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Global Warming

  • Writer: Sophia Li
    Sophia Li
  • Jan 31, 2022
  • 2 min read

Think back to mid-December, did it truly feel like a December, or more like a February? You could probably place the blame on the lack of snow. Somewhere around winter break, however, it snowed. It snowed just enough to make the ground a powdery white, but it wasn’t even enough to cover all the blades of grass. A couple of days later, it melted anyways. Why, though?


Global warming shouldn’t be anything new to you, and it probably won’t be on the top of your concerns, either. Simply because there’s not much we can do about it, or that we’re not willing to give away the things that give comfort and convenience to us. So what is global warming? Global warming is, shockingly enough, the warming of our planet (Woah). Greenhouse gasses, mostly consisting of carbon dioxide and methane, trap heat when the sun shines on the Earth. Like a blanket, these gasses keep heat from escaping. Why are greenhouse gasses in our atmosphere? Human activities burn fossil fuels like coal. Solar and wind energy alone cannot sustain seven billion people on the planet, so we rely on fossil fuels instead. Fossil fuels are used for energy, from creating the desired temperature in a home to transporting things around the world, usually in the form of electricity. Around 70% of all electricity is from burning fossil fuels and the rest is from green energy like nuclear, solar, hydro, and wind. Burning fossil fuels creates greenhouse gasses that warm up the planet. Wet places will get wetter and dry places drier, causing severe floods and droughts. Winters will become warmer and summers unbearably hot. You already saw the lack of snow this winter.


Global warming isn’t completely dependent on fossil fuels, though. Farming animals also produce greenhouse gasses. In addition, growing crops such as rice produces loads of methane, and to add to that, landfills release carbon dioxide.


Snow did fall in late December and early January but if this pattern continues, where winters scarcely provide snow, we might have winters without snow. This also contributes to the summers being too hot. As an individual, there’s not much you can do. You can only prevent global warming so much by yourself. Plus, you should know what the right thing to do is, but you might not be willing to do so. Assuming that you can vote, you can cast your vote to people who care about the planet and will contribute to the stopping of global warming. Assuming that you can’t vote, open or close the doors accordingly to keep in or release heat. Turn off lights when not in use. Try not to waste food. As a group, collectively, we can end global warming.


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The Steffen Sentinel Newspaper
The student news site of Steffen Middle School in Mequon, Wisconsin.

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