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Climate Change and Paris Agreement

Do you believe that the US should commit to the Paris Agreement? What arguments most
influence your decision?
The Paris Agreement was meant to bring together all countries of the world in the fight
against climate change, one of the most important and serious issues of modern times. The
agreement was prompted by consensus among scientists that the earth is slowly but steadily
warming and that anthropogenic activities are making significant contributions to this warming
(Blau, 2017). The consequences for this warming of the earth are being felt and will continue
being felt in many parts of the world, including the United States. For this reason, I strongly
believe that the United States should commit to the Paris Agreement. It is not just in its own
interest but also in the interest of the whole world.
Climate change and global warming are global problems that no nation can solve alone.
As the wealthiest country in the world and one of the biggest emitters of carbon dioxide and
other materials that have contributed significantly to global warming, it is important that the US
joins the Paris Agreement in order to make the agreement more impactful (Kukkonen, Yla-
Anttila, & Broadbent, 2017). Without America’s commitment to significantly reduce carbon
emissions and without its financial support for the agreement, the Paris Agreement is unlikely to
achieve its objectives (Kukkonen et al., 2017). Such an outcome will be detrimental to America
itself because millions of its citizens face negative effects of climate change. It will also be unfair
to many poor countries who are facing the impact of a changing climate that they did little to
cause.

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Do you believe that we will experience significant global warming during this century due
to air pollution?
Compared to carbon dioxide emissions, air pollution is not a major cause of global
warming (Kukkonen et al., 2017). It is certainly unlikely to have major contributions to global
warming in this century. That is, however, not to say that it should be discounted as a source of
global warming. Air pollutants have a major impact on the amount of sunlight that is either
absorbed or reflected from the atmosphere. While some particles absorb the sunlight, some
reflect it. Thus, the net impact of air pollution on climate change is not significant although
efforts to combat climate change should also include means of dealing with air pollution.
In what way would the Paris Agreement impact your position on global warming?
My position on global warming has always been that the earth is warming at a rate that is
too fast and something needs to be done to reduce the temperature rises. The Paris Agreement
solidified my position because it not only accepted that global temperature rises are happening
fast but also that urgent efforts need to be made to reduce this temperature rise (Blau, 2017).
What is the effect of global warming on the earth’s water resources?
Global warming has a major impact not just on quantity of water resources but also on
their quality. Regarding quantity of water resources, global warming leads to an increase of
evaporation of water from the surface of the earth to the atmosphere (Ferguson, Pan & Oki,
2018). In areas that are relatively dry and are already experiencing water shortages, such
increased evaporation makes them even drier (Ferguson et al., 2018). In areas that have relatively
large amount of water resources, increased evaporation leads to heavier precipitation.

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The heavier precipitation may lead to increase in water supply but it also leads to a
decrease in the quality of water resources. When there is more than normal precipitation, the
increased volume of water easily overwhelms water treatment plants and sewer systems which
decreases the quality of water (Ferguson et al., 2018). Additionally, global warming leads to
rising sea levels. When sea levels rise, they make fresh water sources that are along the coast to
become more saline thus unsuitable for human consumption (Ferguson et al., 2018). Huge
amounts of precipitation also reduces the quality of fresh water in rivers and lakes as there is
likely to be an increase in run off to the rivers and lakes. The runoff washes pollutants, animal
waste, trash, and sediment into the rivers and lakes thus making their water unsafe (Ferguson et
al., 2018). To make it safe, it has to be treated which is costly.

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References

Blau, J. (2017). The Paris Agreement: climate change, solidarity, and human rights. Springer.
Ferguson, C. R., Pan, M., & Oki, T. (2018). The effect of global warming on future water
availability: CMIP5 synthesis. Water Resources Research, 54(10), 7791-7819.
Kukkonen, A., Ylä‐Anttila, T., & Broadbent, J. (2017). Advocacy coalitions, beliefs and climate
change policy in the United States. Public Administration, 95(3), 713-729.