Climate Change: Causes, Impacts, and Issues

The truth and Consequences of Climate Change

INTRODUCTION

Extreme weather events have taken its toll on the past decades by taking more
lives and devastating infrastructures. According to a study conducted by Katrin Burkart
and colleagues, 1.7 million deaths worldwide in 2019 were linked to extreme heat and
cold (thelancet.com, August 2021).

Based on climate.nasa.gov (2022) there is growing evidence, and almost a 100%

consensus for peer reviewed and high impact journal in the veracity of climate change.
Academic societies recognized that there will always be uncertainty in fully
understanding the complexity of the Earth’s climate, however, evidence suggests that
significant global warming is occurring.

One-hundred ninety-eight (198) worldwide scientific organizations have already

expressed its position that human action have significant impact to climate change. The
scientific community have reached a consensus that global temperature rising is a direct
result of greenhouse emission from human-made sources (opr.ca.gov, 2022).

OBJECTIVES

At the end of this lesson students are expected to:

1. Identify the causes of climate change
2. Assess the various impacts of climate change including economic,
geopolitical, biological, meteorological, etc.
3. Apply STS concepts to the issue of climate change.
PRE-TEST

True or False. Write in the space before each number T if the statement is True and F if
it is false.
___ 1. Climate change started in the 20th century.
___ 2. Wasting food contribute to increase of emissions of greenhouse gases
___ 3. Water vapor is a greenhouse gas.
___ 4. Greenhouse effect happens when gases in the atmosphere trap heat and block
it from escaping the planet.
___ 5. There is no consensus yet among experts about climate change
___ 6. More extreme weather like droughts, heat waves and super typhoons happen
due to climate change.
___ 7. Most scientist agree that human activities are a significant factor to climate
change.
___ 8. Paris agreement in 2015 aims to limit sea level rise to 3 feet above current
levels.
___ 9. Nitrogen which makes up 80 percent of the Earth’s atmosphere is a greenhouse
gas.
___ 10. As temperature rises, average global precipitation increases.

DISCUSSION

What is Climate Change?

According to United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
(UNFCCC), climate change means “A change of climate which is attributed directly or
indirectly to human activity that alters the composition of the global atmosphere which is
in addition to natural climate variability observed over a comparable period of time.”
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) defines it as “any change in climate
over time, whether due to natural variability or as a result of human activity”

Causes of Climate Change

 Climate is the combination of long-term meteorological event in each place and
time. Climate are known to have changed in the past several times based on geologic
evidence. 18,000 years ago, vast areas are covered by continental glaciers. Advancing
and retreating glaciers suggest that climate has undergone slow but continuous change.
In the present, less than 10% of these glaciers are in existence. Human influence is
very likely the main driver of the global retreat of glaciers since the 1990s (IPCC, 2021).

Evidence of global climatic change comes from core samples taken from ocean
floor sediments and ice from Greenland and Antarctica. A multi-university research
project known as CLIMAP (Climate: long-range investigation mapping and prediction)
studied the past million years of global climate. Thousands of meters of sediments are
drilled and analyzed for calcium carbonate shells of organisms that once lived near the
surface. Distribution, type of organisms, and oxygen-isotope ratio provide information
how the glacier advances (Ahrens, 2009).

An interactive map where users can explore and download the available climate
data over the desired area anywhere in the Philippines was conceptualized and
developed through the DOST-funded project: Development of high-resolution
observation-based gridded sub-daily climate data for the Philippines (ClimGridPh),
which is a component of the DOST-PAGASA’s program, Scaling Up Climate Information
Services for Societal Benefits (CLIM’ UP) being monitored by the DOST-PCIEERD.
CliMap will primarily serve the public in providing the daily and sub-daily gridded dataset
of surface climate variables, which are the main outputs of the project. Currently, these
datasets are under development (bagong.pagasa.dost.gov.ph, 2022)

Climate change can be caused by three things,

1. Change in the amount of incoming solar energy

2. Changes in the Earth’s atmosphere
3. Changes that happens in the surface of the Earth

In geologic history, Earth’s surface has undergone extensive modification

due to tectonic movement. Change in latitude and elevation due to tectonic movement
may explain climate change in the past. Due to plate tectonic, volcanic activity also
increased which released CO2 in the atmosphere. Changes in the circulation patterns of
the ocean and the atmosphere that redistribute energy also contribute to climate change
(Ahrens, 2009). Due to our large population, human activities such as emission of
greenhouse gases, denudation of forest, depletion of natural resources, pollution, and
mining have a big impact on the changes in the Earth’s atmosphere and the Earth’s
surface.

Greenhouse effect due to CO2 cause global temperature rise.

The greenhouse effect happens when certain gases—known as greenhouse gases—
such as water vapor, ozone, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrogen oxide,
and fluorinated gases sometimes known as chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) collect in
Earth’s atmosphere (education.nationalgeographic.org, 2022).
 Increase in greenhouse gases since 1750 are undeniably caused by human
activities. Based on climate model projections, global warming of 1.5°C and 2°C will be
exceeded during the 21st century unless deep reductions in CO 2 and other greenhouse
gas emissions occur in the coming decades. (IPCC, 2021).

In response to this threat, an agreement was adopted by 196 members of the

Conference of the Parties (COP) (countries that signed the United Nations Framework
Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) that came into force in 1994) in Paris, on 12
December 2015 and entered into force on 4 November 2016. Its goal is to limit global
warming to well below 2, preferably to 1.5 degrees Celsius, compared to pre-industrial
levels (unfcc.int, 2022).

Impacts of Climate Change

According to pagasa.gov.ph (2022), climate change would most likely impact our
water resources, forestry, agriculture, coastal resources, and health. Regions who
are projected to have decreased rainfall will experience water shortage that will also
affect forestry, agriculture, livelihood, health, and human settlement. Longer dry spells
will affect amount of water in dams that provide irrigation, drinking water, water for
domestic use, and hydroelectric energy. In areas that will experience intense rains,
flooding would likely follow as well as landslides, and mudslides. This will impact
infrastructures, and transportation.

Based on the Philippine Climate Change Assessment Report (2017), Probably

more than temperature change, climate change-induced variability of rainfall is likely to
have the greatest impacts in the country. The number of days with heavy rainfall in the
latter part of the 20th century appears to be higher than the corresponding occurrence
in the early part of the 20th century. Evidence shows that the intensity of extreme
rainfall events is changing.

Climate change will also take its toll on survival of local flora and fauna. Extreme
drought will push to extinction highly sensitive species. Drier periods and warmer
temperatures may lead to frequent forest fires. Farmers and fisher folks are vulnerable
sectors to climate change. Decrease in crop yields, and fish catch are expected. Fishes
may seek cooler, and deeper waters that would force fishermen to travel further from
the coast. Incidents or outbreaks of pests and diseases would most likely happen due to
increase in temperature and change in rainfall.
Sea level rise would most likely happen due to climate change and will have a
huge impact on coastal resources. Impact to health due to climate change include
spread of water-borne diseases, heat stroke, pulmonary and cardiovascular diseases
specially to children and the elderly.

What can be done

 Based on the Special Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
(IPCC, 2012), the character and severity of impacts from climate extremes depend not
only on the extremes themselves but also on exposure and vulnerability (see figure 1).

Fig. 1 (Source: https://www.ipcc.ch/site/assets/uploads/2018/03/SREX_FD_SPM_final-2.pdf)

The IPCC 2012 also provide adaptation and disaster risk management approaches for
reducing and managing disaster risk in a changing climate (see figure 2).
Fig. 2 (Source: https://www.ipcc.ch/site/assets/uploads/2018/03/SREX_FD_SPM_final-2.pdf)

According to Asian Development Bank (2014), while hard technologies will have
a critical role in helping societies reduce the risk from climate change, they are not the
only solution. Soft technologies, such as improved management practices, will also be
important in climate change adaptation, and so will other factors like education, capacity
building, governance, and cultural practices.

The Environmental Management Bureau of the Department of Environment and

Natural Resources developed a Training Manual on Climate Proofing for Development
(CP4D) as part of its initiative on capacity development on climate change adaptation.
SUMMARY
This chapter emphasize the following:
 There is a consensus among scientists that climate change is real and human
activities have a significant impact to it.
 Climate change have occurred several times in the past based geologic
evidence.
 Global temperature rise is a direct consequence of greenhouse gas emissions
due to human activities.
 Climate change affects our ecosystem, livelihood, safety, and health.
 Education, capacity building, governance, and cultural practice are important to
climate change adaptation and mitigation.

ANSWER KEY
Pretest
1. F
2. T
3. T
4. T
5. F
6. T
7. T
8. F
9. F
10. T

SUGGESTED READINGS AND WEBSITES

https://climate.nasa.gov/scientific-consensus/
https://www.opr.ca.gov/facts/scientific-consensus.html
https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(21)01860-2/
fulltext#articleInformation
https://www.pagasa.dost.gov.ph/information/climate-change-in-the-philippines
https://www.climate.gov.ph/news/207
https://bagong.pagasa.dost.gov.ph/climate/climate-change/dynamic-downscaling/climap
https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/greenhouse-effect
https://www.nature.org/en-us/get-involved/how-to-help/carbon-footprint-calculator/#:~:text=A
%20carbon%20footprint%20is%20the,is%20closer%20to%204%20tons.
https://climate.emb.gov.ph/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/Climate-Proofing-Trainers-Toolkit.pdf
https://www.nationalgrid.com/responsibility/environment/cop26#:~:text=COP%20stands%20for
%20Conference%20of,came%20into%20force%20in%201994.
https://unfccc.int/process-and-meetings/the-paris-agreement/the-paris-agreement

GLOSSARY
Adaptation: In human systems, the process of adjustment to actual or expected climate
and its effects, to moderate harm or exploit beneficial opportunities. In natural systems,
the process of adjustment to actual climate and its effects; human intervention may
facilitate adjustment to expected climate.
Carbon footprint: A carbon footprint is the total amount of greenhouse gases (including
carbon dioxide and methane) that are generated by our actions.
Climate Change: A change in the state of the climate that can be identified (e.g., by
using statistical tests) by changes in the mean and/or the variability of its properties and
that persists for an extended period, typically decades or longer. Climate change may
be due to natural internal processes or external forcings, or to persistent anthropogenic
changes in the composition of the atmosphere or in land use.
Climate Extreme (extreme weather or climate event): The occurrence of a value of a
weather or climate variable above (or below) a threshold value near the upper (or lower)
ends of the range of observed values of the variable. For simplicity, both extreme
weather events and extreme climate events are referred to collectively as ‘climate
extremes.
Disaster: Severe alterations in the normal functioning of a community or a society due
to hazardous physical events interacting with vulnerable social conditions, leading to
widespread adverse human, material, economic, or environmental effects that require
immediate emergency response to satisfy critical human needs and that may require
external support for recovery.
Exposure: The presence of people; livelihoods; environmental services and resources;
infrastructure; or economic, social, or cultural assets in places that could be adversely
affected.
Disaster Risk: The likelihood over a specified time of severe alterations in the normal
functioning of a community or a society due to hazardous physical events interacting
with vulnerable social conditions, leading to widespread adverse human, material,
economic, or environmental effects that require immediate emergency response to
satisfy critical human needs and that may require external support for recovery.
Disaster Risk Management: Processes for designing, implementing, and evaluating
strategies, policies, and measures to improve the understanding of disaster risk, foster
disaster risk reduction and transfer, and promote continuous improvement in disaster
preparedness, response, and recovery practices, with the explicit purpose of increasing
human security, well-being, quality of life, resilience, and sustainable development.
Resilience: The ability of a system and its component parts to anticipate, absorb,
accommodate, or recover from the effects of a hazardous event in a timely and efficient
manner, including through ensuring the preservation, restoration, or improvement of its
essential basic structures and functions.
Transformation: The altering of fundamental attributes of a system (including value
systems; regulatory, legislative, or bureaucratic regimes; financial institutions; and
technological or biological systems).
Vulnerability: The propensity or predisposition to be adversely affected.

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