Energy Sciences

Rationale

The greenhouse effect is a natural manner of maintaining a suitable temperature on Earth to support and maintain life.  The term greenhouse effect originates from the agricultural model.  A greenhouse functions by allowing sunlight to enter through the roof, and atmospheric gases (usually carbon dioxide along with water) are trapped and absorb the energy (heat) during the day to keep the heat inside. At night as the temperature cools, inside the structure the “heat” that was absorbed is retained warming the environment to maintain a suitable temperature for survival. With the natural form of a “roof” being a cloud cover, one can get a rudimentary view of the phenomena called global warming.

Carbon dioxide is a major greenhouse gas. Its effects are far reaching.  As mentioned above the greenhouse effect is a function that is necessary for all life to occur, and endure on Earth. The problem arises when there is too much carbon dioxide being released by artificial means.

Soon after Earths’ formation the atmosphere contained about 95% carbon dioxide.²  Plant life started to appear.  As plant life evolved the spreading vegetation absorbed the carbon dioxide, and as it decomposed stored it in the form of carbon rich coal, and oil deposits.³ Carbon Dioxide levels continued to fall to the point where humans and animals could now call Earth home.  Throughout Earths’ existence there have been temperature variations that have created ice ages, severe droughts, and other weather related catastrophes.  Each one of the aforementioned catastrophes shaped terrestrial, aquatic, and atmospheric environments differently, yet always correcting them to make life habitable for all inhabitants. Up until the Industrial Revolution, horticulture and agriculture played an enormous role in the intake and release of the Carbon cycle.  Plants absorbed the carbon dioxide and produced oxygen as a byproduct.  Trees would absorb and sequester the carbon.  Naturally occurring incidences like decomposing plants or forest fires released the carbon back into the atmosphere thus continually repeating the cycle. The Industrial Revolution sped up and introduced other forms of environmental hazards.  Burning Fossil Fuels for energy production greatly increased the “greenhouse effect” on Earth.

Not only do carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases effect climate change they unleash economic and cultural consequences as well. A metaphor I use with my students is the one where you take a stone and toss it into a pond. The ripples that emanate from the center are the consequential displays relating to the stone’s action. The buzz words greenhouse gases, global warming, or climate change illustrate the stone, whereas the “rippling” action signifies the economic, societal, and cultural plights triggered by the build up of carbon dioxide.

Examples I share with my students concerning the economic ripple would be climate driven - Hurricane Katrina. When preceding storms occurred, economic help was given to some residents though not all almost immediately in some form or another. The storm was the one of the largest in history to hit the U.S. mainland. Projected to be a category 3 storm, Katrina made landfall and in fact had transformed into a Category 5 storm with winds in excess or 200 m.p.h.⁴ Damage to homes, businesses, surrounding areas, and loss of life were tantamount to the severity of financial claims brought on by Katrina. Decades earlier, the sea level was lower and the levees encompassing high-risk areas were deemed to be extra “insurance” structures that would keep water surges in check and away from residents and businesses. Many did not feel compelled to evacuate thinking they could and would sustain the intensity of Katrina. Others could not, but felt they would be taken care of. Since Katrina there have been other disasters; however, insurance companies determined that disasters that were created by man’s irresponsible actions did not have to be covered, and in most cases were not covered. Another case in point is one in which outsourcing takes center stage in creating greenhouse gases. By sending industries, and commodities to other countries for manufacturing purposes, more carbon dioxide is expended in the shipping and the worldwide distribution of merchandise. Not only are we losing labor forces due to outsourcing, we are losing ground on renewable energies.

Two cultural topics teens need to discuss and be aware of are what footprints they are creating due to their choices in food and transportation. Fast food marketing and corporations depend on their business and aspire to come up with promotions to keep one step ahead of the competition. Bigger burgers, the 5-dollar meal combo  – we have all seen the advertisements to entice teenagers to buy fast food from their establishments. They fail to advertise that the beef in their meals require a great deal of energy to produce and cows are responsible for a majority of methane gas being dispersed in the atmosphere (cows are one of the main producers of methane). If meat consumption is reduced by six meatless days a month the energy saved will be the equivalent to that saved when you switch from driving a sedan to a hybrid vehicle.⁵

Transportation adds another layer to their “footprint”. No longer should they be using the car to go to school, do local errands, or being dropped off to meet friends at the mall. Teens need to be cognizant of the amount of carbon dioxide emitted from their car’s exhaust when they are being dropped off at school, or being driven to the mall. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency documented that neighborhood schools reduce traffic, produce a 13 percent increase in walking and bicycling, and a 15 percent reduction in emissions of concern.⁶ Using public transportation to get to malls will further decrease the emission statement.