Speech

                In the United States, we drive 8 billion miles per day.  Think about this:  8 billion miles is equivalent to circling the Earth 320 thousand times.  Eight billion miles produces roughly 4.1 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions, depending on a car’s miles per gallon.  That’s what 8 billion miles of driving does, all coming just from our country, in one day.  Imagine what an entire year of this does to our planet’s atmosphere.  Have I caught your attention yet?

                Our country has a serious problem, an addiction to fossil fuel combustion.  We use gas like there’s no tomorrow, and as we do so, we alter what tomorrow will be.  Every day, we turn the heat on in our houses, we take our cars to school or work, and let’s not forget that Almighty Electricity has come to rule our lives.  All of these seemingly small tasks add up; they contribute to our nation’s carbon dioxide emissions, which further contribute to Earth’s upcoming climate change.  Our nation supplies nearly one fifth of the entire world’s carbon dioxide emissions, and as citizens of this country and this world, we should try to fix that.  People need to adopt more CO₂-reducing activities.  In order to encourage these activities, we will first discuss how carbon dioxide-expensive activities are affecting our lives currently, what can be done to decrease these actions, and the consequence of not preventing them.

                So, how exactly are carbon dioxide emissions affecting our country today?  Increased levels of CO₂ in Earth’s atmosphere are widely believed to be linked to climate change.  Researchers attest that climate change has influenced recent increases in the intensity and frequency of hurricanes.  Mark Wysocki, a Cornell University climatologist, states that CO₂-induced climate change (or “global warming”) “rais[es] the background in which such storms like Sandy can develop ... climate change will provide more opportunities for extreme storms to develop."  As we emit more carbon dioxide, temperatures increase, including in ocean waters; hotter waters produce more water vapor, which, in turn, causes more intense storms and hurricanes.  Fun fact:  In the top 15 busiest hurricane seasons list, 2010, 2011, and 2012 are tied at the number three spot with ­19 storms each year.  Including these three very recent years, ten out of the top 15 years in this list are from 2000 and on.  As the quantity and intensity of hurricanes and storms rises, so does another harmful CO₂-affected danger:  air pollution.  One of the most detrimental types of air pollution is ozone, produced from the emissions of burning fossil fuels, especially from factories and cars.  As we keep these productions steady, we add more and more ozone to the atmosphere, which causes ozone pollution.  Ozone pollution can cause short term damages to our health, such as skin and respiratory system irritations, or long term damages, such as impaired lung function.  While ozone pollution is higher in metropolitan areas, it does hit closer to home with the following ranking.  The Cincinnati area ranks number 21 out of 277 for the highest ozone-polluted air.  If that is not upsetting to you, consider that it is currently ahead of Atlanta in that ranking.

                Caring about and changing the community for the better is imperative, but most people don’t have a clue where to start or the motivation to do so.  Many simple changes can be made to our daily patterns.  Turn off your lights, and open the blinds when it’s sunny; if you’re not watching the TV, don’t have it on; recycle and reuse; switch to energy-efficient CFL light bulbs; try to receive documents electronically rather than in paper form so that deliveries by truck are reduced.  One specific area with room for improvement concerns cars and buses.  Here at Henry Clay, we lack an emphasis on student carpooling.  If you have a sibling or a neighbor who goes to our school, drive them!  Better yet, take the bus to school!  These methods are incredibly simple, but if we all implement them, we can greatly reduce our carbon footprint.

                Even though these ways of keeping our emissions in check are rather undemanding, some simply do not care or want to take the time to perform these actions.  However, in neglecting or ignoring these tasks, consequences will be brought upon our planet.  By 2100, the average global temperature is predicted to increase at least twice as much as it has in the last 100 years.  Also by this time, average temperatures on Earth could rise between two and 11.5 degrees Fahrenheit.  For every two degrees increase in temperature, 15% of the averaged sea ice will have melted; this will greatly contribute to sea levels rising, which are predicted to rise anywhere between 30 inches and 72 inches by 2100.  As the carbon dioxide emissions dissolve into the ocean, the acidity of the oceans becomes greater.  Since pre-industrial times, ocean acidity has increased by 25%, and over the next several decades it will greaten far more; researchers expect that it will cause the extinctions of roughly 30% of marine species.  All of these changes will impact our own lives.  Temperature changes will affect the growth of crops and the forest population.  Sea level changes will affect fisheries, coastal living, and storm surges.  Ocean acidity will affect the marine life, killing off a portion of our food economy.  One effect that stands above them all, though, is the continually increasing air pollution, which will, in time, majorly affect our health.  Air pollution created by power plants alone kills approximately 13,000 people every year.  In 2010, 3.2 million people worldwide died from total air pollution, though especially from vehicles.  Imagine how many more will die as our atmosphere deteriorates even further into the future.

                Clearly, we need to take action.  Currently, carbon dioxide emissions are causing several disasters, including an increase in hurricane intensity and air pollution.  Ways exist for us to take action and make a change to end our old bad habits.  If we do not perform these tasks to take care of our planet, our lives will change for the worse.  Not only will our environment be at risk, but our health as well.  For those inclined to do even more, consider purchasing a hybrid or electric car, encouraging your local politician to support legislation that would improve our emissions standards, visiting the Environmental Protection Agency’s website, or watching the documentary, An Inconvenient Truth.  Whether our steps are small or ground-shaking, we need to come together to face this terrible burden that could haunt us for generations to come.  Thank you.