Climate Change and Air Pollution

Reading:
Reseland Chapter 8: Atmospheric change and air quality 
Wheeler p.174-180


Discussion Questions;
How do air pollution and climate change intersect? What might be the effects of climate change on Indiana? How might we mitigate those effects in sustainable communities? How do we adapt to those changes we can’t mitigate? Which of Pacala and Socolow’s “Stabilization Wedges” relate to sustainable communities?


Air pollution and climate change intersect because the chemicals and pollutants have we put into the atmosphere cause climate change.  Human activities release atmosphere pollutants in two main phenomena smog and acid rain.  Smog is produced mostly from the combustion of fossil fuels from things from cars and factories.  Acid rain is caused by sulphur dioxide from cement works, oil refineries and other industrial sources.  There are many attributers to Climate Change that can be seem by the graph below.  

The attributer that is increasing the fastest at an unsustainable rate are the greenhouse gases. Greenhouse gases such as methane, carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide, and flourocarbons are naturally occurring gases that absorb  solar radiation. Humans have become a main contributor to the increasing amounts of greenhouse gases due to admitting large amounts of these gases, in particular carbon dioxide.  The use of fossil fuels from car emissions, to factories all release carbon dioxide to add to the green house gasses in the atmosphere to increase the heat retention in the earth's atmosphere.       

The Stabilization wedges and triangle that Pacala and Socolow talk about are necessary but I think is unrealistic due to currently rate at which we burn and admit carbon dioxide.  They estimate that to remain at a stabilization point of 500ppm requires that emissions stay at the current present level of 7 billion tons of carbon per year for the next 50 years. The problem is that we are currently on course to double that figure in he next 50 years due to population growth and our consumption rate of fossil fuels.  The categories that the article presents are good goals and initiatives for sustainable communities to carry out. Such initiatives are to decarbonize and wean ourselves from fossil fuels in particular coal, focus on efficiency and conservation and utilize natural carbon sinks.  

Indiana's (Bloomington in particular) main source of electricity come from coal, which when burns results in carbon emissions.  Seeking alternative fuel resources instead of using coal is the best thing Indiana can do to reduce their carbon output. Indiana is suffering from climate change as the summers get increasingly hotter which leads to droughts and alters food crops.  We are currently in a drought that can be seen at the water levels of lake Griffy and Lake Monroe.  Climate Change could have serious affects on agriculture and water supplies. Relating to the hot summers also causes negatives health affects such at heat stroke.