Climate change has been a persistent issue since the 1850s, and we have been working to make progress in replenishing the environment, but it will only be successful if we all put in the work.
Climate change is often perceived as something in the far distant future; we have time to put it off, when in reality, we need to be making these big changes now. Billions of tons of CO2 are released into the atmosphere every year from everyday human activity. CO2 is part of the major problem in today’s environment. The increase in CO2 causes climate change, a phenomenon that is something you likely hear about frequently, but do you fully understand what it entails?
Climate change is not just the weather getting slightly hotter; it’s the dramatic fluctuations in weather patterns. The most common fluctuation tends to be hotter weather, but hotter weather means a disruption in the balance of nature and an alteration in long-term weather patterns. This doesn’t just mean more rainy days or windy days; no, it can also cause increased hurricane intensity, sea level rise, ocean acidification, and many other effects. The effects on the environment mean effects on the animals that depend on it. With certain animal species depleting, such as oysters, coral, polar bears, turtles, monarch butterflies, and many more. Many people look the other way since it doesn’t concern them, but truthfully, it will. With hotter temperatures rising, the animals being affected also cause other animals that depend on them to be affected. Coral reefs hold life to many lifeforms, including the fish we eat, to the fish that take care of the ocean, and allow this problem to be as bad as it is only now. Every life form allows life for another, whether big or small, so if this continues downhill, and if we don’t start moving forward now, things will get to a point of no return.
It may seem difficult to believe that we really are so close to hurting our environment in which will hurt us, but we are. So start making decisions based on whether this will help us in the long run. Stop supporting big industries that only focus on money, clean your plastic dishes and throw them in the recycling bin, use reusable paper towels and other reusable objects that support our ecosystem. Don’t make decisions based on how easy or quick it is, because convenience is a privilege, so use it wisely.
