[LECTURE 3]

Climate
Change
and Global Warming
GEC 21.2 People and the Earth’s Ecosystem
Jasmine P. Andrada

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Climate Change
- refers to long-term shifts in temperatures and
weather patterns
- the global phenomenon of climate transformation
characterized by the changes in the usual climate
of the planet (regarding temperature, precipitation,
and wind) that are especially caused by human
activities
Global Warming

- the warming of the earth’s lower atmosphere

(troposphere) because of increases in the
concentrations of one or more greenhouse gases
- can result in climate change that can last for
decades to thousands of years
Global warming vs. Climate change

Climate change refers to the

Global warming is just one aspect
increasing changes in the measures
of climate change
of climate over a long period of
time
Global warming refers to the rise
in global temperatures due
It includes warming and the “side
mainly to the increasing
effects” of warming—like melting
concentrations of greenhouse gases
glaciers, heavier rainstorms, or
 in the atmosphere. 
more frequent drought.
What are Some
Possible Effects of a
Warmer
Atmosphere?
What makes the
current problem
urgent is that we
face a rapid
projected increase
in the average
temperature of the
lower atmosphere
during your
lifetime.
More Ice and Snow Are Likely to Melt
Models project that climate
change will be the most severe
in the world’s polar regions.
Albedo effect - the process
where light-colored ice and
snow in polar regions help to
cool the earth by reflecting
incoming solar energy back into
space
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 More Ice and Snow Are Likely to Melt
colder and snowier winters in Europe,
eastern North America, and eastern Asia
because of a slower Northern Hemisphere jet
stream sinking southward and bringing cold
air into those areas
faster melting of polar land-based ice,
including that in Greenland
melting is adding freshwater to the northern
seas, and is likely to contribute to a projected
rise in sea level during this century

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More Ice and Snow Are Likely to Melt
About 80% of the mountain glaciers in South America’s Andes range
are slowly shrinking
If this continues, 53 million people in Bolivia, Peru, and Ecuador
who rely on meltwater from the glaciers for irrigation and
hydropower could at some point face severe water, power, and food
shortages.
People living in the Columbia, Sacramento, and Colorado River
basins could face similar threats as the winter snowpack that feeds
these rivers is projected to shrink by as much as 70% by 2050.
Permafrost Is Likely to Melt:
Another Dangerous Scenario
Permafrost occurs in soils found beneath
about 25% of the exposed land in Alaska,
Canada, and Siberia in the northern
hemisphere.
Huge amounts of carbon are locked up in
permafrost soils.
A great deal of organic material found below
the permafrost will likely rot and release huge
amounts of CH4 and CO2 into the atmosphere.
This would accelerate projected atmospheric
warming.
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Sea Levels Are Rising
Half to two-thirds of this rise will likely
come from the melting of Greenland’s
ice.
However, accelerated melting could lead
to seas rising by as much as 0.9–2
meters (3–7 feet), depending on how
much of the land-based ice in Greenland
and perhaps West Antarctica melt as the
global temperature continues to rise.

(Spoolman and Miller, 2016)

What if: A 1-meter (3-foot) rise in sea level during this
century
• Degradation or destruction of at least one-third of the world’s coastal estuaries,
wetlands, coral reefs, and deltas where much of the world’s rice is grown.
• Disruption of many of the world’s coastal fisheries
• Flooding in large areas of low-lying countries such Bangladesh, one of the
world’s poorest and most densely populated nations.
• Flooding and erosion of low-lying barrier islands and gently sloping coastlines
and displacement of at least 150 million people
• Saltwater contamination of freshwater coastal aquifers
• Submersion of low-lying island nations such as the Maldives and Fiji.
 Severe Drought and Other
Forms of Extreme Weather
Could Become More Common
According to a 2007 study by climate
researchers at NASA’s Goddard Institute for
Space Studies, by 2059, up to 45% of the world’s
land area could be experiencing extreme
drought.
Some areas will likely experience longer, more
frequent, and more intense heat waves, which
could raise the number of heat-related deaths,
reduce crop production, and expand deserts.

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 Severe Drought and Other
Forms of Extreme Weather
Could Become More Common
 Because a warmer atmosphere can
hold more moisture, other areas will
likely experience increased flooding, https://www.google.com/search?q=floodingtyphoon

on average, from heavy and

prolonged snow or rainfall.
 Lead to fewer but stronger hurricanes
and typhoons that could cause more
damage in coastal areas where urban
populations have grown rapidly
Climate Change Threatens
Biodiversity
Climate change is likely to alter
ecosystems and take a toll on
biodiversity in areas of every
continent https://www.google.com/search?q=amazonforesttosavanna

Up to 85% of the Amazon rain forest

—one of the world’s major centers of
biodiversity—could be lost and
converted to tropical savanna if the
global atmospheric temperature rises
by the highest projected amount
 https://www.google.com/search?q=polarbear/forestfires

As the atmosphere warms, 25–50% of the

Forest fires will likely become more
world’s species could face extinction by
frequent and intense in some areas such
2100. The hardest hit will be cold-climate
as the southeastern and western United
plant and animal species, including the polar
States.
bear in the Arctic and penguins in Antarctica
 With warmer winters, populations of
mountain pine beetles have exploded
and killed large numbers of trees
(orange areas in photo) in this
lodgepole pine forest in the Canadian
province of British Columbia.

(Spoolman and Miller 2015)

A warmer climate could also greatly increase populations of insects and

fungi that damage trees, especially in the absence of winter weather cold
enough to control their populations
Food Production
Could Decline
Farmers will face dramatic changes
due to shifting climates and an
intensified hydrologic cycle, if the
atmosphere keeps warming as
projected https://www.google.com/search?q=foodprduction

Decline in agricultural productivity

and food security in tropical and
subtropical regions, especially in
Southeast Asia and Central America
https://www.google.com/search?q=floodingriverdelta

The world’s poorest and most

vulnerable people could face
starvation and malnutrition due
to a drop in food production
caused by projected climate
change.

The flooding of river deltas due to

rising sea levels could reduce crop
production, partly because some
aquifers that supply irrigation water
will be infiltrated by salt water

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Climate Change Will Likely Threaten Human
Health, National Security, and Economies
More frequent and prolonged heat waves in
some areas will raise the numbers of deaths and
illnesses, especially among older people, people
in poor health, and the urban poor who cannot
afford air conditioning.

https://www.google.com/search?qheatindex

The projected rise in the number of heat-related deaths will

likely exceed the projected drop in the number of cold-related
deaths.
 https://www.google.com/searchimages

A warmer and more CO2-rich atmosphere will likely favor rapidly multiplying insects, including
mosquitoes and ticks that transmit diseases such as West Nile virus and Lyme disease.
Warming will also favor microbes, toxic molds, and fungi, as well as some plants that produce pollens
that cause allergies and asthma attacks.
Insect pests and weeds are likely to multiply, spread, and reduce crop yields.
Higher levels of water vapor in urban areas will contribute to heavier photochemical smog in such
areas
Likely to take a toll on human economies

global geopolitical impacts that could contribute to

increased food and water scarcity, poverty, environmental
degradation, social unrest, mass migration of
environmental refugees, political instability, and the
weakening of fragile governments.
WHAT CAN
WE DO TO
SLOW
PROJECTED
CLIMATE
CHANGE?
 We can reduce greenhouse gas
emissions and the threat of climate
change while saving money and
improving human health if we cut
energy waste and rely more on
cleaner renewable energy resources.
 Dealing with Projected Climate Change Is
Difficult
The following characteristics of this complex problem make it
difficult to tackle:
The problem is global.
The problem is a long-term political issue
The projected harmful and beneficial
impacts of climate change are not spread
evenly
Proposed solutions, such as sharply
reducing or phasing out the use of fossil
fuels, are controversial
The projected effects are uncertain
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2 Basic Approaches to Dealing with the Projected
Harmful Effects of Global Climate Change
Mitigation, is to try to slow it down in order to avoid its most
harmful effects.
Adaptation, is to recognize that our current failure to sharply reduce
our contribution to atmospheric warming means that some climate
change is unavoidable and that we will now have to try to adapt to
some of its harmful effects.

Most analysts call for a combination of both approaches.

Regardless of how we approach climate
change, most climate scientists argue that
our most urgent priority is to avoid any
and all climate change tipping points—
those estimated thresholds beyond which
natural systems could change irreversibly.
List of possible climate change tipping
points
Collapse and
Atmospheric carbon Melting of all arctic
melting of the
level of 450 ppm summer sea ice
Greenland ice sheet

Collapse and Massive release of Severe ocean acidication,

melting of most of collapse of phytoplankton
methane from thawing
populations, and a sharp
the western arctic permafrost and drop in the ability of the
Antarctic ice sheet from the arctic seafloor oceans to absorb CO2

Severe shrinkage or
Collapse of part of Massive loss of coral
collapse of Amazon
the Gulf Stream reefs
rain forest
Reduce human greenhouse gas emissions by
57–83% by 2050:
1. Improve energy efficiency to reduce fossil fuel use, especially the use
of coal. This would also save consumers money.
2. Shift from carbon-based fossil fuels to a mix of low-carbon renewable
energy resources based on local and regional availability.
3. Stop cutting down tropical forests and plant trees to help remove more
CO2 from the atmosphere.
4. Shift to more sustainable and climate-friendly food production
5. Work on cutting greenhouse gas emissions in urban areas and making
them more adaptable to climate change.
Carbon Footprint

- the amount of carbon

dioxide generated by an
individual, an organization, or
a geographically or politically
defined area (such as a city,
state, or country) in a given
period of time.

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References
Miller, G. T., & Spoolman, S. (2015). Environmental
Science. Boston, MA: Cengage Learning.
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=gl
obal+warming+intense+video
https://www.google.com/search/images

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