to the world's greenhouse gas emissions.

In conclusion, there is no question at all that the planet is heating up. The evidence is overwhelming notwithstanding the doubters and deniers that are in Congress and elsewhere. Steps must be taken to at least slow climate change down. New policies must be put in place and the voters must elect responsible candidates who have the courage to stand up to the big energy companies.