Why is the climate changing?
The climate is defined as the average weather over a period of 30 years. The climate is not stable, but changes over time as a result of natural processes and human influence. Examples of natural processes are volcanic eruptions, variations in solar activity, and variations in the distance between Earth and the Sun. Man can change the climate through the emission of greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane (CH4). According to the sixth report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), it is a fact that the current global warming is caused by humanity.
What is the IPCC?
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is a United Nations organisation that assesses the risks of climate change. August 2021 saw the publication of the first part of the sixth IPCC report. In October 2021, the Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institution KNMI published its Climate Signal ’21, which is based on this first part. The document explains what this new IPCC knowledge entails for the climate and the extreme weather in the Netherlands. The remaining two parts of the sixth IPCC report will be published in 2022.
How are greenhouse gases causing global warming?
Through farming, industry, traffic, and energy generation, increasingly more greenhouse gases are emitted into the air. As a result of this extensive increase in greenhouse gases, Earth is warming at a rapid pace. The fact is that such greenhouse gases as carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane (CH4) retain the warmth of the Sun and reflect part of this heat to the surface of the Earth. This is referred to as the greenhouse effect. Without these greenhouse gases, Earth would be uncomfortably cold. Since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution in 1750, the volume of greenhouse gases has significantly increased. For example, the volume of CO2 in the air has risen by 40 per cent since 1750. In part, this can be attributed to the large-scale burning, since those days, of such fossil fuels as coal, petroleum, and natural gas. Forest fires and logging are contributing to the increase in CO2 volumes in the air. In addition, the quantity of other greenhouse gases – such as methane, which has much greater warming power than CO2 – has also increased significantly. Methane emissions have risen by no less than 150 per cent. Methane is primarily produced by cattle farms.
The animated film below explains what causes climate change, what the effects may be, and what the consequences are for the Netherlands.