5.2 Global Warming

• Greenhouse gases - Carbon Dioxide (CO2), Methane (CH4), Nitrous Oxide (N2O), Water Vapor (H2O), Clouds, Halocarbons, Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), Perfluorocarbons (PFCs) and Sulfur Hexafluoride (SF6)
• To be able to understand climate change is to understand the concept of Greenhouse Effect
• By burning fossil fuels due to industrialization and to sustain our modern lifestyle, the level of GHGs increase rapidly
• The Anthropogenic Sources of GHGs

  Human activities that lead to the increase in concentration of greenhouse gases include:

  * Worldwide deforestation

  * Increasing industrial activity

  * Motor vehicle emission and;

  * Waste management practices

  * Carbon sequestration
• Basically, there are three main human sources of GHGs:

  * Energy generation and industrial processes

  * Transportation and

  * Land-use and agriculture
• There are other three man-made GHGs which were initially intended to replace chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) to prevent further depletion of the ozone layer. However, they were found to be harmful greenhouse gases. These are Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), Perfluorocarbons (PFCs) and Sulfur Hexafluoride (SF6)