Global Warming Policy Interventions

Global Warming and its Detrimental Effects

Global warming is getting more disastrous by the year, and measures should be implemented to mitigate its harmful effects. It has become a widespread worry that global warming is having more detrimental consequences, which are likely to worsen over time if no steps are taken. Global warming is described as a change in the earth's atmosphere that causes a rise in air temperatures above normal. Many instances of global warming are triggered by the introduction of harmful greenhouse gases into the environment, which often produces greenhouse effects (Lee & Koski, 2014). Global warming has catastrophic consequences that endanger human life as well as the economic status of numerous countries. Likewise, it has adverse impacts on farming and forestry, and the destructed ecosystem is proof that its consequences could cause severe impacts. To reduce the adverse effects of global warming, strict policies should be developed and implemented.

Policy Interventions for Global Warming

The primary policy intervention that I would put in effect is conservation of energy. Energy conservation is comprehensive and contains some factors to be considered when seeking to mitigate the negative effects of global warming. Using less energy in doing the same tasks, without changing our habits, would lead us to have a better environment (Anderson, 2013). We all know that global warming is widely caused by the energy released by fossil fuels. Therefore, the less energy we would require would mean less release of energy by fossil fuels. In the attempt to mitigate global warming, we should burn fewer fossil fuels, and the following policies would possibly implement it. First, companies manufacturing automobiles should be forced to manufacture vehicles that do not only use gasoline. Secondly, industries dealing in the development of home and industrial appliance should ensure that they manufacture products which consume less power. Another policy is regulating the number of private vehicles used while increasing public transport. Lastly, all packaging resources should be made out of materials that can be recycled.

Forcing Vehicle Manufacturing Industries to Develop Energy-Efficient Vehicles

The first policy is to force vehicle manufacturing industries to develop vehicles which are energy efficient. Producing automobiles with high MPG ratings would reduce the use of gasoline in cars. Hybrids use a combination of both gasoline and electricity. Recently, most companies produce automobiles with MPG ratings greater than forty. However, the major concern on energy conservation is on the trucks. More trucks and SUVs are manufactured each year. These large vehicles consume a lot of energy and gasoline compared to other smaller cars. They are often referred to as gas-guzzlers as they use a lot of energy in their operations (Al-min, Jaafar & Siwar, 2010). They are more prevalent, but it is a disadvantage to the environment and humans as well since they are not energy efficient. A policy should, therefore, be forced on manufacturing industries that they only manufacture trucks and SUVs that consume equal energy as other smaller vehicles. By doing so, vehicle efficiency would be met, and the use of gasoline would be significantly reduced. Hence, less carbon dioxide would be released into the atmosphere, thereby reducing the cause of global warming through emissions.

Developing Energy-Efficient Home and Industrial Appliances

Technologies should be developed to ensure that home and industrial appliances that are manufactured are energy efficient. There are home appliances such as lamps, refrigerators and stoves or cookers. Others include video game appliances, televisions and iron boxes. All these home appliances consume different amounts of energy. Industries use large equipment which consumes a lot of energy. As a result, both the home and industrial electrical appliances require a lot of energy, and this leads to an increase in the world's global warming (Pathak, Jain, Bhatia, Mohanty, & Gupta, 2009). Technology has also developed, and there are appliances which use natural sources of energy. Some residential appliances, as well as industrial appliances, can be developed to use solar energy rather than artificial energy which leads to carbon emissions. If manufacturers follow the policy of producing equipment that is energy efficient, households will spend less on energy. Likewise, energy would be at a minimum, and the chances of increasing global warming would be lower.

Regulating Private Vehicles and Promoting Public Transport

Motor vehicles emit a lot of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere which leads to rising in atmospheric temperatures above average, hence global warming. A policy should be developed that ensures that the numbers of private vehicles produced in manufacturing industries are limited. Having more public transport and a limited number of private vehicles reduces the amount of carbon emitted into the atmosphere (Aldy & Pizer, 2015). Governments should have more restrictions on having ownership of private automobiles or the frequency in which they are used. In this way, many people will prefer boarding public vehicles when using private means is not necessary. When this policy is implemented over the years, the rate of global warming would be reduced significantly.

Strict Policies for Recycling

A strict policy should be put on recycling. Recycling is important to the environment in many ways. Through recycling, natural resources are conserved, soil and water pollution are also reduced. Recycling also helps in saving energy and, in turn, this would help in reducing the causes of global warming (Gardner, 2011). Many organizations and individuals have been coming up with ideas for recycling products. As a result, recycling has been adopted by many countries, and it is working in conserving the environment. However, there have not been strict policies in many states worldwide, which ensure that most materials used can be recycled. A policy should be developed to ensure that all packaging materials are made of materials that can be recycled. In the long run, households and industries would have adopted using packaging materials as well as any other equipment that can be recycled. Recycling ensures that energy is conserved and also the energy emitted to the atmosphere is natural and cannot cause global warming. Therefore, people should shift into using materials that can be recycled as a way of abiding by the policy.

Conclusion

Most individuals work under policies which govern them on what is right and what is wrong. People tend to do the right things when rules and regulations are put in place. Therefore, to ensure that mitigation of global warming is taken seriously, policies should be adopted. Developing a strategy that restricts manufacturing companies in producing vehicles that use little or no gasoline would help mitigate climate change. Policies should be developed that ensure that home and industry appliances use less energy, regulating the number of privately owned vehicles while increasing public transport, and using packaging materials that can be recycled. However, it may take governments a lot of time to implement these policies. It is, therefore, necessary that each person exercises some of these policies to ensure that the negative impacts of global warming are mitigated.

Reference

Aldy, J. E., & Pizer, W. A. (2015). The Competitiveness Impacts of Climate Change Mitigation Policies. Journal of the Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, 2 (4).

Al-min, A. Q., Jaafar, A. H., & Siwar, C. (2010). Climate change mitigation and policy concern for prioritization. International Journal of Climate Change Strategies and Management, 2 (4), 418-425.

Anderson, A. (2013). Climate Change Education for Mitigation and Adaptation. Journal of Education for Sustainable Development.

Gardner, R. (2011). Recycle: Green Science Projects for a Sustainable Planet. Berkeley Heights, NJ: Enslow Publishers, Inc.

Lee, T., & Koski, C. (2014). Mitigating Global Warming in Global Cities: Comparing Participation and Climate Change Policies of C40 Cities. Journal of Comparative Policy Analysis: Research and Practice, 16 (5).

Pathak, H., Jain, N., Bhatia, A., Mohanty, S., & Gupta, N. (2009). Global warming mitigation potential of biogas plants in India. International Weekly journal of science, 157 (1-4), 407-418.