Post on 21-Jan-2016
CONSEQUENCES OF GLOBAL WARMING.
Why it Matters
You know that CO2 levels in the atmosphere are higher now than anytime in over 500,000 years.
You know CO2 and global temperatures are directly linked.
What you may not know is why a warmer world is a more dangerous and difficult world to live in.
Consequence #1: Sea Ice Melt As sea ice of the Arctic and Antarctic
melts, it causes several problems: Loss of habitat for polar organisms Increased iceberg danger to shipping Increased conflict over potential
resources
Habitat loss for polar animals
Polar Bears: Threatened with Extinction
Icebergs: bad for Ships
A flotilla of hundreds of icebergs that split off Antarctic ice shelves is drifting toward New Zealand and could pose a risk to ships in the South Pacific, officials said Tuesday.
The nearest one, about 90 feet tall, was 160 miles southeast of Stewart Island, said Neal Young, an Australian glaciologist. Ice shelves have routinely sloughed off icebergs, but he said the rate appeared to
be increasing as a result of regional warming in Antarctica. He said he counted 230 icebergs in two satellite images alone.
Conflict Over a New Sea
Consequence #2: Land Ice Melt
The melting of glaciers and ice sheets have serious implications: Sea level rise Water shortages Permafrost melt
Sea Level Rise The melting of land ice, like that of
Greenland and Antarctica, adds to the volume of water in the Ocean.
Sea Level Rise
Sea-level Refugees: Up to 150 Million by 2050
Glacier Melt Water Shortage Over 1 billion people depend on freshwater from glaciers during some or all of the year.
If temperatures rise by 4oC by 2100, glaciers will be history… along with the rivers they supply.
Permafrost melt Permafrost is land that is permanently
frozen… or was…
Consequence #3 Ocean Acidification
CO2, when dissolved in sea water, can produce carbonic acid, H2CO3.
As CO2 increases in the atmosphere, the pH of the oceans decreases
Acidification Problems
Lower pH has devastating effects of some organisms: Coral organisms die Mollusks cannot make carbonate shells
Consequence #4 Severe Weather Global warming is correlated with
increased frequency and/or severity of: Floods / heavy rains Tropical storms Droughts Heat waves
Consequence #5: Desertification Desertification is the expansion of
existing deserts to cover larger areas. It has accelerated in line with global warming
Desertification Problems
Biodiversity loss. Infrastructure destruction. Lost agricultural productivity. Water shortage.
Consequence #6 Increased Forest Fires
Consequence #7: Increased Range of Disease As temperatures warm, tropical diseases
increase their range.
Consequence #8: More Global Warming
Many of the consequences cause even more warming, in a vicious POSITIVE FEEDBACK CYCLE. Fires cause more CO2 in the
atmosphere. Melting sea ice no longer reflects
sunlight. Melting permafrost releases greenhouse
gases.