Fossil Fuels & Global Warming: How are they Related?

Fossil Fuels & Global Warming: How are they Related? - 2

Fossil Fuels & Global Warming: How are they Related? - 1

Carbon Dioxide: A Greenhouse Gas

The presence of high levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere results in an increase in the amount of heat on the surface of Earth. This is because carbon dioxide traps heat obtained from sunlight and does not let it dissipate out of the atmosphere, a process known as green house effect.. Since fossil fuels are hydrocarbons(made from hydrogen and carbon), burning fossil fuels releases a large amount of carbon dioxide into the air.

Toxic Gases Causing Acid Rain

Combustion of fossil fuels not only emits carbon dioxide into the air, it also releases other gases like carbon monoxide, nitrous oxide, etc that cause air pollution. When in air, these gases dissolve in water(in form of clouds) and convert into harmful acids like sulfuric acid and carbonic acid. These chemicals return to the surface of the earth in the form of acid rain, which has a huge impact on the entire environmental conditions. It harms the plants, soil and pollutes water.

Thus you can see that the issues of fossil fuels, global warming and climate change are all interwoven with each other. We all have to play a vital role in controlling their ill-effects. If we take some small measures from out side, then we can save our planet from any major disaster. For this, we have to bring down our huge demand for energy. We should reduce energy consumption in our homes and use our vehicles only for travelling short distances. We also have to stop cutting trees and plant more number of saplings regularly. This is because plants use up the carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and thus check its level from rising.

Our activities have put the planet at risk, and its now our responsibility to reverse the trend.

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