The world witnessed the emergence and expansion of the first industrial revolution, which emerged in Britain, between the mid-18th and mid-19th centuries.
For thousands of years, man has played an important role in bringing about many changes to climate and nature. In addition to causing the extinction of a large number of living organisms, human activities, especially industrial ones, have affected the Earth’s climate, leading to high temperatures and the spread of diseases.
Although climate change accelerated in the twentieth century, the beginning of climate change was recorded about 250 years ago. This dates back to the period that coincided with the world’s first industrial revolution.
The First Industrial Revolution
The First Industrial Revolution, which lasted between the mid-18th and mid-19th centuries, represented a period of scientific and technical progress during which the world witnessed significant changes that affected the methods and means of production. The first seeds of this first industrial revolution were embraced by the countries of Western Europe, its colonies, and the United States, which focused mainly on the iron, coal, and textile sectors.
On the other hand, Britain was the first country to witness the start of this first industrial revolution. Hoping to maintain its technological edge, Britain issued strict decrees banning the export of machinery, the transfer of manufacturing methods, and the migration of experienced workers.
Britain has not been able to maintain this technological edge for long. Gradually, industrial programs, which appeared mainly in Britain, moved to many Western European countries, such as France and Belgium, before reaching the United States, which relied on an immigration program through which it tried to attract British industrial talent.
Charcoal and uprooting trees
In addition, the period of the First Industrial Revolution saw a significant increase in carbon dioxide emissions for two main reasons. During this period between the mid-eighteenth and mid-nineteenth centuries, industrial powers tended to rely heavily on coal as an energy source. On the other hand, many countries have tended to uproot a huge number of trees in order to adapt them for various purposes, ranging mainly from the manufacture of wood charcoal to construction. In many parts of present-day Canada, Britain has uprooted a huge number of trees, depending on the investors there, in order to turn them into wooden planks and export them to British lands.
In Britain, these planks were sent to shipyards to meet the needs of the British Navy.
On the other hand, the import of Canadian wood witnessed a huge increase and led to the destruction of many forests following the continental blockade imposed by Napoleon Bonaparte on Britain beginning in 1806. Deprived of Baltic wood, Britain opted to turn to Canadian wood to meet the growing needs of shipyards.
On the other hand, after its independence, the United States of America lived with the impact of a similar policy. Needing timber and more arable land for construction and construction, Americans cut down vast quantities of trees along the Mississippi River.
As these factors accumulated in the midst of the first industrial revolution, many scientists tended to warn of climate variability that could affect the future of the Earth. During the nineteenth century, the French mathematician Joseph Fourier spoke about the phenomenon of the greenhouse effect and global warming. In the fifties of the nineteenth century, the American scientist Eunice Foote discovered the impact of carbon dioxide on the climate and caused it to rise in temperatures.
