GLOBAL WARMINGLaura Mahecha

Mariana SánchezAlejandra Sierra

Global Warming

Global warming is when the earth heats up (the temperature rises). It happens when greenhouse gases (carbon dioxide, water vapor, nitrous oxide, and methane) trap heat and light from the sun in the earth’s atmosphere, which increases the temperature.

Greenhouse Effect It refers to circumstances where the short wavelenghts of

visible light from the sun passes through a transparent medium and are absorbed, but the longer wavelenghts are unable to pass. This trapping of the long wavelenght radiation leads to more heating and a higher resultant temperature. Besides the heating of a car by sunlights through the windshield, the greenhouse effect is also the excess of heat by the rising concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. It strongly absorbs infrared light and doesn’t allow as much of it to escape into space.

Cloud cover also affects greenhouse warming by both reducing the amount of solar radiation reaching the earth's surface and by reducing the amount of radiation energy emitted into space.

How is greenhouse effect related to Global Warming? A group of greenhouse gases called the

chlorofluorocarbons have been used in aerosols, such as hairspray cans, fridges and in making foam plastics. They are found in small amounts in the atmosphere. They are dangerous greenhouse gases because small amounts can trap large amounts of heat.

Because there are more and more greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, more heat is trapped which makes the Earth warmer. This is known as GLOBAL WARMING.

What are the Greenhouse gases?

Water vapor: occurs naturally in the atmosphere.

Carbon dioxide: produced naturally when people and animals breathe while plants absorb it to live. They are also produced by volcanoes.

Methane: comes from cattle (the yak, bison and buffalo) as they digest their food. This gas also comes from rice fields.

Nitrus oxide: produced when plants die and rot.

Ozone: occurs naturally in the atmosphere.

Kyoto Protocol… The Kyoto Protocol is an international agreement linked to the

United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, which commits its Parties by setting internationally binding emission reduction targets.

Recognizing that developed countries are principally responsible for the current high levels emissions in the atmosphere as a result of more than 150 years of industrial activity, the Protocol places a heavier burden on developed nations under the principle of "common but differentiated responsibilities."

The Kyoto Protocol was adopted in Kyoto, Japan, on 11 December 1997 and entered into force on 16 February 2005. The detailed rules for the implementation of the Protocol were adopted at COP 7 in Marrakesh, Morocco, in 2001, and are referred to as the "Marrakesh Accords." Its first commitment period started in 2008 and ended in 2012.

commitments for Annex I Parties to the Kyoto Protocol who agreed to take on commitments in a second commitment period from 1 January 2013 to 31 December 2020;

A revised list of greenhouse gases (GHG) to be reported on by Parties in the second commitment period; and

Amendments to several articles of the Kyoto Protocol which specifically referenced issues pertaining to the first commitment period and which needed to be updated for the second commitment period.

On 21 December 2012, the amendment was circulated by the Secretary-General of the United Nations, acting in his capacity as Depositary, to all Parties to the Kyoto Protocol in accordance with Articles 20 and 21 of the Protocol.

During the first commitment period, 37 industrialized countries and the European Community committed to reduce emissions to an average of five percent against 1990 levels. During the second commitment period, Parties committed to reduce emissions by at least 18 percent below 1990 levels in the eight-year period from 2013 to 2020; however, the composition of Parties in the second commitment period is different from the first.

Ozone…

Ozone is a natural gas composed of three atoms of oxygen (O3). Normal oxygen (O2), has two oxygen atoms. Scientists have classified O3 into two ozones: Good Ozone and Bad Ozone.

• Bad Ozone Bad Ozone is also known as Tropospheric Ozone, or ground level ozone, as is the closest layer to earth. Bad Ozone does not exist naturally, which means they are caused by someone/something and that someone/something are Human´s actions.

Where does bad ozone come from?Each time there is a reaction of chemicals such as those found in cars, power plants and factory emissions, in the presence of sunlight (UV light), Bad Ozone is formed.Bad ozone contaminates the air and contributes to what we typically experience as "pollution" which is a harmful or poisonous substances introduced into an environment to contaminate, as with poisonous or harmful substances.

Good Ozone… Good ozone (also called Stratospheric

Ozone) occurs naturally in the upper Stratosphere. The stratosphere is the layer of space 6 to 30 miles above the earth's surface.

Where does good Ozone come from? The air is full of gases reacting with

each other, when UV (ultra violet) light hit O2 molecules, they are split into two individual Oxygen atoms. When one of the Oxygen atoms combines with O2 molecule, forming ozone (O3).

Even though Ozone is only a small part of the gases in this layer, it plays a vital role because it protect us from the sun's harmful UV rays. It is called Good Ozone, because it protects humans, life and animals on earth.

The Ozone Layer…

A layer in the stratosphere containing a relatively high concentration of ozone. The earth's atmosphere is divided into several layers, and each layer plays an important role. The first region extending about 10km upwards from the earth's surface is called the troposphere.

The next layer, extending about 15-60 km is called the stratosphere. The ozone layer is mainly found in the lower portion of the stratosphere from approximately 20 to 30 km (12 to 19 mi) above earth.

The ozone layer protects the earth from the suns UV Rays. If the ozone layer is depleted by human´s actions, the effects on the planet could be catastrophic.

Ozone Depletion… Ozone layer depletion, is the reduction of the amount of

ozone in the stratosphere. Unlike pollution, which has many types and causes, Ozone depletion is based in only one major human activity.

Industries that manufacture things like foams, solvents, soaps, cooling things like Air Conditioners or Refrigerators use something called chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), these substances are heavier than air, but over a couple of years, they are carried high into the stratosphere by wind action.

When CFC’s gets into the stratosphere, Ultra violet lights from the sun breaks up these CFCs, releasing Chlorine atoms. Chlorine atoms react with Ozone, beginning a chemical cycle that destroys the good ozone in that area. One chlorine atom can break apart more than 100,000 ozone molecules.

How does Ozone Depletion affects…• Humans: cause non-melanoma skin cancer • Plants: since they produce nutrients, as UV light strikes them, their metabolism decreases. If you eat plants’ poisoned nutrients, they’ll have a bad effect in your body.

How can it be prevented? Ozone is naturally replenished over time,

which means that we can do something to balance the production of ozone depletion.

The only way to do that is to remove the excess of chlorine and bromine from the stratosphere, by stopping the making of CFCs. To help with this, we can use cardboard instead of plastic foam. Also, must of us can resist without a car air conditioner, so try not to use it too often; since a car air conditioner is powerful enough to cool a house.

Les mando el video por aparte porque es muy pesado

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Global warming in Colombia will heat less mountainous area as the Andean Region (2 º to 3 º C), and the plains and prairies of the regions flat, like the North Coast, the Orinoco and the Amazon (3 º to 4 º C)

Climate in Colombia has is a monomal regimen. It has the hot and humid weather on north and south, and cold (but not that much) in the andine region. Plus, the climate is “managed” by the Pacific Ocean’s temperature.

If the temperature in Colombia is increased by 3 º C, the thermal floors are change: this equates to modify the climate of each region and city by a more warm, equivalent to 500 m closer to sea level. In Colombia would be threatened ecosystems like moors, swamps, coral environments, glaciers and all Andean forests, coastal and Amazon.

What to do for adaptation? Environmentally, resolve conflicts between use and suitability

of soils for implementing actions water regulation as reforestation in rural areas and implement special hydraulic structures urban areas, and extent of the practices and friendly environmental actions. You can start from the basic, like planting trees or recycling. One action might change everything.

With global warming, it should be approached from now, and the way to do this is to start by understanding their causes and consequences.