Poison for One – Food for Another

Vocabulary/new concepts:

Greenhouse effect – a natural process that regulates the temperature of our planet and is necessary for the existence of all living things on Earth. It allows the Sun’s rays to pass through the atmosphere and warm the Earth’s surface, trapping much of the heat radiation and preventing it from returning to space. Human activity is negatively affecting this process with a lot of carbon dioxide being emitted, causing the average temperature of the Earth’s surface to rise due to the build-up of greenhouse gases.

Global warming – increased concentration of greenhouse gases resulting in an increase in the temperature of the Earth’s atmosphere and global ocean. This leads to climate change, natural disasters, habitat change in wildlife, extinction of flora and fauna, rising sea levels and other serious consequences.

The main characteristics of carbon dioxide

It is a chemical element, a colourless, odourless gas and is a natural component of the earth’s atmosphere and is also produced by various human activities. It is denoted by CO₂. Carbon dioxide plays a key role in the Earth’s cycle of nature. It is released into the atmosphere through natural processes such as respiration, volcanic eruptions and the decay of organic matter. Carbon dioxide is the main food of all plant species. They absorb it from the atmosphere, retain the carbon they need and release oxygen. Without carbon dioxide, plants would die, and animals and humans would follow. Also, various human activities, such as burning fossil fuels (coal, oil and natural gas), deforestation and industrial processes, contribute significantly to the rise in CO₂ levels in the atmosphere.