Climate change

THE CLIMATE CHANGE

Climate change is one of the problems which nowadays most affect many countries in Europe.

The European Commission has taken many climate-related initiatives since 1991, when the first Community strategy to limit carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions and improve energy efficiency issued.

The effects that the global warming is having around the world are thetemperatures, which are increasing more and more every year, glaciers and snow are melting, and the sea level is also rising. This and many other facts are some of the consequences that the global warming has, and this comes from the climate change and the pollution. 

Who is the responsible of the global warming?

Many human activities such as logging trees influence the exchange of greenhouse gases with the atmosphere. Clearing forests also releases large amounts of CO2. On top of that, plants and trees use CO2 to grow. Worldwide deforestation means we don't have as many trees to absorb the extra CO2. Therefore, more CO2 stays in the atmosphere, producing and tapping more heat and making the global warming increase. Transports are also responsible for around a quarter of EU's greenhouse gas emissions making it the second biggest greenhouse gas emitting sector after energy. While emissions from other sectors are generally falling, those from transport have increased 36% since 1990.

 What is the EU doing about climate change?

Preventing dangerous climate change is one of the main priorities for the European Union. Europe is working hard to cut its greenhouse gas emissions, and also encouraging other nations and regions to do the same.

Solutions to global warming pursued by the European region include binding national commitments to reduce emissions, the multi-national cap-and-trade program known as the European Union's Emission Trading Scheme, and strong supports for its renewable energy and energy efficiency industries.

What do teenagers like us can do to protect the atmosphere?

As many people advise kids and teenagers to do, recycling is one of the things that we can do in the schools with paper and also at home with the trash, and it is an activity that people of all ages can do. Additionally, catching the bus or walking to school instead of going by car is an advantage that all kids and teens can do, as well as their parents. Many of these solutions, if done correctly, can help to maintain the level of pollution and stop letting it increase.