Global Climate Change Overview
For a brief introduction to climate change, click here on the following YouTube video links.
Videos on the Climate Change
1) ABC News Tonight on Climate Change
2) AAAS Climate change
Definition:
Climate change refers to any significant change in measures of climate (such as temperature, precipitation, or wind) lasting for an extended period (decades or longer).
Source: EPA Background Information
Climate change is not the same as global warming. Global warming is an average increase in the temperature of the atmosphere near the Earth's surface and in the troposphere, which can contribute to changes in global climate patterns. Global warming can occur from a variety of causes, both natural and human induced. In common usage, "global warming" often refers to the warming that can occur as a result of increased emissions of greenhouse gases from human activities.
Source: EPA Background Information
Background:
- Past climate change: Changes in the earth’s orbit, changes in sun intensity, volcanic eruptions (aerosol & CO2 emissions) [Pre 1780]
- Last 2000 years: relatively stable climate, with a few exceptions… one being the last 100 years (industrial age – increasing emissions)
- Recently: human activities added to the amount of heat-trapping greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, burning of fossil fuels = increase aerosols
- Greenhouse gases + aerosols = changing composition of earths atmosphere; influenced temp, precipitation, and storms…but exact amount is hard to pinp
Causes:
Components of the Climate System
Climate change can be caused by a variety of factors, both natural and human induced
- There are natural factors, such as changes in the sun’s intensity or slow changes in the Earth’s orbit around the sun
- Natural processes within the climate system (changes in ocean circulation)
- Human activities that change the atmosphere’s composition (burning fossil fuels) and land surface (deforestation, reforestation)
Source: EPA Background Information
Link: This Website allows you to look around the world at the sources and signs of global warming.
Human Drivers of Climate Change
- Carbon Dioxide; a critical green house gas, dramatic increase in industrial era, forcing climate change, higher concentration than for more than 600,000 year
- Fossil fuels
- Water Vapor
- Methane
- Nitrous Oxide
- Warming Masks
- Deforestation
Signs of Global Warming
- Atmospheric water vapor increasing
- Glaciers melting in Greenland, Alaska, Hialaya, Antarctic peninsula
- Arctic sea ice thinning and disappearing
- Melting of permafrost in Canada, Alaska, and Siberi
- Extreme temperatures increasing
Source: ipcc and discovery channel
Source: IPCC
Effects:
"Climate strongly Influences the availability of water, the productivity of farms, foress, and fisheries; the prevalence of oppressive heat and humidity; the geography of disease; the damages to be expected from storms, floods, and droughts, and wildfires; the property losses to be expected from sea-level rise; the investments of cpaital technology, and energy devoted to amelorioating aspets of climate we don't like; and the distribution and abundance of species of all kinds...."
Source: John P. Holdron from Sciencemag.org
Map of Effects:
Link: Go to this link to see locations around the world that are effected by global climate change.
Scenario Predictions Describe Bleak Outlook
The effects of climate change are described according to different scenarios. Out of the three scenarios described on the accompanying website, the following represents the most expected scenario:
“It will be the developing nations in the Earth’s low latitudinal bands and sub-Saharan Africa that will be most adversely affected by climate change. In the developing world, even a relatively small climatic shift can trigger or exacerbate food shortages, water scarcity, destructive weather events, the spread of disease, human migration, and natural resource competition. These crises are all the more dangerous because they are interwoven and self-perpetuating..."
-John Podesta and Peter Ogden
This scenario prediction includes environmental and national security stresses, as follows:
Key selected environmental stresses based on scenario assumptions
- Water scarcity affects up to 1.7 billion people
- Changed distribution of some infectious disease vectors & allergenic pollen species
- Up to 3 million additional people at risk of flooding
- Up to 30 million more people at risk of hunger due to crop failure
Key selected national security implications based on scenario assumptions
- Conflict over resources due to and driving human migration
- Immigrants – or even simply visitors – from a country in which there has been a significant disease outbreak may not be welcomed and could be subject to quarantine & lead to loss of national income from restricted tourism
- Dissatisfaction with state governments could radicalize internal politics and create new safe havens in weak and failing states
To see this scenario and two other, more severe, scenarios fully described, visit the website below.
Mitigation of Climate Change:
1. Energy efficiency and conservation
Energy conservation is the practice of increasing the efficiency of use of energy in order to achieve higher useful output for the same energy consumption
Building insulation, fluorescent lighting, and public transportation
conserve energy => reduce energy costs and promote environmental values. Industrial and commercial users may want to increase efficiency => maximize profit.
2. Advocating a smarter approach Urban Development & smarter and land use planning
-Techniques Include: compact community development, multiple transportation choices, mixed land uses, and practices to conserve green space.
These programs offer environmental, economic, and quality-of-life benefits; and reduce energy usage and greenhouse gas emissions.
-Emissions from housing are substantial, buiding design
New buildings can be constructed through the use of insulation, high-efficiency appliances, and lighter-coloured, more reflective materials
3. Alternative Transportation that reduce emission
- A shift from air transport and truck transport to electric rail transport would reduce emissions significantly.[14][15]
- increasing the fuel efficiency of vehicles
-Increased use of biofuels also reduce emissions
4. Use Alternative or renewable energy sources
A. Nuclear energy
-Pro: the future role of nuclear power as a possible alternative to fossil fuels.
-Con: phase out nuclear power for environmental, social, cost and political reasons.
Renewable Energy: Wind Power
-Wind power is the conversion of wind energy into useful form, such as electricity
5. Legal Action:
Legal action has also been taken to try to force the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to regulate greenhouse gas emissions under the Clean Air Act,[59]
some countries, those affected by climate change may be able to sue major producers, in a parallel to the lawsuits against tobacco companies.
6. Personal choices
-individuals and businesses can also play a part in the mitigation effort.
-Common recommendations include lowering home heating and cooling usage, burning less gasoline, supporting renewable energy sources, turning off unused devices, and various others.
- Specifically, the industrial sector uses 38 percent of total energy, closely followed by the transportation sector at 28 percent, the residential sector at 19 percent, and the commercial sector at 16 percent.
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