IMPACT OF GLOBAL WARMING

1. Effects on weather
 Extreme weather
 Warm spells or heat waves over most land area will increase.
 Increased area will be affected by drought
 There will be increased intensed tropical cyclone activity
 There will be increased incidences of extreme high sea level (excluding tsunamis)
 Increased freshwater flow
 Flow of freshwater into the ocean increases, partly from melting of ice
 Increase in global freshwater flow based on data from 1994 to 2006 was about 18%
 Local climate change
 Melting of ice, changing the hydrological cycle and changing currents in the ocean.
 The first recorded South Atlantic hurricane, "Catarina", which hit Brazil in March 2004.

2. Glacier retreat and disappearance

 Mountain glaciers and snow cover had decreased in both hemisphere which results in increases of
sea level
 A map of the change in thickness of mountain glaciers since 1970. Thinning in orange and red,
thickening in blue.
3. Oceans
 Oceans serve as a sink of carbon dioxide,CO 2
 Acidification
 Dissolving CO2 in seawater increases the hydrogen ion, H + concentration in the ocean and
decreases ocean pH
 Oxygen depletion
 Amount of oxygen dissolved in the oceans may declined
 Sea level rise
 Since 1961, global average sea level had risen at an averagerate of 1.8 [1.3 to 2.3] mm/yr.
 Between 1993 and 2003, the rate increased above the previous period to 3.1 [2.4 to 3.8]
mm/yr.
IMPACTS OF OZONE DEPLETION
 Increased UV
 Biological effects
 Effects on human :
1. Skin cancer : - Basal and Squamous Cell Carcinomas
- Malignant Melanoma
1. Cortical Cataracts
 Effects on crops :
1. A number of economically important species of plants, such as rice, depend on
cyanobacteria residing on their roots for the retention of nitrogen. Cyanobacteria are
sensitive to UV light and they would be affected by its increase.