Author Archives: bbrooks2

Greenhouse Gas Effect

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By: Brady Brooks

Edited by: Ali Niefield

The existential problems with climate change have increased dramatically over the years. The warming of the planet is problem that many describe as the greenhouse gas effect. It’s an issue that has exponentially increased over the past several decades. About 30 percent of the solar energy from the sun is reflected back into space. Furthermore, about 70 percent of the other solar energy is passed through the atmosphere. This heat that is created by the sun is then absorbed by the earth’s space. This heat is then radiated back up in the form of invisible infrared light. The extra heat effects the earth’s land, oceans, and atmosphere.

For almost 800,00 years the concentration of greenhouse gases was between about 200 or 280 parts per million. The higher the concentration of greenhouse gases and carbon dioxide in particular is causing extra heat to be trapped and global temperatures to rise. Unfortunately, over the past century the concentration to more than 400 parts per million. This has been increased mostly due to the human impact of burning fossil fuels.

Greenhouse gases include carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and water vapor and fluorinated gases. These gases arise naturally and part of the make-up of our atmosphere. These greenhouse gases are essential for the planet, but humans have been interfering with the natural energy balance of our planet. The rising levels of carbon dioxide in Earth’s atmosphere has been rising over the past decades. This rise in carbon emissions then causes the planet’s ozone layer to trap heat.

Earth Day 2021

Earth day is an amazing day for our planet and this is such an important holiday for humans to celebrate. Planet Earth has an objective beauty that is incredibly captivating, and she gives all the nutrients and resources we need to live a flourishing life with one another. This wonderful tradition has been going on since 1970 and is celebrated every year on April 22.

Ways to Help Fight Climate Change

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Written by: Brady Brooks

Edited by: Ali Niefield

 

Grab a group of your friends and go out and explore the horizon of your environment. Feel the thickness in the air and the scarcity of wildlife. After that, notice the beauty and wonder of our planet that still shines. We are at dire straights here but the time is not too late. Our planet is still breathing but her lungs are weak . If we can come together as a state and work to spread awareness then this issue will be more fluid in conversations throughout the country. This brings me to the first and possibly most useful way to help fight climate change: spread awareness.

Building Awareness

Fully accepting the problem is the first step in solving it. The positive of this situation is that the amount of people that believe in climate change is increasing. The difficulty of this conversation is that there isn’t much entertainment or fire behind it. If you notice during the political discourse in our society the environment is rarely talked unless it’s something that’s extreme like the recent Texas blizzard. Hopefully this problem will become more of a focal point in the political discussions than what is it is right now.

 

 

Promote clean energy

Personally, switching over to clean energy will not only help your paybook but help promote an eco-friendlier lifestyle. This situation is difficult though because so much of our economy is already based in the oil market. However, there are always ways to help fight this problem and it doesn’t have to by buying an electric car. Weatherizing your home is helpful in this spring and fall time to save some money on the energy bill and help save the planet. Switching over to solar energy and limiting the amount of water use will help exponentially as well.

 

Planting Trees

Earth essentially has two much carbon emissions in the atmosphere caused the burning of fossil fuels that’s affecting the ozone layer. Planting trees will help the wildlife as well help diminish the carbon emission problem. Trees are vitally important for the planet’s oxygen to help keep its balance and equilibrium.

Facts about Climate Change

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Written By: Brady Brooks

Edited By: Ali Niefield

Scientists predict that if we keep on burning fossil fuels at our current rate it will result in damages that will be irreversible on our climate. They predict that the increase in greenhouse gases emissions will increase the temperature by about 10 degrees Fahrenheit by the end of the century. Yes, this information is gloomy and pessimistic, but this is the cold hard truth and it’s important for us Texans to understand that.

The first step in solving this existential problem is being aware and recognizing that it exists. Our campaign is focused on challenging the officials of the fossil fuel industry and presenting them will valid information that debunks their false beliefs.

What are Fossil Fuels?

The main fossil fuels that are used in Texas are coal, oil, and natural gas. These fossil fuels produce large quantities of carbon dioxide when they are burned. Carbon emissions then trap heat in the atmosphere and lead to climate change.

Why You Should Care About Texas Carbon Emissions

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Why You Should Care About Texas Carbon Emissions

By: Ali N, Brady B, Brianna C, Caitlyn G, Taylor A

The state of Texas uses a total of 707 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions. This number is quite disturbing for various reasons. Not only do we lead the country in carbon emissions, but we also lead by a wide margin. The second most amount of carbon emissions is in the state of California with a total of 359. Keep in mind too that California has a little over 39 million people that live in their state and Texas has 29 million. https://www.eia.gov/state/rankings/?sid=TX#/series/101

This statistic shouldn’t be discouraging but rather motivating because it makes it exceedingly clear that we need to transition our energy use. This is a problem that we can solve together as a unified state. Texas has strong pride and we just need to find a way to use that attitude for a positive outcome. Our campaign is focused on providing clear and evidential facts on the details of climate change.

Another mind-blowing statistic is that Texas has a total energy production of 20,421 trillion btu. The second most in the country is Pennsylvania at 8,987 trillion btu. Let’s really take some time to digest this information and think about why this isn’t talked about. The total energy production and carbon emissions in Texas are literally in a category of their own. This problem is significant but going green can greatly assist in slowing down carbon emissions.  https://www.eia.gov/state/rankings/?sid=TX#/series/101

The reason this information is kept quiet is because fossil fuels is the backbone of the Texas Economy. Whenever money is involved the truth seems to be less significant. Let’s do our best to challenge the fossil fuel industry with facts and peacefully combat their disinformation.Texas is unfortunately a massive threat to the environment and it’s incredibly important for people to be informed of the truth. The first step in solving a problem is recognizing it.

 

Green Texas

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The Need for Texas to Switch to Green Energy

By: Brady Brooks

Green Texas? sounds like an oxymoron doesn’t it… The state that prides itself on oil fields, cowboy boots, ranches and hating liberals needs to take a progressive approach, how shameful! The fact of the matter though is that the necessity of this transformation is more crucial than it’s ever been before. We are at a point where the repercussions of burning fossil fuels will be irreversible for our environment. The state that is notorious for it’s oil economy needs to transition to renewable energy now and here is why:

Climate Change

When fossil fuels are burned they release large quantities of carbon dioxide into the air. These carbon emissions then trap heat into our atmosphere resulting in global warming. This predicament with the fossil fuel industry is more vital than it’s ever been before. The economy of Texas is based off of oil and natural gas and this is why it’s essential for us to challenge these traditions.

Recent Snow Storm

Texas just experienced a disastrous blizzard that put thousands of citizens out of water and electricity. This was an horrendous experience for Texas as a whole but luckily it made the issue of climate change more of a discussion. The power outages that happened throughout the state were a direct result of Texas being too reliant on fossil fuels. About 88 percent of the energy in Texas is powered by fossil fuels and that energy proved to be unsustainable.

Ways to help

  • Power your home with a utility company that mostly uses wind and solar energy
  • Pull the plug on technology devices when they are not being used
  • Limit the water usage! take shorter showers and for God’s sake turn off the sink water when your brushing your teeth (I know it’s difficult to remember sometimes)
  • Try to limit how much you use air-conditioning. Weatherizing your home can help profoundly
  • Invest in energy-efficient appliances
  • Limit food waste!
  • Use energy-efficient vehicles and it doesn’t have to be a Tesla because a Prius is just as fabulous.

The most important thing we can do as a state is to vocalize these issues and peacefully protest the fossil fuel industry. With the power of social media and other communication platforms we can unite in this fight together. There’s power in numbers and the more people that challenge this tradition the more effective the movement will be. It’s a problem that has been going on for way too long and its our time to stop it.

 

Resources:

https://climate.nasa.gov/evidence/

https://www.globalchange.gov/climate-change

https://www.nytimes.com/live/2021/02/17/us/winter-storm-weather-live