GLOBAL WARMING
(prepared by Jacek Piwowarczyk)

I am sure that everybody has heard about global warming. Today I would like to share with you what global warming means and how you can help to stop the process.

What is global warming? Global warming means that the average surface temperature of the Earth, our planet, is increasing. Why is it increasing? Mainly because people burn a lot of fossil fuels (which formed millions of years ago from the remains of prehistoric plants and animals) like coal, oil and gas. Burning fossil fuels causes the so called greenhouse gasses (the most important of these gasses is carbon dioxide CO₂) to escape into the air and these gasses are responsible for most of the warming.

Another reason for global warming is the cutting down of trees (this process is called deforestation), because trees absorb carbon dioxide,  one of the greenhouse gasses, from the air.

What will happen if global warming continues? There are already some changes happening because of the global warming. The sea level is rising and some animals are already moving to new homes. If the warming gets worse, as scientists expect, some plants will become extinct (disappear completely), because they can’t move to new homes.

There may be more storms and floods. The sea level may rise so much that people would have to move away from the coast. Some areas may become too dry for farming.

What  can we do to help stop global warming? Of course, instead of waiting for what governments and VIPs decide to do about global warming, each of us can do something to help. Scientists agree that the burning of fossil fuels is causing global warming. Since these fuels are burned for energy, and everyone uses energy, everyone can help stop global warming by using less energy.

Think about the things that you do each day that use energy. The lights in your home use electricity. The TV and computer use electricity. The washing machine uses electricity, etc.

There are very simple things that everyone can do to help stop global warming:

- Turn of the lights when you leave a room. Use energy saving bulbs in your house.

- Turn of your computer or the TV when you’re not using them.

- Wait until you have a lot of clothes to wash before using the washing machine.

- Take shorter showers. Water heaters use a lot of energy. Save water. There are already areas that don’t have enough water.

- Close blinds on a hot day if the sun is shining in. Dress more lightly instead of asking for the air-conditioning to be turned up, or use a fan.

- Offer to help your parents keep the air filters on your air-conditioners clean.

- Plant a tree.

- Learn more about global warming so you can talk to people about it.

VOCABULARY:

GLOBAL WARMING

INCREASE

FOSSIL FUELS

OIL

COAL

GREENHOUSE GASSES

CARBON DIOXIDE (CO₂)

DEFORESTATION

ABSORB

EXTINCT

BLINDS

FILTERS