How Do Greenhouse Gases Affect Climate?
The amount of carbon dioxide from combustion of fossil fuels, as explained in the previous section, released an enormous volume into the atmosphere. Between the years 1870 and 1980, the average concentration of atmospheric carbon dioxide increased from 290 to 335 ppm (parts per million) and it is now standing at about 350 ppm. This leads to an increase in temperature globally, hence known as global warming of the atmosphere. It is common to lay the blame for excessive emissions of gases unfriendly to the environment at the feet of the large industrial nations of the world, like Europe and North America, but it is important to keep in mind that we must all maintain vigilance. For example, an Asian study recently reported that the amount of carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere from the Indonesian forest fires during late 1997 associated with the El Niño-induced droughts at that time (but also questionable farming practices) was equivalent to the amount generated throughout the who
