• Question: what can we do to stop global warming

    Asked by Francis.K to Leonie, James on 18 Mar 2015.
    • Photo: Leonie Oostwoud Wijdenes

      Leonie Oostwoud Wijdenes answered on 18 Mar 2015:

      The primary cause of global warming is too much carbon dioxide (CO2) in the air. So the way to stop it would be to reduce the amount of CO2 we produce. This could for example be done by finding other sources of energy to use for cars, planes and other apparatuses. Like solar or wind energy.

    • Photo: James Pope

      James Pope answered on 18 Mar 2015:

      Hi Francis,

      As Leonie says, we need to reduce our emissions of Greenhouse Gases, the key one is carbon dioxide, CO2. We need to aim to keep warming below 2 degrees warmer than the pre-industrial period, the time when we didn’t burn as many fossil fuels.

      To achieve this we need a 20% cut in emissions by about 2020/2025 and a carbon neutral society by about 2050/55.

      There are a range of key things we can do. One is to capture the carbon being released by power stations and bury it in the ground in a process called Carbon Capture and Storage. Another would be to increase our use of renewable energy sources and storing energy, as renewable sources are not always convenient to our electricity needs.

      In the short term, I would ban stand by buttons on electrical items such as TVs. These buttons burn up to 75% of the usual power for the TV etc, just to light a little red or blue LED. I would look to increase energy efficiency, so we can reduce the amount of energy we use and encourage people to walk or cycle shorter journeys, plus improve the insulation of our homes, so people need to heat them less.

      The benefit of these changes is that they can save us money in fuel and on utility bills in our homes, so it is win win, it is about getting people to make the change.

      Stopping global warming is an important scientific challenge, but it is also going to need scientists to work with policy makers, social scientists and the public to make sure we can tackle the challenge together.

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