The global issue of climate change

TABLE OF CONTENT

THE GLOBAL ISSUE OF CLIMATE CHANGE

1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
2. INTRODUCTION
3. Climate Change and global warming
4. THE MAIN CAUSE IN DEBATE
5. GLOBAL ATTITUDES REGARDING CLIMATE CHANGE
6. AUSTRALIA AND ITS POSITION REGARDING CLIMATE CHANGE
1. CARBON POLLUTION REDUCTION SCHEME (CPRS)
7. CONCLUSION
1. Recommendation

Executive Summary

This report wascommissioned to briefly define climate change and examine the current debate regarding the main causes of climate change as well as discussed the position Australia is adopting in response to the global issue. Methods of research include a survey, diverse articles and web pages regarding the topic. The mayor findings highlight that climate change is due to human activities, but the debate regardingclimate change remain. While climate change is a global issue, solutions must also be taken as globally for all countries.

1. INTRODUCTION
It has become common to talk about the disasters that occur frequently in the planet, whether are by human action or natural, the matter is that the environment might be harmed and suffered serious consequences for life in a not too distant future. In factclimate change is a reality, not a problem of the future, as has been seen until recently. Certainly, climate change is embedded within a broader perspective as global change, which is a challenge to be faced. This report will define climate change and examine the current debate regarding the main causes of climate change, as well as discuss the position Australia is adopting in response to climatechange focusing on the strategies it is applying.

2. Climate Change and global warming
The CSIRO (2009) defined Climate change as the long-term variation of the global climate due to internal factors, such as natural processes as well as external factors, such as human activities. However, the climate has always varied; the problem is that in the last century the pace of these changes has beengreatly accelerated causing several long-term consequence. Global warming is an example of climate change that occurs worldwide and is the result in increased of the mean temperatures, compared to the values of average temperatures and normal reference (Australian Government DCCEE, 2010).

Additionally, Australian Government DCCEE (2010) described the greenhouse effect as a naturalatmospheric phenomenon that keeps the planet's temperature by retaining part of the energy from the sun. However, if this natural phenomenon is altered, it may lead to the subsequent increase in global temperature causing long term as well as permanent consequences. It only takes a slight change in temperature to break the delicate balance of nature.

3. THE MAIN CAUSE IN DEBATE
The climatechange issue is still a matter of debate.
On the one hand, there are those who argue that the main cause of rising temperatures is the human activities that result in increased emissions of greenhouse gases as it is producing CO2 emissions, which lead to global warming. On the other hand, there are those who believe that everything is an exaggeration, as the geologist Ian Plimer, who is againstall the popular beliefs regarding climate change and also criticize the work of environmental scientists.

In the book Heaven and the Earth, Plimer (2009) argues that the evidence presented by other scientists is unreliable, as they evaluated just few aspects regarding the global issue; as well as they predictions about future climate, due to it is based only in calculation of supercomputers apart from the different phenomena occurring on the planet.

Like Plimer, there are other people who are against the popular belief. However, in seeking the cause of the accelerated increase of temperature, several studies, supported by different organization such as UNEP , have found that there is a direct relationship between climate change and the emissions of greenhouse gases...