How is global warming affecting our daily life in South Africa and what can we do about it?

Abstract

Global warming is a steadily increasing problem that is affecting the daily lives of people all over the world, including South Africa. It has the potential to cause extensive devastation in the future if action is not taken to mitigate it. By simple definition global warming is the gradual rise in the average temperature of the earth's surface, due to the increase of certain gasses in the atmosphere. In more detail, the earth receives radiation from the sun which passes through the atmosphere as short-wave light energy. It is then absorbed by the earth's surface and re-radiated back into the atmosphere as long-wave heat energy which warms the air. There are several gasses in the atmosphere - such as carbon dioxide, methane and water vapour - that absorb this long-wave heat energy and prevent it from leaving the earth. They form an insulating layer around the earth, causing the ground and air below to be much hotter than they would be without the benefit of this layer. This is known as the natural greenhouse effect. It is essential to all life on earth because, without it, the average temperature of the earth would be too cold to sustain any type of life form. However, with the increase in greenhouse gasses being emitted into the air, the temperature on earth could rise excessively, leading to an enhanced greenhouse effect which, in effect, is global warming.