Page 217 - Çevre Şehir İklim İngilizce - Sayı 2

Ramazan Değirmenci - Gözde Nur Akşan - Seçil Hadımlıoğlu - Berna Yılmaz

Introduction

Climate change is the change of the Earth's climate due to the increase
in average temperatures measured land, sea and air,which change gradually
as a result of the increase heat-trapping gases in the atmosphere such as
carbon dioxide and the greenhouse effect (Jabareen, 2013: 221). According to
the UN Climate Change Framework Convention, the term “climate change”
is defined as “a change of climate which is attributed directly or indirectly
to human activity that alters the composition of the global atmosphere and
which is in addition to natural climate variability observed over comparable
time periods.” Global climate change, on the other hand, refers to the rise
in the temperatures on Earth due to the rapid increase in greenhouse gases
released to the atmosphere because of anthropogenic effects such the use of
fossil fuels, changes in land use, deforestation and industrial processes. (İğci
and Çobanoğlu, 2019: 131).
According to World Wildlife Fund (WWF), the atmosphere of our planet
works just like a greenhouse. Almost half the solar rays reaching the Earth
reflects back. Due to the greenhouse gasses, such as carbon dioxide, methane,
water vapor, ozone, nitrogen oxide, etc., our atmosphere send the solar rays
reflected from the Earth back to the Earth. As they serve as a blanket, thanks to
greenhouse gases, the average temperature on Earth can reach 15°C, allowing
humans, animals and plant to survive. If there weren’t greenhouse gasses, the
average temperature of the Earth could drop to around -18°C. This natural
effect of greenhouse gasses is called “the greenhouse effect”.
The WWF states that the percentage of greenhouse gases in the
atmosphere began to rise following the Industrial Revolution that started
in the 1750s, increasing by 40%, from 280 ppm to 394 ppm. According to
the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the increase in the
amount of carbon dioxide results primarily from the use of fossil fuels. The
second notable factor is the change in land use, especially deforestation.
The research reveals that the greenhouse gas emissions result from increased
fossil fuel use due to human activities, which leads to a change in global climate
(that is, the conditions spanning over 30 years). Moreover, urban systems that
influence energy, buildings, and land use as well as agriculture and industry
play a great role in greenhouse gas emissions (McMichael et al, 2004: 1543).
To minimize the greenhouse gas emissions at the urban scale it is necessary to
consider renewable energy from energy sources, and the selection of materials
and carbon sinks and the ratio of green areas in urban development.
The changes to be realized in energy and material consumption, approaches
to be adopted by urban residents, and conversion of renewable energy to

203 Journal of Environment, Urbanization and Climate