Green house gases and Global warming

Different types of short-wave radiations from space turns to the ling wave radiations after striking earth's surface. Although most part of such long wave radiations goes back to the space, some portion of it may get trapped inside the earth's atmosphere. Gases like water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane provides the trap which after continuous alternative absorption and reflection of those radiations conserves heat as glass in a green house does. It is for this reason such gases are known as greenhouse gases. The major greenhouse gases existing naturally are water vapor followed by carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide. Human made chemicals that act as greenhouse gases include chlorofluorocarbon, hydrochloroflurocarbon and hydroflurocarbon.
Global warming refers to the increase in the average temperature of the Earth's near-surface air and oceans in recent decades and its projected continuation. As the concentration of greenhouse gases in atmosphere increases, more heat energy remains trapped below. When the concentration of those gases exceeds a certain limit , the earth's temperature is pushed towards continual warming thus resulting in the global warming. The predicted effects of global warming on the environment and for human life are numerous and varied. Rising sea levels, glacier retreat, and altered patterns of agriculture are cited as direct consequences, but predictions for secondary and regional effects include extreme weather events, an expansion of tropical diseases, and drastic economic impacts. Among these impacts, those requiring special attention are as follows:-

1) Weather

According to the scientists, the warmed world will be more humid. Since water vapor is a green house gas its increased presence will add to the insulating effect in the earth's surface. Greater humidity will increase rainfall and storms are expected to be more frequent and intense. De to continuous warming regions that receives light winter snows may receive no snow at all in future.

2) Sea Levels

Warming will melt glacier ice raising the sea level. Sea level world wide rose 10-25 cm during 20th century. Sea level rise will complicate many lives near costal areas. Erosion of cliffs and bleaches will increase.

2) Agriculture
Although the warmed earth will produce as much food as it used to but the change in weather of different places directly affects the agricultural systems. Types of plants and crops that used to be grown in a certain place may now grow well in some other parts. Analyzing the new places for different plants and vegetation is a vague job.

3) Animals and Plants
Due to global warming, animals will tend to migrate toward the poles and plants will shift their ranges seeking new habitats to grow. Both animals and plants will find difficult to escape from the consequences of global warming finally struggling for their existence.

4) Human Health
Global warming has a very negative impact on human health. Diseases now found in the tropics will widen their range. Epidemics of diseases like malaria, cholera, dengue fever, encephalitis are seen to spread more easily in hotter days than in winter season.

Efforts to reduce global warming
Various national and international programs for the control the adverse effects of global warming and the global warming itself have been conducted.. People are being made conscious about the impacts of greenhouse gases and their contribution to the global warming. Some of the efforts at international level for the control of global warming are as follows.

In the Earth Summit conducted in 1992 in Rio de Janeiro, 150 countries pledged to confront the problems of greenhouse gases and agreed to meet again to translate these good intentions into a good treaty.
In 1997 in Japan 160 countries drafted an agreement known as Kyoto Protocol. This treaty call for 38 industrialized countries that now release the maximum quantity of green house gases and to cut their emissions to level 5 percent below than that in 1990. More recently, European and Asian nations renewed their commitment to solve the problem as discussed in Kyoto Protocol.. On September 11, 2006 European and Asian leaders met in Helsinki, Finland, at their bi-yearly Asia-Europe Summit (ASEM) to discuss what to do about stemming greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions after the Kyoto Protocol on Climate Change expires in 2012. While stopping short of setting new targets beyond the Kyoto agreement, the leaders did agree to keep reducing GHG emissions after the Kyoto Protocol expires.
Japan GHG Reduction Fund (JGRF) is a carbon fund (scale of about 140 million dollars) that was established in December 2004 by 33 Japanese participating firms. With the funds invested by partners, JGRF implements projects to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in developing countries, etc., and the amount of CO2 emissions reduced by the projects (CO2 credits) is distributed to the partners.