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.