GLOBAL WARMING: A LOOMING THREAT

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                                           GLOBAL WARMING: A LOOMING THREAT

                       Since the time immemorial, the mankind has been facing severe natural threats in the form of natural disasters like flesh floods, torrential rains, looming lightening, super tsunamis, vicious volcanic activities, earthquakes, destructive droughts, frequent forest fires etc. All these catastrophic activities played havoc to the human lives & their properties. But the 18th century industrial revolution acted as an impetus to these disasters.The products of this revolution like rapid industrial growth & manufacturing, heavy transportation system, mass influx of people towards the urban centers, high deforestation for settlement & timber by exploding population can be assigned to the catastrophic global phenomenon called global warming which is the causative factor of all the afore mentioned disastrous events in one way or another. In its synthetic report, the United Nation- Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (UNIPCC) states that there is solid evidence for 0.6 degree centigrade rise in global temperature. Besides, it reports a sea level rise of 20 centimeter (cm) during the 20th century. UNIPCC further predicts that the global temperature could rise by 1.4-5.8 degree centigrade by the year 2100. The facts & the predictions made by the IPCC are really heartening but the frequent occurrence of the disasters indicates that the predictions of panel seem to come true even before the year 2100. Most of the scientist & environmentalist have unanimously established that the most important generating factor of global warming is the massive emission of carbon in the atmosphere. This carbon may be in the bonded form with other atoms like CO2, CO, Chlorofluorocarbon, and CH4 (methane). Other factors include SO2 (Sulpher dioxide) & other green house gases. What contributes towards the excessiveness of CO2 in the atmosphere are purely anthropogenic in nature like burning of fossil fuels in industries & other manufacturing processes. Massive transportation emit tons of CO2 resulting the temperature to rise. Forests, the buffer of the atmospheric balance, when cleared result in high carbon concentration. Besides, the domesticated burning of methane also badly contributes to it.The disastrous Earthquake & tsunami in Japan in 2011 that caused 8,649 death causalities & 235 billion US Dollars damage besides the unreported losses & the missing of other 13,262 people and the Hurricane Sandy in America in 2012 & the flesh floods in Pakistan causing huge losses in the name of property & lives, are the clear evidence & warning of catastrophes by the global warming in future if not dealt with it judiciously. The other chronic impacts of global warming include frequent famine rendering the victims quite unable to stand by their own for many years to come. Forest or wild fires also frequently occur due to high temperature threatening not only human settlements & subsistence but also rendering a large number of flora & fauna at the brink of extinction. Threat posed to the mangrove forests not only deprives the aquatic life from protection & sustenance but it also results the high probabilities of flesh tsunamis. Heat & harmful high frequency waves generated as a result of warming cause tumors, cancers & mutations leading many babies born abnormal or with the predisposition of such diseases. Global warming also facilitates the spread of diseases & thus provides fertile ground for malaria, dengue & other communicable diseases. Agriculture is also badly affected due to the devastating heat waves, floods, droughts, torrential rains & more importantly the water scarcity & its inadequate & un-timely supply. Mass migration of the people from the disaster hit areas to the fertile ones not only cause accommodation problems but also lead the situation of ‘ survival of fittest’ that usually end into conflicts & wars. 21st century, the so called century of water wars, , up to large extent , is the result of water scarcity generated by the warming. It would not be exaggeration to say that the host of socio-economic-political problems world is confronted with, are the results of the global warming directly or the otherwise.All these problems are of serious concern & consideration. But ironically, the issue of reducing, if not preventing the consequences of global warming by the global comity became highly politicized based on the hegemonic attitude of certain so called advanced countries of the world. The joint measures meant to curb the global warming like Copenhagen, Kyoto protocol & such other seem to bear no result at all. The fact is that these conferences & agreements are not implemented in their true soul & spirit but remain in the paper. The major contributor to the carbon emission, in fact, are not ready to cut the emission as they are merged in reservations that their existing status is the result of science & technological development which in turn is the result huge industrialization based on the fossil fuels burning. Now the situation hangs between two argumentative facts each having its pros & cons. On the one hand, there is the question of the progress & prosperity, for which industrial development is considered as critical. On the other hand the evil of the global warming causes serious concern among the analysts. Here the question arises that which option to be followed as the former is critical for development while the later is a great threat to the development in general & the human existence in particular. After considering its pros & cons, it comes in mind whether there is any viable solution of the global warming on the sustainable basis without impacting the progress & the prosperity. It has widely been established by eminent scientist, environmentalists & analysts that the only solution of this grave issue is to switch to the renewable resources of energy. Unlike non-renewable resources like coal, petroleum & natural gas which are not only polluting but are also perishable, the renewable resource are environmental friendly & would exit until earth exists. As this solution has widely been propagated by environmentalists to cut carbon emission by turning into environmental friendly energy sources but ironically, no country bothered to act accordingly. Copenhagen & Kyoto protocol were also meant for this action but these agreements still remain in papers only. To make all the countries of the world bound to cut their emission, UNO must formulate another specialized body may be named as UNITED NATIONS CARBON EMISSION REDUCTION TREATY (UNCERT). Under the auspicious of UNCERT, an agreement plan should be formulated making all UN members obligatory on the treaty accordingly. Plan of five year duration each be made. During this period all the member states be directed to cut 5% of their total carbon emission. A fix percentage of land be assigned for plantation in every country. All the member states should be directed & helped in switching to the renewable energy resources. In this regard, the under developing countries should be assisted technically & financially to meet their needs to develop clean form of energy. A global media cell be formulated with its affiliation with the mainstream treaty to disseminate awareness about the issue of the global warming & its devastating impacts. People also be educated on how an individual can contribute to curb the menace. Besides this, another job of the media cell should be to design documentaries on the aftermaths of the issue. The topic of the global warming highlighting its causes, consequences & remedial measures to curb it, be made compulsory in the syllabuses of every schools & the colleges of the world. The unresponsive countries toward this treaty be harshly dealt & hard & fast rules, regulatory bodies & the proper monitoring system effectively introduced. All these measures would hopefully help to a large extent, to reduce, if not end the global warming. This issue be dealt on priority basis before its too late & earth becomes inhabitable to animates.