What is global warming?

 Global Warming is the increase of Earth's average surface temperature due to effect of greenhouse gases
 Green house gases such as carbon dioxide emissions from burning fossil fuels or from deforestation, which
trap heat that would otherwise escape from Earth.
 Major green house gases:
Water vapor
Carbon dioxide
Methane
Ozone
Nitrous oxide
OVERVIEW OF GREENHOUSE GASES
Gases that trap heat in the atmosphere are called greenhouse gases. This section
provides information on emissions and removals of the main greenhouse gases to
and from the atmosphere.
Carbon dioxide (CO2): Carbon dioxide enters the atmosphere through burning fossil fuels (coal, natural
gas, and oil), solid waste, trees and other biological materials, and also as a result of certain chemical
reactions (e.g., manufacture of cement). Carbon dioxide is removed from the atmosphere (or
"sequestered") when it is absorbed by plants as part of the biological carbon cycle.

Methane (CH4): Methane is emitted during the production and transport of coal, natural gas, and oil.
Methane emissions also result from livestock and other agricultural practices and by the decay of
organic waste in municipal solid waste landfills.

Nitrous oxide (N2O): Nitrous oxide is emitted during agricultural and industrial activities, combustion
of fossil fuels and solid waste, as well as during treatment of wastewater.

Fluorinated gases: Hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons, sulfur hexafluoride, and nitrogen trifluoride

are synthetic, powerful greenhouse gases that are emitted from a variety of industrial processes.
Fluorinated gases are sometimes used as substitutes for stratospheric ozone-depleting substances (e.g.,
chlorofluorocarbons, hydrochlorofluorocarbons, and halons). These gases are typically emitted in
smaller quantities, but because they are potent greenhouse gases, they are sometimes referred to as
High Global Warming Potential gases ("High GWP gases"
 Effects of Global Warming
Rising Sea Level Increased Temperature

Habitat Damage and

Species Affected
Portage Glacier
 Alaska

1914 2004
Colorado River
 Arizona

June 2002 Dec 2003

Global Atmospheric Concentration of CO2
What’s being done now to
reduce our emissions?

Wind Power Solar Power Fuel-Efficiency

Simple Things To Do
Turn off your computer or the TV
when you’re not using it.

Take shorter showers. Heating water uses energy.

Keep rooms cool by closing the blinds, shades, or

curtains.

Turn off the lights when you leave a room.

Use compact fluorescent bulbs.

Simple Things To Do
Dress lightly when it’s hot instead of turning up
the air conditioning. Or use a fan.

Dress warmly when it’s cold instead of turning

up the heat.

Offer to help your parents keep the air filters on

your AC and furnace clean.

Walk short distances instead of asking for a

ride in the car.

Plant a tree.

Recycle.
INTERNATIONAL CONVENTIONS ON GHG.

 The Kyoto Protocol is an international treaty which extends the 1992 United
Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) that commits
state parties to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The Kyoto Protocol was
adopted in Kyoto, Japan, on 11 December 1997 and entered into force on 16
February 2005. There are currently 192 parties (Canada withdrew from the
protocol, effective December 2012) to the Protocol. The Kyoto Protocol
applies to the six greenhouse gases listed in Annex A: Carbon dioxide
(CO2), Methane (CH4), Nitrous oxide (N2O), Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs),
Perfluorocarbons (PFCs), and Sulphur hexafluoride (SF6).
 DOHA AND PARIS AGGREMENT

 A second commitment period was agreed in 2012, known as the Doha Amendment to the Kyoto
Protocol, in which 37 countries have binding targets.
 The Paris Agreement is an agreement within the United Nations Framework Convention on
Climate Change (UNFCCC), dealing with greenhouse-gas-emissions mitigation, adaptation,
and finance, signed in 2016. The agreement's language was negotiated by representatives of 196
state parties at the 21st Conference of the Parties of the UNFCCC in Le Bourget,
near Paris, France.
 The Paris Agreement's long-term temperature goal is to keep the increase in global average
temperature to well below 2 °C above pre-industrial levels; and to pursue efforts to limit the
increase to 1.5 °C, recognizing that this would substantially reduce the risks and impacts of
climate change