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Carbon dioxide emissions causing global warming
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(File pix) A sillhoute of a bird resting on an electric cable during a hot day in Kuala Lumpur. A large portion of carbon dioxide emissions, the 2,000 retired doctors and nurses
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main cause of global warming, comes from electricity generation. Pix by Ha z Sohaimi

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THE earth’s atmosphere contains important greenhouse gases (GHGs), mainly in the form of How's Your Quarantine Going? This
water vapour containing small amounts of carbon dioxide (CO2 ), methane (CH4) and nitrous Man Turned His Bedroom Into A
Spaceship
oxide (N2O). GHGs function as a thermal blanket for the planet, absorbing heat from the sun and
keeping its surface warm (on average 15°C) to support life.

Thus, one of the natural causes of global warming also enables life. However, the current
expansion of global warming is a serious environmental issue that may affect humans and other
living organisms. It occurs when the earth’s atmosphere and surface are gradually heated up
because of the presence of trapped thermal infrared radiation that fails to escape into outer space
because of the increasing levels of GHGs forming a thick blanket over the earth. This keeps the
planet’s surface warm, far above what it would be without its atmosphere. This process is also
known as the greenhouse effect.

The existence of past global warming does not necessarily suggest that current global warming is
natural. Climate scientists have unanimously agreed that the main cause is human activity; this,
rather than any natural phenomena, has expanded the greenhouse effects. In the natural
environment, methane is the most potent GHG. However, CO2 is the most signi cant since it
exists in the largest concentration and has a longer lifetime than methane. Recently, human
activities have continued to increased CO2 concentrations and have contributed to the emission
of chloro uorocarbons (CFCs), which have heat-trapping potential a thousand times greater than
CO2.

CFCs have been banned in most parts of the world because they degrade the earth’s ozone layer.
However, since their concentrations are much lower than CO2, they do not add as much warmth to
the atmosphere.

It is clear that high concentrations of CO2 emissions are the main cause of global warming
leading to climate change. Where do CO2 emissions originate from? They are mainly caused by
the energy-driven consumption of fossil fuels. According to the United States Environmental
Protection Agency, CO2 emissions mainly originate from electricity production (25 per cent),
industry (21 per cent), transportation (14 per cent), commercial and residential buildings (six per
cent), sum of agricultural activities, land use and forestry (24 per cent), and other energy uses (10
per cent).

A large proportion of CO2 emissions come from electricity generation, followed by the sum of
agricultural activities, land use and forestry. Both sectors — energy production and agriculture —
contribute up to half of all global GHG emissions that could lead to global warming and climate
change. Moreover, most CO2 emissions from burning fossil fuels stem from electricity production,
industry, transportation, and commercial and residential buildings, which together make up 66 per
cent of global CO2 emissions.

The world, therefore, is in dire need of clean and e cient energy to curb the impact of climate
change. The transition from fossil fuels to renewable energies, for example, could be the best
measure to reduce the greenhouse effect and, at the same time, reduce the impact of climate
change. With proper energy and waste management, these clean energies are safe from
hazardous elements, economical, and have a stable market price potential and social bene ts.

One example of clean energy is solar photovoltaic power, a system that converts sunlight directly
into electricity. Solar energy radiates in nitely from the sun; it is clean, free, natural and has zero
carbon emissions. It is considered by many as a future energy resource and alternative to fossil
fuels. In terms of social bene ts, solar energy industries have offered jobs to people in European
Union countries, China, Japan, the United States and Malaysia.

Since the climate issue is a shared responsibility of the whole of humanity, Muslim scholars from
around the world have made their position clear in the 2015 Islamic Declaration on Climate
Change during the Islamic Climate Change Symposium in Istanbul.

The declaration began by calling on policymakers responsible for crafting the comprehensive
climate agreement adopted in Paris to come to “an equitable and binding conclusion”. It then
asked people and leaders from all countries to commit to 100 per cent renewable energy and net
zero emissions as soon as possible and to recognise that unlimited economic growth is not a
viable option.

Furthermore, the transition from conventional power resources to renewable energy was
highlighted as fundamental to Islamic-based sustainable development, as the protection of life
(hifz al-nafs) and the protection of the environment (hifz al-bi‘ah) are predicated upon the
assumption that they offer a balance between economic and social development and the
environment.

This is also in line with the Quranic principle of building the earth (i’mar al-ard) and also the hadith
that states: “The world is green and pleasant, and God has put it under your charge to see how you
will manage.”

Since the world is facing a dire climate issue and humanity is experiencing a progressive shortage
of energy, generating renewable and safe energy from natural resources such as the sun is highly
recommended from the Islamic point of view.

Dr Shahino Mah Abdullah is a research fellow at the International Institute of Advanced Islamic
Studies Malaysia

shahino@iais.org.my

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