Republic of the Philippines

State Universities and Colleges

GUIMARAS STATE COLLEGE
Mc Lain, Buenavista, Guimaras

CHAPTE CLIMATE
R5 CHANGE

Objectives:

1. Define climate change

2. Identify the signs of climate change
3. Identify the dangers of climate change

Activate

Things I already know about climate change

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

The Questions I want to learn about climate change

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Acquire

Today the world is facing one of the most serious environmental problems how to
restore its natural resources. Global deforestation accounts about 13 % of the world’s
annual increase in carbon dioxide.
 Republic of the Philippines
State Universities and Colleges
GUIMARAS STATE COLLEGE
Mc Lain, Buenavista, Guimaras

Climate Change is a great concern of everybody. According to the United

Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) 1992, “Climate Change
means a change in climate which is attribute directly or indirectly to human activity that
alters the composition of global atmosphere. Climate Change can be defined also as
the long term changes in the average weather pattern of a region observed over a
period of time. Key weather conditions that change are temperature, precipitation and
sea levels.

Human causes include burning fossil

fuels, cutting down forests, and developing land
for farms, cities, and roads. These activities all
release greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.

Natural causes include changes in the

Earth’s orbit, the sun’s intensity, the circulation of
the ocean and the atmosphere, and volcanic
activity.

Signs of Climate Change

Change is happening now, and the effects can be seen on every continent and in
every ocean. While certain effects of climate change can be beneficial, particularly in
the short term, current and future effects of climate change pose considerable risks to
people’s health and welfare, and the environment.
There is now clear evidence that the Earth’s climate is warming: Global surface
temperatures have risen by 1.3 degrees Fahrenheit (ºF) over the last 100 years.
Worldwide, the last decade has been the warmest on record. The rate of warming
 Republic of the Philippines
State Universities and Colleges
GUIMARAS STATE COLLEGE
Mc Lain, Buenavista, Guimaras

across the globe over the last 50 years (0.24ºF per decade) is almost double the rate of
warming over the last 100 years (0.13ºF per decade).
The evidence of climate change extends well beyond increases in global surface

temperatures. It also includes:

1. Changing precipitation patterns.

2. Melting ice in the Arctic.
3. Melting glaciers around the world.
4. Increasing ocean temperatures.
5. Rising sea level around the world.
6. Acidification of the oceans due to elevated carbon dioxide in the
atmosphere.
7. Responses by plants and animals, such as shifting ranges

As the climate continues to

warm, more changes are expected to
occur, and many effects will become
more pronounced over time. For
example, heat waves are expected to
become more common, severe, and
longer lasting. Some storms are likely
to become stronger and more
frequent, increasing the chances of
flooding and damage in coastal
communities.
 Republic of the Philippines
State Universities and Colleges
GUIMARAS STATE COLLEGE
Mc Lain, Buenavista, Guimaras

Today, effects of climate change have already been observed, and the rate of
warming has increased in recent decades. For this reason, human-caused climate
change represents a serious challenge—one that could require new approaches and
ways of thinking to ensure the continued health, welfare, and productivity of society
and the natural environment.

Climate change is a real and

urgent challenge that is already
affecting people and the environment
worldwide. Significant changes are
occurring on Earth, including
increasing air and ocean
temperatures, widespread melting of
snow and ice, and rising sea levels.

Ocean Acidification

Ocean acidification (OA) is the

quiet tsunami of environmental
degradation. Within a few decades,
OA may devastate some marine
ecosystems and threaten the productivity of our fisheries. When we burn oil, coal, or
gas, scientists have recently shown, we are transforming the fundamental chemistry of
the oceans, rapidly making the water more acidic

1. A reduction of the pH of the ocean over time, according to the National Oceanic
and Atmospheric Administration.

2. This is predominantly due to uptake of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere

 Republic of the Philippines
State Universities and Colleges
GUIMARAS STATE COLLEGE
Mc Lain, Buenavista, Guimaras

The Danger of Ocean Acidification

1. Burning fossils fuels against the background of natural variability.

2. 40% of Carbon dioxide (CO2) derived from the fossils fuel remains in the
atmosphere, the rest is taken up by vegetation on land or by the ocean,
currently in equal
3. The atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide (CO2) was approximately
constant for several 1000 years and then began to grow rapidly with onset
industrialization.
4. Absorbed carbon dioxide forms carbonic acid Carbonic acid (H 2CO3) in seawater,
lowering the prevailing pH level and changing the balance of carbonate and
bicarbonate ions.
5. The decline in pH thus threatens a variety of organisms, including corals, which
provide one of the richest habitats on earth.
 Republic of the Philippines
State Universities and Colleges
GUIMARAS STATE COLLEGE
Mc Lain, Buenavista, Guimaras

As carbon dioxide enters the ocean, it reacts with sea water to form carbonic
acid. Changes in ocean acidity are undeniably linked to human activities. Carbon
dioxide produced from the burning of fossil fuels can be identified and measured in
ocean water and the acidification effect of the CO2 is undisputed. When (CO 2) is too
high, shells and sea organisms dissolved. (CO 2) is not normally considered a pollutant
because it is a normal constituent of air. However, excess of carbon dioxide is
considered a pollutant because it leads to adverse effects on the environment.
So what…Being aware of ocean acidification is important because if nothing is
done now soon there will be no sea life. Marine animals can’t live with such low
pH values.

What if? The pH levels continue to drop? Then calcifying organisms will die off
since the acidification is destroying their protection.

But we can also help the ocean defend itself by making sure its systems are as
healthy as possible. Just as people with compromised immune systems are the most
likely to die from common diseases like pneumonia and flu, stressed marine organisms
are the first to succumb to “diseases” like ocean acidification. Establishing a strong
national policy to protect, maintain, and restore the health of marine ecosystems,
ending overfishing, and creating marine protected areas—essentially national parks for
the sea—are three essential steps to restoring our nation’s beleaguered marine
resources.

Ocean Acidification: The Final Warning Sign

Think of ocean acidification as a “final warning” that we are fundamentally

changing the way the planet works. We have already compromised the planet’s
atmosphere by the burning of fossil fuels. Considering that oceans represent a bigger
system—500 times by weight—than our atmosphere, changes to ocean chemistry signal
a massive disruption.
 Republic of the Philippines
State Universities and Colleges
GUIMARAS STATE COLLEGE
Mc Lain, Buenavista, Guimaras

Acid Rain

• “Acid rain” is a broad term used to describe several ways that acids fall out of
the atmosphere. A more precise term is acid deposition, which has two parts:
wet and dry. sulfur dioxide (SO2) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) are the primary
causes of acid rain. Almost all of SO2 and some NOx come from electric power
generation that relies on burning fossil fuels like coal. Acid rain occurs when
these gases react in the atmosphere with water, oxygen, and other chemicals to
form various acidic compounds. Sunlight increases the rate of most of these
reactions. The result is a mild solution of sulfuric acid and nitric acid. Acid rain is
measured using a scale called pH. The lower a substance's pH, the more acidic it
is. Pure water has a pH of 7.0, which is neutral. Normal rain is slightly acidic
because carbon dioxide dissolves into it, so it has a pH of about 5.5. In the year
2000, the most acidic rain falling in North America had a pH of about 4.3.

Effects of Acid Rain

1. causes acidification of lakes and streams and contributes to damage of trees at

high elevations (for example, red spruce trees above 2,000 feet) and many
sensitive forest soils

2. Accelerates the decay of building materials and paints, including irreplaceable

buildings, statues, and sculptures that are part of a nation's cultural heritage.

3. sulphates and nitrates, contribute to visibility degradation and harm human

health

Effects on materials and buildings:

Acid rain and the dry deposition of acidic particles contribute to the corrosion of
metals (such as bronze) and the deterioration of paint and stone (such as marble and
limestone). These effects seriously reduce the value to society of buildings, bridges,
 Republic of the Philippines
State Universities and Colleges
GUIMARAS STATE COLLEGE
Mc Lain, Buenavista, Guimaras

cultural objects (such as statues, monuments, and tombstones), and cars. Dry
deposition of acidic compounds can also dirty buildings and other structures, leading to
increased maintenance costs.

Effects on water bodies:

1. The ecological effects of acid rain are most clearly seen in the aquatic or water
environments such as streams, lakes, and marshes. Acid rain flows into streams,
lakes, and marshes after falling on forests, fields, buildings, and roads.

2. Many lakes and streams examined in developed countries suffer from chronic
acidity, a condition in which water has a constant low pH level. Streams flowing
over soil with low buffering capacity are as susceptible to damage from acid rain
as lakes.

3. Acid rain causes a cascade of effects that harm or kill individual fish, reduce fish
population numbers, completely eliminate fish species from a water body, and
decrease biodiversity. As acid rain flows through soils with low buffering capacity
in a watershed, aluminium is released from soils into the lakes and streams
located in that watershed. So, as pH in a lake or stream decreases, aluminium
levels increase. Both low pH and increased aluminium levels are directly toxic to
fish. In addition, low pH and increased aluminium levels cause chronic stress that
may not kill individual fish, but leads to lower body weight and smaller size and
makes fish less able to compete for food and habitat.

4. In an ecosystem, different organisms are interdependent on each other. So even

if some fish are able to tolerate the acidic waters, their food – consisting of
smaller fish or insects – may not survive the increased acidity.
 Republic of the Philippines
State Universities and Colleges
GUIMARAS STATE COLLEGE
Mc Lain, Buenavista, Guimaras

Effects on forest floors

A spring shower in the forest washes leaves and falls through the trees to the
forest floor below. Some trickles over the ground and runs into a stream, river, or lake,
and some of the water soaks into the soil. That soil may neutralize some or all of the
acidity of the acid rainwater. This ability is called buffering capacity, and without it, soils
become more acidic. Differences in soil buffering capacity are an important reason why
some areas that receive acid rain show a lot of damage, while other areas that receive
about the same amount of acid rain do not appear to be harmed at all. The ability of
forest soils to resist, or buffer, acidity depends on the thickness and composition of the
soil, as well as the type of bedrock beneath the forest floor.

Effects on plants and trees:

Acid rain does not usually kill plants and trees directly. Instead, it is more likely
to weaken them by damaging their leaves, limiting the nutrients available to them, or
exposing them to toxic substances slowly released from the soil. Quite often, injury or
death of trees is a result of these effects of acid rain in combination with one or more
additional threats.

Ways of reducing the harmful effects of acid deposition

1. Clean up smokestacks and exhaust pipes.

2. Use alternative energy sources.

3. Restore a damaged environment

4. Take action as individuals.

People are being educated worldwide – especially in the developed countries –

regarding that individuals can contribute directly by conserving energy, since energy
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State Universities and Colleges
GUIMARAS STATE COLLEGE
Mc Lain, Buenavista, Guimaras

production causes the largest portion of the acid deposition problem. For example,
one can:

1. Turn off lights, computers, and other electric appliances when they are not
being used.

2. Use energy efficient appliances: lighting, air conditioners, heaters, refrigerators,

washing machines, etc.

3. Insulate the houses as best as possible so as to reduce energy losses.

4. Use public transportation rather than personal cars, or even walk or bicycle
whenever doable.

5. Buy vehicles with low NOx emissions, and maintain all vehicles well so that they
release lesser emissions.

Apply

Watch it!
Link: http://youtube.com/watch?v=G4H1N_yXBiA&feature=share

Write a reflection paper about the video presentation.

 Republic of the Philippines
State Universities and Colleges
GUIMARAS STATE COLLEGE
Mc Lain, Buenavista, Guimaras

ASSESSMENT

Answer the following questions: (Essay)

1. What are the activities or programs in the community that helps make people
aware of environmental status?

2. Climate change acid rain and ocean acidification is an urgent call for us. In your
opinion why do we need to rescue or protect and conserve our mother earth?

3. If you were one of the senators, what bill will you propose to make sure that
there will still be better environment for the next generations to come?

Write “Green” if the statement is true, and “Blue” if False

1. Acid rain does can kill plants and trees directly it weaken them by damaging their
leaves, limiting the nutrients available to them.
Answer: _____________________________________________________

2. soil may neutralize some or all of the acidity of the acid rainwater
Answer: _____________________________________________________

3. Streams flowing over soil with low buffering capacity are as susceptible to
damage from acid rain as lakes.

Answer: _____________________________________________________

4. Acid rain and the dry deposition of acidic particles contribute to the corrosion of
metals (such as bronze) and the deterioration of paint and stone.
Answer: _____________________________________________________

5. Ocean acidification (OA) is the quiet tsunami of environmental degradation.

Answer: _____________________________________________________