Part 3: Reading the text g11 Task 5: Read the following text.
What impact does air pollution have on the environment? 5
Air pollution is now, sadly, a common fact of everyday life. A recent report in the influential science journal Nature reveals that 3.3 million people a year die from outdoor air pollution, a number higher than those who die from HIV/AIDS, malaria and influenza combined. Thus, it is not unreasonable to say that air pollution represents one of the – if not the – biggest crisis currently faced by humankind. Some of the worst offenders are the world’s richest country – the USA – and the largest – China – but there are many other countries whose per capita emissions are far higher, such as the United Arab Emirates and Australia. This essay will argue that air pollution, if not properly addressed immediately and across the world, will have a very serious long-term impact on the environment, leading to irreversible climate change.
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last of these is the most prominent greenhouse gas. Although carbon dioxide is emitted naturally through plants and animals as a natural part of the carbon cycle, the amount of the gas which is, at present, being released into the atmosphere is more than at any time in the Earth’s history. According to the US geological survey, atmospheric CO2
Air pollution comes in many different shapes and sizes. One of the most dangerous forms of air pollution is greenhouse gases, including methane, nitrous oxide and carbon dioxide (CO2
). The concentrations have increased by more 20
than 40% since pre-industrial times. The current level is higher than it has been at any point in the last 800,000 years (IPCC, 2013). The majority of this comes from the exhaust gases coming out of cars, lorries and other vehicles, as well as the pollution created by factories and power plants. Agricultural and mining activities are also major causes of these excess emissions, all of which are supporting a global population which in a relatively short period of time will reach eight billion. Once these greenhouse gases are emitted, they sit in the atmosphere forming a sort of blanket around the Earth, which is how they get their name – they trap heat in the same way that greenhouses do when growing plants such as tomatoes.
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Under the natural carbon cycle, the greenhouse effect works well, but when there is an excessive amount of greenhouse gas in the atmosphere, problems ensue. When sunlight hits the Earth, some of it is absorbed, some of it is reflected as light, and the rest of it is reflected or radiated back into space in the form of heat. As this heat, in the form of infrared radiation, passes back through the atmosphere towards outer space, excess greenhouse gases absorb it. This makes the atmosphere warmer, and as the Earth’s atmosphere warms, so too does the Earth’s surface. The presence of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere is important, since without them the average temperature of the Earth would be around 15°C lower. The difference is that historically the amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere has been at a manageable level. Now, however, the amount of heat being directed back towards the Earth is too high, meaning that the average temperature is rising significantly.
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The result of increased surface temperature is very serious indeed. According to NASA, 2015 was the warmest-ever year on record, and the 10 warmest years since 1880 have all occurred since 1998. This global warming will result in ice melting in colder regions, in particular the North and South Poles. The melting of this large quantity of ice will lead to higher sea levels, which will have potentially disastrous effects not only for islands, but for coastal cities across the world. This will not be a problem that only affects poorer nations such as the Maldives, but could potentially affect cities such as New York and Sydney. The impact of this does not need to be spelt out – it would be disastrous for the whole of humankind.
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Many people are concerned that, in the future, the prevalence of greenhouse gases will result in the Earth becoming too hot, with these disastrous consequences. It will lose its ‘Goldilocks Zone’ status, where it is neither too hot nor too cold, but just right for life to exist. All predictions point towards the levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere increasing, unless radical steps are taken. Decisions taken at the Paris Climate Change Summit in 2015 look promising, but only time will tell if nation states take these responsibilities seriously, and whether people are willing to take the decisions necessary to curb air pollution, and therefore prevent the inevitable environmental catastrophe which otherwise will ensue at some point in the future.
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