In the Late 1890's, We Knew Carbon Dioxide Causes Global Warming, Climate Change

Although climate change due to global warming is a global issue and action needs to be taken by all nations, it is not new information. In the late 1890's, a Swedish chemist, Svant Arrhenius, proposed that an increase in carbon dioxide could alter the atmosphere. Arrhenius hypothesized that if humans cause gases to accumulate at a faster-than-normal due to the burning of fossil fuels, more carbon dioxide would be released into the atmosphere resulting in a significant rise in carbon dioxide levels. Arrhenius reasoned that an increase in carbon dioxide levels would trap more of the sun's energy increasing the temperature of the earth. Arrhenius actually went as far as to use a hothouse or greenhouse model to demonstrate the warming of the planet. In 1895, Arrhenius presented a paper to a prominent scientific group in Stockholm, Sweden. The paper was called "On the Influence of Carbonic Acid in the Air upon the Temperature of the Ground," and it expressed his belief that higher levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere could raise the earth's temperature and cause global warming.

The dispersion of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse into the atmosphere affects the entire world (Engelman,2009). However, the dissemination of green house gasses and detrimental affects upon a nation are not equal. In order to alleviate such discrepancies, poor countries are being financed by wealthier nations. In a collaborative effort, thirty-seven countries are committed to reducing carbon dioxide emissions, global warming and climate change in what is known as the Kyoto Protocol effective until 2012. In 2012, the Bali Action Plan and Copenhagen conference will carry forward the mission but intend to have more stringent targets and longer timeline. The Kyoto Protocol, Bali Action Plan, and Copenhagen conference have enacted standards, regulation and rules, and penalties in order to slow the growth of carbon dioxide emissions. Although the organizations objectives are similar, they use different means to achieve their goals.

The Kyoto Protocol, Bali Action Plan and the Copenhagen conference all wish to stabilize the greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at levels that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system (Engelman, 2009). Under the Protocol, countries can work together; trade projects to cut emissions more industrialized countries can invest in projects in developing countries. Kyoto, Bali and Copenhagen agree that minimizing impacts on developing countries by establishing an adaptation fund for climate change is necessary, and the establishment of a compliance committee.

However, under the Kyoto Protocol, conference objective was to establish a legally binding international agreement, whereby all the participating nations commit themselves to tacking the issue of global warming and green house gas emissions. Under the Kyoto Protocol, 37 industrialized countries commit themselves to a reduction of four greenhouse gases, including carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide and sulphur hexafluoride, and two groups of gases hydrofluorocarbons and perfluorocarbons produced by them, and all member countries give general commitments. The countries agreed to reduce their collective greenhouse gas emissions by 5.2% from the 1990 level by the year 2012.

While the Bali Action Plan was adopted to include the scope and content of the Kyoto Protocol, it furthered its purpose by including decisions on technology transfer and on reducing emissions from deforestation. A shared vision for long-term cooperative action, including a long-term global goal for emission reductions. The Bali Plan intends to enhance the national and international action on mitigation of climate change, adaptation and technology development, and transfer to support action on mitigation and adaptation, and the provision of financial resources and investment to support action regarding mitigation and adaptation and technology cooperation.

The Bali conference intends to guide global climate policy for at least the next decade, and dictate the types of long-term investment decisions made by big industries and utilities. This objective is to insure levels should be achieved within a time frame sufficient to allow ecosystems to adapt naturally to climate change, ensure that food productions is not threatened, and enable economic development to proceed in a sustainable manner.

The nations pledge "policyapproaches and positive incentives" on issues relating to reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD) in developing countries, and enhancement of forest carbon stock in developing countries. ^[3] The Bali Plan is intended to take action when the Kyoto Protocol ends in 2012 and improve on what the Kyoto did not achieve. The Bali Action Plan decided to reduce emissions further. Plural countries proposes 100% reduction in 2050 and that "developed country emissions must fall from10 to 40% by 2020".

Finally, the United Nations Climate Change Conference or Copenhagen Conference, is taking place from December 7 through December 18, 2009. This conference is the 5^th meeting to the Kyoto Protocol. According to the Bali Action Plan, a framework for climate change mitigation beyond 2012 is to be agreed there.Copenhagen conference is trying to establish a new treaty that would am to ensure global warming is kept below 2°C above the pre-industrial temperature. The Copenhagen conference will also cover all elements of the Bali Action Plan. Copenhagen 's goal is therefore to make as much progress as possible in Copenhagen towards a full treaty and to reach an ambitious and comprehensive political agreement covering all its key elements. The key elements include pledges on emissions and finance, key architectural components of the future treaty, A 'fast start" deal and follow-up process

.Kyoto Protocol has failed in several ways, not just in its lack of success in slowing global warming, but also because it has stifled discussion of alternative policy approaches that could both combat climate change and adapt to its unavoidable consequences. The Bali and Copenhagen conferences are finding alternatives that will find better success in the future. One of those alternative is to ensure goodwill and trust amongst all participating nations.

An argument was started between developing and developed nations when a document known as "The Danish Text" was leaked last week. The document was subtitled "The Copenhagen Agreement," it proposes measures to keep average global temperature rises to two degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. Developing countries have reacted to the document saying that the developed countries had worked behind closed doors and made an agreement according to their wish without the consent of the developing nations. Lumumba Stanislaus Di-Aping, chairman of the G77, has said, "It's an incredibly imbalanced text intended to subvert, absolutely and completely, two years of negotiations. It does not recognize the proposals and the voice of developing countries." A confidential analysis of the text by developing countries shows deep unease over details of the text. It is amazing that Svant Arrhenius, a Swedish chemist, hypothesized this global warming and subsequent climate change in the nineteenth century. However, we can only hope that we have not waited too long and done too little to circumvent the path towards global warming that was chosen with knowledge of its affects more than a century ago.

Work Cited:

Read more: http://www.scienceclarified.com/scitech/Global-Warming/The-Human-Contribution.html#ixzz0ZQL3zDSO

Read more: http://www.scienceclarified.com/scitech/Global-Warming/The-Human-Contribution.html#ixzz0ZQL3zDSO

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