Carbon Emissions Are Rising: The Change Starts With You

The carbon emissions into the atmosphere are currently at the highest rate yet, but each person can do their individual part to reduce their carbon footprint. It is crucial to take action and responsibility, as our Earth is vulnerable to increased damage. A carbon footprint is the total amount of greenhouse emissions that are impacted by one’s lifestyle and choices. Excess amounts of carbon dioxide in the air leads to a warming effect, which has become one of the biggest issues that impact our society today. We must work together to prevent sea levels from rising, save biodiversity, and stop wildfires. 

According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency, transportation accounts for 28.2 percent of carbon emissions, which can be broken down into cars, trucks, ships, trains, and planes. Electricity production is responsible for 26.9 percent of all emissions, which comes from burning fossil fuels such as coal and natural gas. Industries, accounting for 22 percent of emissions, also use fossil fuels in large quantities to produce goods from raw materials. The following percentages are composed of commercial/residential and agricultural uses. Understanding the breakdown of where the greenhouse gases are coming from helps to know which steps to take next, but how are they physically harming the environment? The gases trap the heat put out from emissions and keep them close to the Earth’s surface, instead of releasing them into space. This warming effect then hurts habitats by making conditions unbearable for certain species and throwing nature’s balance out of whack. Sea levels are rising, ice caps are melting, and floods are increasing; therefore, hurting biodiversity and changing weather patterns. Although carbon dioxide is the main contributor to climate change, there are actually more gases hurting our environment than one may think. The other greenhouse gases contributing to global warming are methane, nitrous oxide, and fluorinated gases.

The effects from carbon emissions continue to increase and inflict damage to Earth more and more as time goes on, but what can we do as individuals to help? Living a sustainable lifestyle is important for one’s health, local businesses, and the environment. The first step to this lifestyle can be acquired through making small and manageable changes. One step to implement into daily life can be decreasing travel by car. Humans tend to use the most convenient ways to get around, but when possible, it is worth it to carpool, walk, bike, or use mass transit. Buying from local farms is another great way to benefit the community along with decreasing transportation from large corporations and the burning of fossil fuels in immense amounts. Lastly, reducing non-recyclable waste will help decrease the amount of trash in landfills that may be burnt and emitting pollutants into the air. These adjustments may take some time to get used to, but day by day and person by person, it is possible to reduce our carbon footprint to save our planet.