Can we solve the climate crisis without confronting global inequities?
A recent study in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA found that white residents in the USA produce more climate pollution than black or hispanic residents, but black and hispanic people are exposed to more air pollution.
And that is just the USA! Think about the global inequities in the "haves" and the "have nots".
And how are we going to lift people out of poverty without making the climate crisis even worse?
If you are a resident in a wealthy country, is it your responsibility to address both problems at once? And what would that look like in terms of national and international policy?
Environmental Justice >
Trees Effects on Climate Change
Trees are a vital variable in the discussion of climate change, as they can slow the effects of global warming. In the process of photosynthesis, trees absorb carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases that heat up the planet. Therefore, trees actually cool the planet and reverse the effects of global warming. They also provide shade, purify the air, conserve water, and prevent erosion. Arbor Day Foundation points out, "Neighborhoods with well-shaded streets can be up to 6–10° F cooler than neighborhoods without street trees, reducing the heat-island effect (see illustration below), and reducing energy needs." Trees have the potential to significantly slow the effects of global warming, which is why deforestation is a huge issue today. All of the benefits that trees have to offer are greatly reduced due to the deforestation that occurs on a massive scale. We realistically should be planting more trees, rather than cutting them down. A statistic from Scientific American shows that "According to the World Carefree Network (WCN), cars and trucks account for about 14 percent of global carbon emissions, while most analysts attribute upwards of 15 percent to deforestation." Trees can slow the effects of global warming, but we cannot stand in their way. We need to plant more trees and stop deforestation if we want to slow global warming.
Links: https://www.arborday.org/trees/climatec … munity.cfm
https://www.scientificamerican.com/arti … ccordingly.
Trees are so important! Thank you for the great information. I didn't know about the cooling effects of trees in neighborhoods, that is super interesting.
Trees are also critical when it comes to reducing noise pollution. Noise pollution is a greatly unobserved issue even though we experience it every day, especially living in cities. It impacts humans and other species greatly. Humans experience hearing loss, but there are more effects than that. Living in a noisy environment increases stress and hypertension which can lead to cardiovascular disease. Noise pollution impacts sleep as well, which has the short-term impacts of difficulty focusing and increased irritability.
Animals experience many effects of noise pollution as well. It disrupts communication, mating and life cycles, and hunting. Not only do predators struggle to track and hunt, prey struggle to evade and escape.
Trees can help mitigate and absorb sound. It's critical that we do not remove trees from natural & city spaces but cultivate natural life by planting trees.
(I supplemented my knowledge with these two articles from TreeHugger:
How do Trees Reduce Noise Pollution? - by Anna Nordseth
Noise Pollution Is a Major Threat to Many Different Kinds of Animals, Study Finds - by Russell McLedon)