Venezuela uses a practice called gas flaring that is so wasteful it is a wonder it is still happening today. Gas flaring is the practice of burning off the natural gas which is a by-product to extracting oil. By doing this, carbon dioxide and methane are released into the air, which are a major greenhouse gases (Kislinger). Theses gases have caused the temperature to raise 5.5 degrees fahrenheit in the 20th century alone (Pashley). Another side effect of gas flaring is the machines used to extract the oil leave behind a toxic amount of aluminum in the soil. This severely affects the vegetation and the nutrient balance and leads to a shift in what can be grown there (Bonaccorso). Along with the temperature rising comes a shift in the water cycle.
