Solutions to Climate Change, Essay Example

Thinking about the solutions to address the adverse impacts of climate change in the modern era can be overwhelming as the planet bears witness to the devastating impacts of degrading ecosystems. Climate change presents itself as a problem to modern day planet as humans and animals find themselves in a tough place trying to combat the problematic features of climate change such as heat waves, rising global temperatures, rising sea levels, ocean acidification, melting glaciers and droughts (Chomsky and Pollin 2-3). Research experts are offering good news that there is a shift in focus as countries can change the tide and address the climate change impacts through resiliency action, improving energy efficiency and using sustainable energy sources. Although reduced fossil fuel consumption, improved energy efficiency and transitioning to renewable energy sources are appropriate solutions to addressing the adverse impacts of climate change, critical analysis shows that

Researchers all over the world agree that the most critical solution to addressing the adverse impacts of climate change is through terminating the consumption of fossil fuels. Climate change is putting the planet’s energy supply at risk of depletion. Improving resiliency offers the advantage of consistent energy flow to support all operations. However, the current adverse impacts of climate change exacerbate the situation by adding more stress to the already depleting fossil fuel energy sources (Cevik 3). It is essential to mention that the burning of fossil fuels is responsible for global energy security. The major disadvantage is that the geopolitical tension serves as a reminder that unsettled global markets and the interrupted flow of fossil fuels continued to burden many nations even with the ongoing situation with the Russian-Ukrainian War (Cevik 3-4). This means that alerting the ‘dirty energy’ supply with climate change reforms proposed by IPCCC means that the global resiliency of the fossil energy supply is severely threatened. In other words, there is a need to replace alternative energy sources that offer the same global security as fossil fuels.

In addition, altering the energy matrix by offering alternative energy sources, such as renewable energy, could significantly reduce the carbon IV oxide emission and strengthen global energy security. The significant advantage of adopting the renewable energy source is that the nations can abide by the international; accord, producing clean and safe energy and cheap energy bills for all consumers (Moriarty and Honnery 3). Experts are stating that renewable energy sources can be the solution to the decarbonization of the power sector as nations are massively cutting down on their emission levels and contributing to global efforts in climate mitigation (Moriarty and Honnery 1-2). However, the major setback with this alternative solution is that the energy output is lower when compared to fossil energy. It is also costly to transition as the initial cost is high. Therefore, the transition to renewable energy sources addresses energy security challenges and efficiency issues regarding energy use.

Furthermore, reducing the extraction of fossil-based energy and transitioning to renewable energy supply is helping nations improve their energy efficiency. Energy efficiency describes the resourceful and proficient use of energy supply to achieve maximum output with reduced waste (emission) (Pajek and Košir 3). The significant advantage of this solution is that it promises to deliver several ecosystem benefits such as reduced greenhouse gas emissions, less fossil fuel consumption and indirectly reduced electricity cost (Pajek and Košir 2-3). However, when energy efficiency policies are applied in sectors such as transportation and manufacturing, it will take a significant toll on the US economy. Although energy efficiency in these services reduces the operation cost, the significant risk is that the output level is drastically affected, meaning the economy cannot compete with other nations such as China and Germany. Therefore, policymakers must consider all these advantages and disadvantages when choosing the appropriate solution.

When these solutions are compared, the most preferred solution would be to transition to renewable energy sources, and the least would be terminating fossil fuel energy sources. This solution’s significant advantage over the other three is that it guarantees a consistent energy supply, thus guaranteeing global energy security. Adding diversity to energy generation means that manufacturing and transportation industries can be supplied with continuous energy, thus driving the economy forward (Pajek and Košir 3). The least preferred will be terminating fossil fuels, which form the backboard of the US economy. Fossil fuels make up a larger share of the US total energy supply. Although the fossil energy resource base is depleting, supplementing this with renewable energy can help the planet fight against the risks of climate change and maintain its economic status.

In summary, climate change solutions such as reduced fossil fuel consumption, improved energy efficiency and transitioning to renewable energy sources are practical solutions to see nations cut back on electricity generation costs and reduce emission levels. However, a critical analysis of the solutions shows that transitioning to renewable energy sources while continuing to use fossil fuels is beneficial in maintaining a stable economy. Therefore, although the transition would be slow, the future for adopting these energy sources seems stuck on an integrated supply that benefits the economy in the transportation and manufacturing industries.

Works Cited

Cevik, Serhan. “Climate Change and Energy Security: The Dilemma or Opportunity of the Century?.” (2022).

Chomsky, Noam, and Robert Pollin. Climate crisis and the global green new deal: The political economy of saving the planet. Verso Books, 2020.

Moriarty, Patrick, and Damon Honnery. “Energy efficiency or conservation for mitigating climate change?.” Energies 12.18 (2019): 3543.

Pajek, Luka, and Mitja Košir. “Exploring climate-change impacts on energy efficiency and overheating vulnerability of bioclimatic residential buildings under central European climate.” Sustainability 13.12 (2021): 6791.