Are These Climate Change Myths True or False?

Climate change is one of the greatest environmental challenges of our time. Despite its clear and present danger, there are still many myths about climate change circulating around the world and preventing us from taking action to save our planet. Here, we’ll debunk five of these common myths.

Myth 1: Climate Change is Not Caused by Humans

Despite overwhelming scientific evidence to the contrary, there are still some who believe that humans have nothing to do with climate change. This is simply untrue. The vast majority of scientists agree that rising greenhouse gas emissions, primarily from burning fossil fuels like oil and coal, are directly responsible for the warming of our planet.

Myth 2: Carbon Dioxide (CO2) is Not a Greenhouse Gas

Another false claim is that carbon dioxide (CO2), one of the most important greenhouse gases in our atmosphere, does not trap heat and warm our planet. In reality, CO2 absorbs infrared radiation emitted from Earth’s surface and re-emits it back downwards as heat — exactly what you would expect from a greenhouse gas!

Myth 3: It’s Too Late to Stop Climate Change

This myth has some truth behind it — it will likely take generations before we’re able to reverse some of the more damaging impacts of climate change that have already occurred — but it’s certainly not too late to prevent further warming and damage by curbing emissions today. We can still make meaningful progress against global warming in our lifetime by relying on innovative technologies like renewable energy or carbon capture storage systems.

Myth 4: We Don’t Need To Worry About Climate Change Because It Will Fix Itself Eventually

Nature has many incredible self-healing capacities but unfortunately this isn’t one of them. Once CO2 is released into the atmosphere it takes hundreds of years for natural processes to remove it again; meaning we need active intervention if we want any chance at reducing global temperatures in our lifespan.

Myth 5: There’s Nothing an Individual Can Do To Help Slow Down Climate Change

This couldn’t be further from the truth! As individuals, we can contribute a great deal towards slowing climate change just through everyday actions such as driving less, cutting down on meat consumption or investing in renewable energy sources for your home. Our individual efforts may seem small compared to large corporations or governments but together they make a powerful statement for a brighter future!