Effects of climate changes

Life on Earth exists thanks to a combination of three factors:the right distance from the Sun, the presence of an atmosphere and the presence of the water cycle. Without the natural greenhouse effect, the average temperature on the planet would be -15° C instead of +18° C. The increase of the greenhouse effect causes the climate change. In Italy it is linked to the increase in temperature, to variations in rainfall patterns and increase in the frequency and duration of extreme weather events

The impact of global warming is already evident: Artic sea ice is decreasing more and more,while coastal tide logs show an increase since 1870.The last decade was the warmest on record and 2020 was the second year hottest ever.

The "fire seasons" have become longer and more intense, from 1990 to today events have increased, such as hurricanes and floods, which also strike in atypical times of the year and are increasingly devastating.Plant and animal species move unpredictably from one ecosystem to another, creating incalculable damage to biodiversity around the world.

Causes of climate changes

Human activities increasingly affect the Earth's climate and temperature by burning fossil fuels and cutting down rainforests. This adds huge amounts of greenhouse gases to those naturally occurring in the atmosphere, increasing the greenhouse effect and global warming. The most damage is caused by the consumption of coal, oil and gas, which account for most of the greenhouse gas emissions.

Deforestation also causes substantial damage: trees help regulate the climate by carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, so if they are cut down the beneficial effect is lost and the carbon stored in the trees is released into the atmosphere, accentuating all 'greenhouse effect.

Finally, the increase in intensive livestock farming and the use of nitrogen-containing fertilizers contribute to increasing greenhouse gas emissions

What we can do

The way forward for decarbonisation is clear and is called the energy transition: the transition from an energy mix focused on fossil fuels to one with low or zero carbon emissions, based on sources.The technologies for decarbonization exist, they are efficient and must be chosen at all levels. Science offers reliable data, carefully studied projections of future scenarios. Climate change does not wait and does not stop. We need a strong cultural change, a real paradigm shift to translate into reality what everyone now agrees on.