MORE-effects followed soon after. Climate change carries a vast variety of consequences alongside it. Human health can worsen over time due to high temperature and lack of fresh, clean and uncontaminated air. Natural disasters such as cyclones, rainstorms and floods are increasing in frequency and magnitude causing devastation and death.
Likewise occurrence of droughts has increased. Agriculture is adversely affected in addition to habitations and infrastructure, causing excessive loss to the economies. It’s not only humans that are affected by climate change, animals and wildlife have also become a target. Several species have gone extinct due to global warming, as the climate of their natural habitat has changed.
It is estimated that one million species of animals will be lost by 2050 due to climate change. It is happening so fast that the vast variety of flora and fauna are failing to cope. Natural habitats such as Antarctica are also getting destroyed, due to the high temperature melting away its ice, this results in rising sea levels and higher rate of floods. Droughts are far more elongated as well.
In recent years, side effects of climate change have become quite noticeable. Countries such as Australia, parts of Europe and the state of California have experienced extreme situations consisting of raging wildfires. High temperatures and frequent droughts are predicted to intensify and elongate these wildfire seasons. In countries such as Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, floods have caused much devastation. In Pakistan more than 10 million people were displaced and deprived of food and shelter (Anon., 2022). But there is still hope, as there are several ways and courses of action that we can take to ensure a safe and better future for not only humanity, but also the wild life of Earth. First of all, it is essential for the human race to find alternative sources of energy that are much more sustainable and cleaner than fossil fuels. As of right now, about 80% of global power is generated by fossil fuels, this number needs to go down (Anon., 2021).
Fossil fuel usage should be reduced as much as possible and renewable energy should become more common. Electricity producing technologies such as solar power, wind power and hydro-power should be adopted, as they are limitless to some extent and release no carbon emissions. Transport vehicles should also be made electric. Sustainability should be implemented into our architecture with green buildings and solar powered facilities. Furthermore, the cutting of trees and deforestation should be reduced, trees and forests should be planted on a large scale. These points are extremely important for the well-being of our environment. Critically endangered species should be protected at all costs as their extinction can cripple the ecosystem. Younger generation would also have to continue these efforts in order to fully heal the Earth.
As technology advances over the course of time, new methods of energy generation would also develop. Methods such as nuclear power should be researched about and made safer as it is a viable solution to our energy problems. Furthermore renewable energy like hydro and solar power can also be made more efficient. Genetic modification would allow us to develop variants of crops that take up less water and would be far more sustainable, along with better and new irrigation techniques
For a better future for not only the human race but also the flora and fauna of this planet, the right steps need to be taken. It will not only take human ingenuity but also cooperation between first and third world nations. Humans might have been the cause towards Global Warming and Climate change, but we can also fix this problem, if the right courses of action are taken and if we get off to an early start on the right path. For not only a good current generation, but also for an even better future generation and Earth. —Concluded.
—The writer is contributing columnist, based in Islamabad.
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