Climate Change: Its Causes, Effects and Control

One of the most controversial issues about the environment today is the issue of climate change. This phenomenon has been observed over time, with changes in weather patterns and climatic factors like temperature, pressure, and humidity. The cause is either human induced through the burning of fossil fuels and release of chlorofluorocarbons; or naturally through volcanic eruptions and continental plate movements. The evidence of climate change has been obtained from changes in weather patterns, global warming, vegetation changes, precipitation and archeology. These changes have resulted in negative consequences for the environment like drought, flood and depletion of the ozone layer. It has also caused serious health problems leading to deaths of people, decreased food production from unsteady rainy seasons and loss of biodiversity. Measures that can be taken to control it include: use of renewable energy sources, afforestation and strict government policies on emissions of carbon dioxide. DOI: 10.5901/jesr.2013.v3n10p7