CLIMATE CHANGE

Introduction:
Contemporary climate change includes both global warming and its
impacts on Earth's weather patterns. There have been previous periods of
climate change, but the current changes are distinctly rapid and are not due
to natural causes.[2] The main cause is the emission of greenhouse gases,
mostly carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane. Burning fossil fuels for energy
use creates most of these emissions. Agriculture, steelmaking, cement
production, and forest loss are additional sources.[3] Temperature rise is
also affected by climate feedbacks such as the loss of sunlight-reflecting
snow cover, and the release of carbon dioxide from drought-stricken
forests. Collectively, these amplify global warming.
On land, temperatures have risen about twice as fast as the global
average. Deserts are expanding, while heat waves and wildfires are
becoming more common.[5] Increased warming in the Arctic has contributed
to melting permafrost, glacial retreat and sea ice loss.[6] Higher
temperatures are also causing more intense storms and other weather
extremes.[7] In places such as coral reefs, mountains, and the Arctic, many
species are forced to relocate or become extinct, as their environment
changes.[8] 
CAUSES:

Greenhouse gases
The main driver of climate change is the greenhouse effect. Some gases in
the Earth's atmosphere act a bit like the glass in a greenhouse, trapping the
sun's heat and stopping it from leaking back into space and causing global
warming.
Many of these greenhouse gases occur naturally, but human activity is
increasing the concentrations of some of them in the atmosphere, in
particular:
 carbon dioxide (CO2)
 methane
 nitrous oxide
 fluorinated gases
CO2 produced by human activities is the largest contributor to global
warming. By 2020, its concentration in the atmosphere had risen to 48%
above its pre-industrial level (before 1750).
Causes for rising emissions
 Burning coal, oil and gas produces carbon dioxide and nitrous
oxide.
 Cutting down forests (deforestation). Trees help to regulate the
climate by absorbing CO2 from the atmosphere. When they are cut
down, that beneficial effect is lost and the carbon stored in the trees
is released into the atmosphere, adding to the greenhouse effect.
 Increasing livestock farming. Cows and sheep produce large
amounts of methane when they digest their food.
 Fertilisers containing nitrogen produce nitrous oxide emissions.
 Fluorinated gases are emitted from equipment and products that
use these gases. Such emissions have a very strong warming effect,
up to 23 000 times greater than CO2.

Global warming
2011-2020 was the warmest decade recorded, with global average
temperature reaching 1.1°C above pre-industrial levels in 2019. Human-
induced global warming is presently increasing at a rate of 0.2°C per decade.

An increase of 2°C compared to the temperature in pre-industrial times is

associated with serious negative impacts on to the natural environment and
human health and wellbeing, including a much higher risk that dangerous and
possibly catastrophic changes in the global environment will occur.

For this reason, the international community has recognised the need to keep
warming well below 2°C and pursue efforts to limit it to 1.5°C.

EFFECTS:
It is not scientifically possible to assign individual weather events to the
current climate change, however, it can be statistically proven that global
warming will increase the probability of extreme weather events. 
The direct consequences of man-made climate change include:
 rising maximum temperatures
  rising minimum temperatures 
 rising sea levels 
 higher ocean temperatures 
 an increase in heavy precipitation (heavy rain and hail)
 shrinking glaciers
 thawing permafrost
The indirect consequences of climate change, which directly affect us
humans and our environment, include: 
 an increase in hunger and water crises, especially in developing
countries
 health risks through rising air temperatures and heatwaves 
 economic implications of dealing with secondary damage related to
climate change 
 increasing spread of pests and pathogens
 loss of biodiversity due to limited adaptability and adaptability speed
of flora and fauna  
 ocean acidification due to increased HCO3 concentrations in the
water as a consequence of increased CO₂ concentrations
 the need for adaptation in all areas (e.g. agriculture, forestry, energy,
infrastructure, tourism, etc.)
As the global climate is a highly interconnected system that is influenced by
many different factors, the consequences usually result in positive or
negative feedback effects. This refers to developments that are self-
enhancing due to the occurrence of certain conditions. 
A common example is the ice-albedo feedback, which refers to the melting
of the polar caps. According to this, extensive ice surfaces have a cooling
effect on the global climate, as a high proportion of radiation is reflected. As
a result of the global rise in the average temperature, however, these ice
surfaces begin to melt, the ice surfaces shrink and the amount of reflected
radiation is reduced. At the same time, the area of land or ocean that has a
significantly lower albedo will increase, reflecting less radiation and thus
intensifying the actual cause of glacier melt. 
Furthermore, scientists can calculate the so-called tipping points of
individual subsystems of the global climate. The higher the global rise in
temperature, the more the climate system is affected, so that at a certain
point, despite significant efforts, a reversal in the process is no longer
possible. Where exactly these tipping points can be found, however, is
currently still unclear and can only be calculated with a great degree of
uncertainty. Such tipping points are expected for the melting of the polar
caps and for the stability of important ocean currents.
REMEDIES:
Mitigation
Mitigation involves reducing the causes of climate change by reducing
greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.
ALTERNATIVE ENERGY PRODUCTION
The development of renewable energy solutions such as wind, solar and
tidal energy reduces our reliance on fossil fuel burning power stations. This
helps reduce carbon dioxide emissions being released into the
atmosphere.
CARBON CAPTURE
Carbon capture involves reducing carbon dioxide emissions from the fossil
fuel burning power stations. Carbon Dioxide is removed from waste gases.
Once captured the Carbon dioxide is then converted into a dense liquid.
This can be stored in safe locations e.g. underground in old coal mines.
This helps reduce the amount of carbon dioxide released from fossil fuel
burning power stations by up to 90%.
PLANTING TREES
Planting trees helps reduce the amount of carbon dioxide in the
atmosphere as trees absorb it as part of the process of photosynthesis.
Through afforestation (planting trees) a greater proportion of carbon dioxide
can be absorbed reducing greenhouse gasses in the atmosphere.
Adaptation
Adaption strategies do not aim to reduce the impact of climate change but
respond to it by reducing its negative effects.
CHANGE IN AGRICULTURAL SYSTEMS
Farmers respond to climate change by adapting their farming practices.
This can include changing the type of crops they grow to those better
suited to a warm climate e.g. grapes.
Areas at risk of desertification will need to change approaches to farming.
Low technology solutions to this include the use of stone lines. You can find
out more about managing areas at risk of desertification in the Sahel case
study.
MANAGING WATER SUPPLY
There may be a greater need for developing water transfer schemes. This
involves moving water from areas of surplus (more water than is used) to
areas of water deficit (not enough water). This can be achieved by building
water transfer pipelines. An example of this is the Kielder water transfer
scheme in the north-east of England
REDUCING RISK FROM RISING SEA LEVELS
This involves developing coastal defences to protect areas at risk of coastal
flooding. The purpose of these is to reduce the risk of further land being
eroded away. It is estimated that sea levels will rise between 28 and 43cm
by 2100 putting settlements and valuable agricultural land at risk. This will
have a knock-on effect in terms of increasing costs of insuring properties
and protecting areas at risk.
Environment Agency and local councils are developing Shoreline
Management Plans to manage the threat of coastal change. They identify
the most sustainable approach to managing the flood and coastal
erosion risks to the coastline in the:
 short-term (0 to 20 years)
 medium term (20 to 50 years)
 long-term (50 to 100 years)
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