Climate change has been taking over the news media in recent years and even more so in recent months as summers grow hotter, but what is climate change? When speaking of climate change, we speak on the long-term change in temperature and weather patterns. Climate change has received so much attention in recent years because the Earth is quickly approaching a temperature threshold of 1.5 degrees celsius, which many countries have been working to avoid. Avoiding this threshold is important because if we cannot manage to prevent it, the Earth will begin to experience an increased frequency of drought, severe storms, unbearable temperatures, and rising sea levels. All of these could lead to higher poverty rates and displacement for communities across the globe.
As mentioned, efforts are being made to mitigate this rising temperature. Renewable energy is a star when discussing climate mitigation opportunities. Using renewable energy via wind, solar, or hydro-power lowers greenhouse gas emissions, the main driver of modern climate change. Countries have been working vigorously to implement more wind turbines and solar panels and adopt hydro-energy to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels. So far, these have been achieving great success, but there have been other innovations that can also assist in helping us combat climate change.
Below we will discuss several lesser-known technologies that have shown great potential in this fight.
Carbon Capture – This technique involves capturing carbon dioxide before it can enter the atmosphere. It is then stored in an underground storage facility for centuries or millennia. Usually, the technology that performs these actions are near chemical or biomass power plants. The types of carbon capture technologies used include pre-combustion, post-combustion, and oxy-fuel.
Remote Work – The recent COVID-19 pandemic continues to shake up the healthcare sector, but has also affected the ways we work. More companies are beginning to adopt the idea of remote work by having their employees work from the comfort of their home. Indirectly, this shift in workplace standards has a promising effect on climate change. According to a study by Spain Institut de Ciència Tecnologia y Ambiental, working at least four days a week remotely reduced nitrogen dioxide emission by 10% and reduced air pollution by 8%. With potentially more companies adopting this business model, it helps to keep more cars off the street and fewer trains running; all contributing factors to nitrogen emission and air pollution.
Carbon offset – There are many ways that emissions are released into the environment aside from fossil fuels. As the name suggests, carbon offsetting is an attempt to offset the carbon being sent into the atmosphere by switching to alternative practices that reduce or capture carbon emissions, both from the environment and our personal lives. You can offset your emissions by making changes in your life by switching the food you eat or how you travel from one place to another. The other way to carbon offset is by making contributions, whether physically or financially, to global projects trying to combat climate change. You can contribute to reforestation projects or landfill gas capture projects. These ways offset the amount of carbon released, help support climate change efforts, and can potentially capture future emissions before they reach the atmosphere.
AI (Artificial Intelligence) – Artificial Intelligence, by nature, is not a climate change technology. However, its effect on other systems to help make them more efficient and less wasteful is how it can indirectly help fight climate change. With that help, we as people would need less dependence on electricity, which means fewer fossil fuels and coal required and would reduce overall human waste. Projects such as Pachama and Gray Parrot are examples of how AI shows much promise in the climate change battle. Pachama helps measure how much carbon is captured within a region, which will help future development projects understand the consequences of moving into that area or where it would be best to stage development. Gray Parrot is an AI that helps with waste management. Its goal is to showcase how much waste a company produces and provide alternatives to help the company reduce said waste. Even when the company makes the appropriate changes, the AI is constantly learning and adapting. Thus, when changes are made, they will adjust to the new system and look for further waste and improvement suggestions.
The battle to tackle climate change has reached a tipping point. Most countries have pledged to reach goals to limit their emissions and create more efficient systems. With the leading causes of climate change known to the world, scientists have been working diligently to create new technology. The technology mentioned above is only a sample of the latest technologies on the market or being developed. The alarm bells have been sounded. With these technologies and more in place, we could slow the rapid acceleration we’re seeing and have a greater chance of avoiding the 1.5-celsius threshold many scientists say we need to avoid.
What Is Climate Change? | United Nations
Climate: World getting ‘measurably closer’ to 1.5-degree threshold | | UN News
Effects | Facts – Climate Change: Vital Signs of the Planet
