Only 0.15 % of the energy that reaches the earth is used by the plants and the algae as a source of energy for photosynthesis. The energy that is stored in the form of chemical energy within the photosynthetic plants establishes the source of energy for the food that is consumed by the creation. The past creation, as a result of the physical-chemical processes, was fossilized and solar power has been stored in the form of fossil fuels (oil, coal, natural gas).

Energy consumption and the environment

Energy consumption is viable for every form of work; the waste is what remains in the environment. This waste does not pose a problem as long as they do not damage the sensitive ecologic balance. However, rapid industrialization and urbanization, which lead to excessive amounts of energy consumption, result in environmental problems. Since industrialization-urbanization is directly related to energy consumption – particularly with fossil fuels – industrialized countries are more vulnerable to experiencing environmental problems. In today’s world, it is climatic change – a product of global warming – among these problems that is of the greatest global importance.

The increase in the proportion of carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas, in the atmosphere is the main factor for global warming. This increase is directly related to the consumption of fossil fuels. The rays of the sun, which are reflected from the earth, are trapped by carbon dioxide gases (chlorofluorocarbon, nitrous oxide and other greenhouse gases, such as water vapor) in the atmosphere, and they can not return to space. This, in turn leads to the atmosphere heating up (the greenhouse effect), eventually leading to an increase in heat throughout the world.

The main reason for the increase of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is the consumption of fossil fuels (77%) and the decrease in the number of forests (23%). Coal gas is normally the last product of the anaerobic processes in nature. In recent years human intervention played the main role in this abnormal increase in gases. Playing an important part in this process is the expansion in rice fields (38%) in order to feed the increasing population, natural gas extraction and its transfer (16%), an increase in the number of cattle (14%), coal mining (12%), and the oxidation of produced biomass (6%). Chlorofluorocarbon is included in industrial products. As for the nitrous oxides, they are the by-products of reactions in the nitrogen cycle in nature. In recent years, as a result of the increase in the use of the nitrogenous manures (85%), forest fires and other fires (11%), and the oxidation of the produced biomass (7%) there has been a rise in nitrous oxide. Consequently, the rapid increase in greenhouse gases in the last years has lead to a 0.5°C increase in the average heat of the earth.

If the greenhouse gases continue to be accumulated at this speed, then by 2100 the average heat of the earth will record an increase of 2–4°C compared to the period before industrialization. Eventually, there will be a greater melting of the glaciers at the poles, which will lead to 0.5–1.5 % increase in sea level. Thus, residential areas by the seaside, agricultural areas, wetlands and industrialized areas will face the danger of being flooded. Moreover, the risks of climatic changes and desertification will become much more severe.

Some countries are investigating how to calculate the probable effects of a decline in water, food and energy resources and what precautions need to be taken accordingly as a result of global warming. In this sense, the problem was clearly indicated during the summit meetings in Vienna (1985), Rio (1982), and Kyoto (1997), however, they have not been sufficient to provide a solution.

Another important problem arising from the overuse of fossil fuels is the damage to the environment caused by air pollution and acid rain. During the consumption of fossil fuels, CO2, NOx, and SOx are emitted into the atmosphere and these, combining with water vapor, lead to the formation of carbonic acid (H2CO3), nitric acid (HNO3) and sulfuric acid (H2SO4). While normally the pH of rain water is 5.5–6, with these acids it falls down to 3.5–4. This and the resultant dissolution of the metals in the water pose a threat for both the land and the aquatic ecosystems (e.g. a decline in fish species in many lakes) and impair the ecologic balance.

The impact of alternative and renewable energy on the environment

The negative impact of fossil fuels on the environment and the decline in their reserves has accelerated the search for new energy resources. Even though nuclear energy is not a renewable resource, today it has come to be regarded as an alternative energy resource all around the world. Hydrogen, too, is another growing alternative resource. Geothermal energy is also a renewable energy resource, yet it is mostly restricted to the region where it originates.

With current technology, it costs us more to use solar energy rather than to extract fossil fuels. Moreover, there is a great need for the development of new technology that is aimed at producing wind, hydroelectric, bio-energy, tidal and wave energy in the most efficient way at the lowest cost.

Defeated by their ambitions, human beings, particularly in the last century, have destroyed the world and the environment that has been entrusted to them. Since the global impact and the cost of this process only emerged recently, it was too late before human beings realized that they needed to shift from energy systems based on fossil fuels. All the worries and concerns that have surfaced today is not because we have finally realized that the earth has been entrusted to human beings, but simply because the future seems to be promising nothing but destruction. Thus, the real solution to the problems is not related to acting to find a solution to the problems, but rather in being in compliance with the measures of the actual Owner of the world and the universe and avoiding form all types of extremism.

References

• Spiro Thomas G. and Stigliani William M. 1996. Chemistry of the Environment, Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River, New Jersey, USA.
• Godish Thad. 1997. Air Quality, CRC Lewis Publishers, Boca Raton, New York.
• World Energy Outlook. 2004. International Energy Agency.

Greenhouse Gases and the Greenhouse Effect

A greenhouse is a place that is usually covered with glass or plastic walls where early season vegetables and house-plants are cultivated. Rays from the Sun can easily penetrate a greenhouse, but once they hit the ground they are transformed into thermo-energy, with the wavelength of the beams shortening and their energy diminishing. As a result, these beams with a shorter wavelength cannot leave the greenhouse due to the glass or plastic walls. Therefore the warming of the greenhouse increases as more and more rays enter. We call this process the greenhouse effect.

Similarly, some gases in the strata of the atmosphere are called greenhouse gases since these gases cause the same greenhouse effect for the Earth. These gases include carbon dioxide, methane, nitrogen oxide, ozone, chlorofluorocarbon, and water vapor. These gases have been created with a property that does not prevent (or prevents to a very small extent) the light energy that comes from the Sun from reaching the Earth and that prevents the infrared heat energy waves that are formed after this energy reaches the Earth from radiating to the higher layers of the atmosphere. Both the Earth and the layers of the atmosphere close to the Earth are heated by these gases. If there were not any of these gases surrounding the Earth it is estimated that the Earth would be 33° C colder. Although there is a delicate balance and measure among the gases in the atmosphere that allows the maintenance of the Earth’s temperature at a sensible level, human beings are carrying out practices that can ruin this balance. We, as human beings, are responsible for the global warming that is perceived as a danger today.

Carbon Dioxide

Carbon dioxide is half the reason for the total greenhouse effect. This gas is formed as a result of the use of fossil fuels, the respiration of humans, animals, and plants, and the disintegration of organic substances. Industrial development has caused a rapid increase in carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. It is known that 85% of the carbon dioxide emitted into the atmosphere comes from fossil fuels, with 15-20% stemming from the respiration of living beings and the other ecological continuous cycles.

In the last 150 years, a total of 389 Gt of carbon dioxide has been emitted into the atmosphere. 265 Gt of this carbon dioxide comes from the consumption of fossil fuels and the production of cement. 124 Gt comes from changes in land use. 214 Gt of this total has been reabsorbed by land and sea ecosystems and the oceans. This means that there is a surplus of 175 Gt of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.

The Importance of the Forests

Forests play an essential role in lowering the diffusions of greenhouse gases that are emitted into the atmosphere and in forming “carbon absorption” by occluding greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Thus, except for sedimentary rocks, 67% of the carbon kept on the land is stored in the forest ecosystem. 75% of the carbon kept by vegetation is stored in the forests. In addition, as long as some long-lived wooden products (wooden houses, furniture, etc.) decay or are burnt they remain as carbon storages.

As we all know, during photosynthesis the carbon dioxide that is taken from the atmosphere is separated into carbon and oxygen molecules. Then the carbon is stored in the roots, trunks, branches, and leaves of plants, being used in order to form carbon hydrates. Therefore carbon dioxide, the most essential greenhouse gas, becomes balanced. We can compare this to a huge factory that works very quietly and causes no waste. It is such an efficient factory that it transforms harmful substances into useful ones. We cannot say that we human beings appreciate this factory or protect its resources. Although today forests cover 3.7 billion hectares, comprising 30% of all land, between the years 1990–2000 on average 9.4 million hectares of forest were annually removed. That means that during this period the forest regions of the world diminished by 2%. As a result of such negative occurrences, because the carbon balance of vegetation, soil and organic substances had been destroyed, the forests, one of the means of God’s mercy upon us, have become sources of carbon dioxide and a tragedy due to our exploitation.

Ligneous living masses increase each year, while falling leaves add to the carbon storage. As a result, forest ecosystems contain carbon. After the growth of trees, most of the carbon dioxide they occlude each year goes toward developing the biomass of the tree. This means that in the first 30-40 years a high rate of carbon storage occurs. As the forest ecosystem develops, the organic substance of the soil and the total respiration in the ecosystem (occlusion of carbon dioxide) increase. When the ecosystem has fully developed, it no longer has the characteristics of “carbon absorption” anymore. In this case, the amount of carbon taken from the atmosphere is equal to the carbon emitted back by the biomasses of the trees and is kept in the soil. The time it takes for a tree to fully develop depends on the type of tree and the climate zones. However most of the carbon storage occurs in the first 60-100 years. It has been determined by research that a well-developed 100 year-old beech tree absorbs 40,000,000 m_ of air with its leaves for photosynthesis and binds 1,200 m_ of carbon dioxide in the air as 6 tons of carbon.

As well as being a community of trees, forests are environmental systems and living communities, with soil that was created over a thousand years, with millions of plants, animals, and microorganisms, and their reciprocal relationships. It is very difficult for this system to be restored once destroyed by human beings. Forests provide an essential service in a consistent and balanced carbon flow between the biosphere and the atmosphere with respiration that is dependent on photosynthesis and the activities of life in the soil and the plants. Forests are the lungs of the Earth.

In the light of these facts, the duty of human beings is to protect the vegetation and to reforest the treeless lands, to decrease human pressure on existing forests and to improve forests that have been damaged. Oxygen, nitrogen, water vapor, and carbon dioxide were created as continuous cycles for the continuation of the life. When these treasures have been damaged as a result of the greed of human beings, the costs are too high for us to reverse the trend. Billions of people are victimized; yet they are nor directly responsible for such acts. These delicate balances can be revived if we lead a simple and modest life, where we consume less and we produce less. Those who ought to understand this first must promise to be more respectful to God and to change themselves. Even if we fulfill our responsibilities, we can do nothing today but hope that those whose destructive powers are great may desire such a spiritual revolution.

References

• Cepel, N., Ekolojik Sorunlar ve Cozumleri, Tubitak Populer Bilim Kitaplar›, Ankara: 2003.
• Roulet, N.T., Freedman, B., What Trees Can Do to Reduce Atmosferic CO2, Tree Canada Foundation, Ontario: 2003.
• Report by the Commission of Climate Change Experts, DPT (Turkey’s Official Planning Organization), Ankara: 2001.
• Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, 2001, Global Forest Resources Assesment 2000, ISSN 0258-6150, FAO Forestry Paper:140.

And We have made the heavens as a canopy well guarded: yet do they turn away from the Signs which these things (point to)! (Qur’an 21:32)

We are often awed by how fine-tuned our planet is for the existence and continuation of life. One factor that makes this possible is its atmosphere, which is designed to filter out harmful radiation and meteors from space. While solar radiation is largely absorbed, some is reflected by the planet and the atmosphere. Some of the radiation reflected or emitted by Earth passes through the atmosphere, while the rest is absorbed and emitted in all directions by some gases in the atmosphere. This reflected radiation, combined with the energy absorbed by Earth, enables life to exist here.

Since this phenomenon resembles the heat reflected by glass panels in a greenhouse, it is called the greenhouse effect. The greenhouse gases that contribute significantly to this process are carbon dioxide, methane, water vapor, nitrous oxide, hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons, and sulfur hexafluoride. The greenhouse effect is necessary for life, but too much of it is undesirable. Some negative consequences are changes in average temperature, precipitation, wind and ocean circulation patterns, polar glacier melting, and more storms, droughts, and floods.

The atmosphere is an extremely complex system that is not fully understood. During Earth’s long history, its atmosphere’s composition has experienced natural variations. By analyzing tree rings and core samples taken from Greenland and various high-altitude tropical areas, scientists have concluded that Earth has undergone several warming and cooling cycles. Among the factors that can cause such changes are greenhouse gases and ocean water salinity. According to Stant: “Since 1861 the Earth has warmed by about 0.5 degrees Celsius. Most of this warming took place before 1940, but much of it has taken place in the last 15 years. The global temperature of the Earth is projected to rise anywhere from 0.8 to 2.6 degrees Celsius in the next thirty to forty years.”1

Some scientists think that the most recent atmospheric changes are part of a natural variation. But there is a growing consensus that human activity, particularly the emission of greenhouse gases and especially the carbon dioxide produced by industrial activity, has played some role. Small amounts of such gases can be absorbed by forests and oceans, and thus do not represent a serious problem. But thanks to the Industrial Revolution, this system has been thrown out of balance. Other activities, such as increased agriculture, deforestation, and the widespread use of fossil fuels for transportation, industrial processes, and heating fuels have exacerbated it.

This article will summarize the latest findings on the potential impact of global climate change.

Background

The vast majority of scientists now agree that business-as-usual may lead to irreversible change in Earth’s atmosphere. Global climate change became part of the political agenda in the developed world during the mid-1980s, a time of increasing environmental awareness and mounting public concern due to the efforts of Greenpeace, the Sierra Club, and other pro-environment groups. One assumption gradually emerged out of the numerous conferences, grassroots efforts, and publications: The developed countries are primarily responsible for the accumulation of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, and therefore should take the lead in fixing the problem. The latest step taken to mitigate worldwide emissions was the Kyoto Protocol (11 Dec. 1998), which devised a formula to determine the amount of gases each country could emit. Although signed by 84 countries, it has to be ratified by at least 55 countries (emissions from which make up at least 55% of global emissions) before it can be enforced. This has not happened yet.

The United States, the major producer of greenhouse gases, has signed but not ratified the Kyoto Protocol. Hopes were high that the new Bush administration would do so. However, Bush soon reneged on a campaign pledge to regulate carbon dioxide emissions from U.S. power plants, and shortly thereafter repudiated the Kyoto Protocol. His claim that the scientific evidence for the greenhouse effect and its consequences was not yet convincing was greeted with disbelief. Questions were raised about corporate America’s role in forming his views, as many companies opposed the protocol and contributed heavily to his presidential campaign.

Fortunately, there is also mounting evidence that industry opposition, led by the oil, gas, and automotive concerns, is weakening. According to the Natural Resources Defense Council, “many businesses recognize global warming as a threat and realize that reducing emissions is in their economic interest. Several-including such giants as BP-Amoco, IBM and Johnson & Johnson-have voluntarily adopted emissions reductions stronger than those called for in the Kyoto Protocol.”2

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change

The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) established the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in 1988. Tasked with assessing the scientific, technical, and socioeconomic data needed to understand the risk of human-induced climate change, its mission is to provide policymakers with the most current scientific data on global climate change. The IPCC serves as a good example of how scientists from different backgrounds and countries come together to investigate a global problem. Some of its findings are summarized below.3

Agriculture and Food Security. In principle, increased levels of carbon dioxide should benefit agriculture. However, one has to consider subsequent regional changes in rainfall and the reaction of crops, soil, and pests. Moreover, excessive heat and drought might have a negative impact on crop yield.

The overall effect on crop yield is predicted to be positive, especially in such colder regions as Canada and Russia, if the rise in average temperature does not exceed several degrees Celsius. If it does, the effect will be negative. In tropical regions, where crops are already near their maximum heat tolerance, even a minimal increase in temperature is predicted to have a negative effect on crop yields. The number of people at risk of hunger, especially in Africa, is expected to increase. The most vulnerable populations will be those who depend heavily on agriculture and those living in developing countries.

Ecosystem Damage. Ecosystems react to climate changes much slower than people. Wildlife habitat distribution and composition will be directly influenced by any change in temperature and rainfall, and indirectly by any change in vegetation. Most likely, species will not have enough time to adapt. This will be exacerbated by the continuing fragmentation of wildlife habitats by human settlement, which makes migration infeasible for most species. Since migration is unlikely, species composition and dominance will change, and endangered species will face extinction. Changes in ocean circulation will affect fish abundance and habitat boundaries, as well as fish population dynamics. This might have a significant impact on fish-dependent societies.

Rising Sea Levels. This is perhaps the most worrisome impact category. The IPCC Working Group I reports that as a result of melting polar glaciers, the global sea level will rise anywhere from 0.09m to 0.88m. Oceans cover a large part of the planet and have a significant impact on its climate. Wind and circulation patterns also are affected by changes in sea level and sea-surface temperature.

If the rises are high enough, many of the generally accepted models indicate that small islands will be submerged, many coastal areas will be inundated, and freshwater resources will face seawater intrusion. In addition, large coastal areas will be evacuated, populations will have to migrate, and wetlands and mangrove forests will be lost. Such countries as Bangladesh, which depends heavily on mangroves, will be devastated. The fishery industry will suffer as fish abundance and location change.

And, as if all of this were not enough, there also might be a rise in the frequency and severity of storms and sea-surges. Countries that depend largely on coastal tourism will suffer. Although people will see the approaching catastrophes and try to protect themselves by building seawalls, nourishing beaches, and other measures, not all of the impact will be cancelled.

Health Sector. There will be fewer complaints about the cold during the winter, but more complaints about the heat during the summer. Whether the benefits will outweigh the costs depends on the region. Tropical regions will face more deaths from heat stress. In addition, the influence areas of vector-, food- and water-borne diseases will shift. For example, depending on changes in rainfall and average temperature, malaria or dengue fever might become more widespread.

Although the specific impact depends on a wide variety of local conditions, such as the health infrastructure and socioeconomic conditions, the overall effect is predicted to be negative, especially in developing countries. Such extreme climate-related events as cyclones, floods, and droughts might become more common and severe, and thus leave exposed populations with even more health problems.

What Needs To Be Done

For each anticipated impact category (and for others not included here),

there is a wide range of institutional, technological, and behavioral adaptation measures that can be pursued to minimize damage. The IPCC report contains many suggestions. Governments should become aware of the consequences of global climate change and start working to increase public awareness. As most measures might take decades to plan and implement, any delay only makes the problem harder to solve.

In addition, greenhouse gas emission rates have to be decreased. The time for playing around has passed. Governments and people in positions of power, as hard as it might be, should agree on a global approach and then set about implementing it. There have been some advances, but not enough. Developed countries, having caused the global warming problem, should take the lead in implementing the Kyoto Protocol as soon as possible.

A key ingredient is technology transfer. Most developing countries are still building industrial, energy, and distribution infrastructures. Developed countries should try to ensure that only the latest and cleanest technologies are installed so that the solution is not only postponed to a later date.

This is vital in China, now home to almost one-fourth of humanity and undergoing rapid economic growth and development. Given its size, its development policies will have a global impact. According to Mark Hertsgaard, who spent 6 weeks in China studying this issue: “China is … the world’s second largest producer of greenhouse gases, trailing only the United States. With its immense coal reserves, huge population, and booming economic growth, China is very likely to triple its greenhouse emissions by 2020 …. If outsiders want China to do something about global warming, they will have to pay for it. As one Western consultant with regular access to senior Chinese officials puts it, “They know very well they can hold the world for ransom … and whenever they can extract concessions, they will.”4

Many people in the developing world might object to “hold the world for ransom” for a quite logical reason: When the now-developed countries were developing, environmental damage and pollution were non-issues. Now that others are trying to develop, the developed world wants to maintain the status quo, which is stacked in its favor, by raising standards. This charge must be addressed in such a way that those making it will accept proposed environmental regulations and policies.

A Recent Development

On July 26, 2001, Japan and other nations joined Europe in accepting the Kyoto Protocol. But the price might have been too high: a scaling back of carbon dioxide reductions, the acceptance of “carbon sinks” (that forests and other environmental reatures would absorb more greenhouse gases), and that violators would not be penalized. President Bush has not yet revealed his promised alternative.

Conclusion

Global climate change, as the phrase indicates, is a global challenge that requires a great deal of attention and resource concentration. However, it also requires political will. This is especially true with China, which endured great famines and poverty during the twentieth century. Hoping to avoid any repetition, China has embraced the late Deng Xiaoping’s policy of “to get rich is glorious.” If it comes down to a choice between development and the environment, China and other developing countries just might choose development.

Western businesses claim that the developing world will gain an unfair competitive edge if its companies are exempt from existing environmental regulations. But instead of showing such countries see that environmental protection is in their own long-term interest and helping them acquire and implement the latest technology, many Western companies relocate in countries with lax and easily subverted environmental legislation. Such short-sighted policies increase the problem’s severity, for it shows that the developed world does not really care about the environment. If this is so, how can it expect the developing world to care about it?

Hopefully, nations will find a way to protect their environments while enjoying double-digit growth figures, and their scientists and politicians will find the necessary will to solve this problem

Footnotes

1. Linda Ruth Stant, “Changes in the Earth’s Climate for the Past Two Million Years.” Online at: http://www.gly.fsu. edu/~kish/dynamic/global/LS.htm.
2. www.nrdc.org/globalWarming/nnego.asp.
3. The findings are taken from “Summary for Policy Makers: Climate Change 2001: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability.” The summary of the Working Group II report is online at: www.ipcc.ch.
4. Mark Hertsgaard, “Our Real China Problem,” The Atlantic Online (Nov. 1997). Online at: http://www.theatlantic.com/issues/97nov/china.htm

Other References

• U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Online at: www.epa.gov/globalwarming.
• UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. Online at: www.unfccc.de.

In the ongoing efforts of the United Nations toward that end, representatives from 50 countries participated in an informal international meeting convened by UNEP (United Nations Environment Programme), in conjunction with the Earth Council and the Government of Costa Rica, held 29-31 October in San Jose. Specifically, the meeting entitled, ‘New Partnerships to Reduce the Buildup of Greenhouse Gases, discussed cooperation through a range of issues related to the concept of ‘Activities Implemented Jointly’ or AIJ. Among those present were Elizabeth Dodeswell, the executive Director of UNEP, Mr. Maurice Strona, Chairman of the Earth Council, and Dr. Mostafa Tolba, Director of Inter-national Centre of Environment and Development. The forum was opened by the host, His Excellency The President of Costa Rica, Mr. Jose Maria Figueres.

The concept of AIJ (which appears to be a spin-off of the older concept of Joint Implementation) emerged in 1995 at the First Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), held in Berlin. AIJ is intended to provide an impetus to investment and co-development of advanced technologies that reduce the rate of greenhouse gas emmissions while advancing national economic and development goals. AIJ or, simply, any well-thought out Joint Implementation scheme, may be a cost-effective way to achieve the objectives of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change by encouraging technology transfer and co-operation between North and South. An AIJ Pilot Phase was included in the decision which forged the Berlin Mandate.

UNEP’s Executive Director, Elizabeth Dodeswell, in her address to the informal forum in San Jose, said that, ‘Joint Implementation, whether or not it involves credits but most particularly if it does, must be devised with one overriding consideration-it must be fair.’

Opponunities to reduce or mitigate greenhouse gas emissions are often more cost-effective in developing countries. As a result, joint implementation strategies might involve a developed country investing resources and technology in a developing country in exchange for emission credits. As Ms. Dodeswell pointed out, it may not however be enough for Joint Implementation agreements to be struck on a willing buyer, willing seller basis, but in addition, will require assessment and brokering through a neutral international process, bringing objectivity to the transaction and monitoring the implementation, to ensure fairness throughout.

At the Second Session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change held in Geneva, 8-9 June, 1996, the implementation of the Convention was reviewed. The Ministers and other Heads of delegations present stated, among many other things, that they will: ‘Instruct their represen-tatives to accelarate negotiation on the text of a legally-binding protocol or another legal instrument to be completed in due time for adoption at the third session of the Conference of the Parties. The outcome should fully encompass the remit of the Berlin Mandate…’ In addition, one of the particulars noted is ‘quantified legally-binding objectives for emission limitations and significant overall reductions within specified timeframes, such as 2005, 2010, 2020, with respect to their anthropogenic emissions by sources and removals by sinks of greenhouse gases not controlled by the Montreal Protocol.’ The goal of all these Climate Change meetings is spelled out in Article 2 of the Convention. Heavily summarized, it calls for, stabilization of atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations in a timely manner in order to avoid climate change with dangerous consequences so that economic development may proceed in a sustainable way.

The Third Conference of the Parties, referred to in the preceding paragraph, will be held in Kyoto, Japan in 1997. Let us hope that agreement can be reached and carried out in a fair and constructive manner so that talking about the weather in this or future generations may continue to be a pleasant conversation- opener. Recognizing that, in today’s world, it is intolerable for 800 millions to be suffering from hunger and malnutrition and that it is everyone’s right to have adequate food to survive, the United Nations must reorganize itself in order to meet this challenge. The United Nations work in the field of peace and security is no less relevant: more effective conflict prevention and resolution efforts hold the promise of preventing the loss by millions of people of food security, particularly in the poor countries. At long last, very important principles on which to base our future action can be found in the results of previous world conferences and summits, including Rio, Vienna, Cairo, Beijing, Copenhagen and Istanbul. All conferences held so far have confirmed that environment matters all over the world. It matters as a set of interconnecting problems that threaten the quality of life and the sustainability of economic development worldwide. The environment is a global issue affecting people in developing and developed countries alike, and linking them in the need to take immediate action.

Today, there are 1.5 billion people living with dangerous air pollution, 1 billion without clean water, 2 billion without sanitation. Food production has doubled worldwide in the past quarter century- but at the price of loss of crop diversity, increased chemical contamination and loss of natural habitats. Around one-seventh of tropical forests have been lost in the past 25 years. These are not just local problems; their global impact takes the form of growing regional pollution, the spread of epidemic disease, the loss of biodiversity, global climate instability and the likelihood of mass migration from lands that can no longer support their populations.

Fortunately, the old notion of ‘development versus the environment’ has given way to a new view in which economic development and environmentally sustainable practice go hand in hand. Increasingly the idea of environmentally sustainable development is influencing the thinking of policy makers, international development agencies, and corporate executives. At the same time, years of environmentally conscious practice have produced advanced and cost-effective technologies and know- how. There are no longer either intellectual or technological impediments to the environmentally sustainable management of development.

The natural environment contains a mosaic of species (groups of interacting organisms). They do not live in isolation but live in association with one another. It is the arrangement of a particular set of living organisms (plants, animals, bacteria, etc.) and their interaction with each other and with their environment which forms the ecosystem. An ecosystem can be identified on different scales.

On a large scale, the whole world can be considered an ecosystem, while on a smaller scale an ecosystem can be a pond or a wood. The components of an ecosystem (organisms, plants, soil) are linked together by transfers of energy and nutrients (ions).

The environment touches everyone. The air we breathe, the food we eat, the water we drink and bathe in, the countryside we walk in–all these are affected in one way or another by mankind’s polluting activities. As the results of these activities come to light and the pressures on the environment increase, so does the concern with which we view the world about us.

What are the most important of our common environmental problems?

The greenhouse effect is the greatest environmental threat facing mankind and there are only a limited number of strategies that can be adopted to delay its onset and attempt to reverse the trend. One lesson, which is being recognized increasingly, is that the world uses too much energy of the wrong sort. The most obvious way of attempting to combat global warming is to cut down on our use of fossil fuels. For it is this major source of energy, with its release of carbon into the atmosphere, which is the single biggest cause of the greenhouse effect.

The hole in the ozone layer is not something which most people can witness for themselves and so they rely on experts to tell them it is important. But one aspect of the pollution of the atmosphere, of which people are all to aware, is the smoke and gasses that come from power stations, factories, and car exhausts. Air pollution is a danger which affects us all. Worldwide, more than a billion people–a fifth of the world’s population–live in communities which do not meet the basic air quality standards set by the World Health Organisation (WHO). For example, in Bombay, simply breathing is equivalent to smoking ten cigarettes a day. In the United States of America it is said that air pollution causes as many as 50,000 deaths a year.

Indeed, there are serious environmental pollution problems in many countries in the world caused mainly by the burning of coal by heavy industries. The discharge from these coal-burning plants goes into the air and water without treatment. Technology for environmental protection is not advanced and legislation, where it exists, is either poorly operated or not operated at all.

Air pollution is not only a problem of industrialised countries. In the Third World, air pollution of a different sort is causing ill-health. In some regions–for example, in Africa– smoke from indoor cooking fires causes severe lung disease in infants. Carbon monoxide in the air reduces the blood’s ability to carry oxygen and this is liable to pose a risk for people suffering from heart disease. Another component, the oxides of nitrogen, are powerful lung irritants and can reduce resistance to infections like flu. In addition, one of the most important consequences of air pollution is the production of acid rain.

In one way or another man is now producing so much waste that he is in danger of being swamped by it. New York has the world’s biggest rubbish dump. Cranes as tall as six storey buildings work round the clock emptying barges of waste from the city–26,000 tonnes of it a day–creating literally a mountain of rubbish. Also, the United Kingdom is producing 80 million tonnes of rubbish each year. In theory, one tonne of rubbish can produce 400 cubic metres of landfill gas–60 per cent of it is methane and around 40 per cent carbon dioxide with a few other trace gasses like nitrogen and hydrogen. Typically, landfill gas is produced fairly quickly over the first few years and then production slowly tails off. On average it takes about 15 years for about a quarter of the waste to rot down, so the danger is long lasting. At most landfill sites the methane and carbon dioxide diffuse into the air. But landfill gas can represent a real hazard. Methane, for example, can explode when concentrations in air reach 5 to 15 per cent. However, if waste tips were properly managed it would be possible for more energy to be extracted from them but that would mean controlling more precisely what goes into them. There is another reason why collecting and burning the gas from landfill sites is worthwhile and environmentally friendly: it reduces the greenhouse effect. Methane is about 27 times less effective as a greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide. That means that if the methane is collected and burnt to form carbon dioxide the net impact on the greenhouse effect is reduced. Burning the landfill gas also breaks down some of the CFCs (chlorofluorocarbons) which are in the rubbish and so reduces still further the greenhouse effect.

Methane is not the only problem associated with rubbish tips. Another risk is that noxious substances can leak away, poisoning rivers and aquifers.

Dumping waste is not the only option. There are two other possible ways of dealing with it; it can be incinerated or recycled. Though currently only a small proportion of waste is dealt with that way.

Water is one of the most basic necessities of life. We drink it, wash in it and cook in it. Animals and plants cannot do without it. But increasingly over the last hundred years water has become prone to pollution as the effluent from towns and cities, from industries and from agriculture is discharged into rivers, seas and lakes and contaminations seep down to underground aquifers. Over the years pollution has killed animals and plants and has left many rivers biologically dead. River-borne pollution has brought with it disease and death for man.

In the last twenty years or so man has woken up to the damage being done and slowly, national and international controls over what can be allowed into rivers, seas and lakes are being implemented. Cleaning up the world’s rivers and seas will be a painfully long and expensive business but all those who have studied the problem agree that it is essential. The three main materials dumped at sea are dredgings, industrial waste and sewage sludge. In addition to the accidental contamination of water-ways and land with chemicals from waste disposal, there have been serious problems in some countries as a result of chemicals which have been purposely used on the land–notably pesticides and fertilisers. Both nitrate containing fertilisers and chemical pesticides can contaminate water, and pesticides can contaminate food. There has been increasing concern among environmentalists about the effect of nitrates and pesticides on people. Though the concern about nitrates may be overstated, the problem of pesticide use, notably in developing countries, is very worrying.

One of the prime concerns is the destruction of tropical forests. In 1950 tropical forests covered nearly 25 percent of the world’s land masses. Today they cover less than 7 percent.

Having reviewed some of the significant threats to the environment, the question has to be posed: Is it too late to save the planet? The message is clear. We must act now if we are to attempt to correct the damage which has already been done to our environment. We must reassess our values and priorities before it is too late. We must, in fact, heed the warnings. Today, we must start to choose clean and green technology. Clean and green technology does not mean only clean-up technology. We will try to develop our technology but it should be environmentally friendly.

If we look carefully at the universe, we see in it an ecological balance, a harmonious interrelation and interdependence. Do you believe that this is random? So the balance of the universe created by God must be preserved. ‘Everything with Him is measured’ (13:8). Also, ‘There is not anything, but its stores are with Us and We send down each thing in an appointed measure’ (15:21). ‘God is the One who created everything in due proportion’ (54:49).

Environment is not merely an inheritance from our forefathers, for us to waste; it is a trust and an investment we make for our children. Protection and conservation of the environment is an important and vital human issue. As such, it is also an Islamic issue because the human being is the answerable creature of God, who carries the burden of using and understanding the resources of the creation; within the creation, the human being is both means and end. No other creature can perform the task of protecting the environment.

God gives us some guidance in the Qur’an:

‘He has created you from earth and made you dwell in it’ (11:61).

‘And do not withhold the things of the people unjustly and do not make mischief on the earth’ (26:183).

‘Corruption has overtaken [them] in hand and sea, for what the hands of the people have earned, that He may let them taste some of what they have done, in order that they may return’ (30:41). 

References

• Peter H. Collin (1989), Dictionary of Ecology and Environment, Collins, Middlesex, UK.
• James Wilkinson (1990), Green or Bust, BBC Books, London.
• Jonathon Porritt (1990), Friends of the Earth Handbook, MacDonald Optima, London.
• World Commission on Environment and Development (1989), Our Common Future, Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK.
• Ahmet Zidan and Dina Zidan (1991), Translation of The Glorious Qur’an, Biddles Ltd., Guildford, UK.