Impact of Climate Change - Essay Example

?Running Head: Impact of Climate Change Impact of Climate Change [Institute’s Impact of Climate Change Policy makers have increasingly expressed concerned on the impact of human activities on the global climate, which has resulted in consequences extremely devastating. In every field of biology and ecology, environmental impact has become a matter of research. A number of reasons are attributed to this frenzy towards gaining an idea about the future. Policy makers need to appease people about the future, as well as make and implement certain policies, which will try saving the environment. These policies include implementing and regulating the existing laws and coming up with new laws that preserve the environment for the future and will not cause further climate change (Moller, Fielder, Berthold, pp. 3, 2010). The temperature of the entire world has changed, and this has been attributed to greenhouse gas emissions, particularly the fossil fuel burning, which has led to an increase in global warming (Kernan, pp. vii, 2010). This global warming leads to a dramatic temperature change, which is forecast to change more so in the future. Numerous studies and researches have concluded that some areas will witness an increase in temperature, while others may experience a drop in temperature. The changes in precipitation rate will great impacts, which will harm the temperature in many regions even more so. Climate change brings dangerous consequences with it. There are numerous impacts on agriculture, forestry, fishers, and other environmental factor (Moller, Fielder, & Berthold, pp.3, 2010). An even more pressing concern is the impact on the ecological systems because of further climate changes. The paper attempts to explain the various impacts of climate change. However, first it describes the causes of this climate change briefly. A sharp focus is also important; therefore, analysis of a particular region will further enhance the extreme problem of climate change. Centuries had passed since the formation of the world when the globe did not witness any climate change. However, this was to change when humans discovered fossil fuels. The population on the world multiplied drastically. Industrial Revolution spurred off economic development, but with the opportunity cost of environmental damage. The environmental damage has resulted in the extreme climate change. The greenhouse effect is perhaps the largest factor in this climate change. In the words of Timoth Wirth, former US senator and Undersecretary of State for the Global Affairs, “The greenhouse effect is the most significant economic, political, environmental, and human problem facing the 21st century” (Hardy, 222, 2003). Other reasons also form part of this global climate change. However, the paper is more concerned with describing the details of the impact of climate change on nearly facet of life in the planet, Earth (Hardy, pp. ix, 2003). The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has shed light on the reality of global warming. The Fourth Report summarized a finding, which stated that the mean temperature has shown an increase of 1 degree centigrade, in the northern part of the world. There have been large changes in the distribution of rainfall, resulting in more rain in winters and less in the summers. Melting of glaciers has induced the seal level to rise by almost 20 cm, which can have devastating impacts. Natural disasters such as droughts, floods, and cyclones have gotten increasingly common, because of rapid climate change. The above-mentioned impacts are mainly the most common ones; however, these are not the only ones (Kernan, pp. 1, 2010). In the recent decades, all sorts of doubts regarding the effect of greenhouse emissions on global climate have fallen off. Although the climate of the world has changed in six periods since the evolution of Earth, the climate change the world undergoes currently is widely “unnatural”, and backed largely because of human activities. Glacier melting in the Northern Alps, severe water and food shortages induced by droughts are not common occurrences. Massive floods and cyclones had largely been uncommon before. Therefore, beyond any reasonable doubt, it can be stated that these climate changes, which occurred in the span of a few decades rather than thousands of years that the change is largely human-induced (Hardy, pp.40, 2003). One of the most important impacts of climate change includes that of changes in temperature. The twentieth century has widely been the warmest century. Countries situated on higher latitudes have experienced this warm temperature. In areas like Washington of the United States, the average February temperature has increased by 2.2 degree centigrade in a span of some fifty years. If the rate continues to remain the same for even such a small area, then the global temperature is in for even more trouble (Hardy, pp.42, 2003). The rainfall and the snowfall patterns have rapidly changed, as well. An increase in the harshness of some of the extreme events such as droughts, floods, and storms also forms another major impact. Even more so, the problem becomes larger because it has proven extremely difficult to forecast future climate changes (Shackleton, pp. 6, 2009). Natural disasters create further problems for humans. It renders people homeless; it affects their livelihood by destroying crops and affects the health of individuals. Moreover, it may come as a shock, but the impact of these floods on the lives of children has not been closely examined. Child mortality increases and social development problems in the long run largely occur. Therefore, climate change has immense indirect impacts, not only on the environment, but also on the social and economic lives of individuals (Verner, pp. 184, n.d). A large impact on snow and ice around the world has also been witnessed, largely by conducting quantitative measurements. Melting of glaciers has become common in areas such as European Alps and Western North America. The impact has extended to other parts of the world such as in Kenya (Africa), where the glaciers have lost 75% of the area from the years 1899 and 1987. The melting of glaciers in Alaska has propelled an increase in massive sea level rise. In Northern hemisphere, a slight change has been noticed in the cover of snow, which has decreased by around 10% during the past twenty years. The sea level rise is another problem, which will form part of discussion in the later part of the paper (Hardy, pp. 46, 2003). Additionally, an interesting yet devastating relationship has been observed between climate change and health. The study was conducted in five Latin American countries. Health has largely confronted effect due to temperature changes in these regions, affected child mortality rate. In Peru, this relationship was found to be extremely strong, since it was predicted that future climate change would cause a reduction in life expectancy rate of about 0.2 years in the next fifty years or so (Verner, pp. 186, n.d). As mentioned above, the sea level has risen. This is caused largely by extreme temperatures, which increases warm water that leads to expansion in the volume of water. When volume of water in ocean expands, it leads to a rise in sea level relative to the land. The sea level rise is attributed to two main factors. Water warming contributes to around two-thirds of it, while glacier-melting accounts to around one-thirds of the sea level rise (Hardy, pp. 48, 2003). A large issue of concern is also over the extinction of various species of animals and birds. However, the concern gets worrisome in the cases of birds because they live in the air and they widely breathe in the polluted air, which may harm them greatly. Agriculture has been impacted, as well. Droughts result in food shortages, as well (Moller, Fielder, & Berthold, pp. 18, 2010). As one may notice, there is an occurrence of interactions among the various impacts of changes in global climate. When sea level rises, it paves the way for storms and floods. Agriculture problems do not only occur because of temperature and rainfall changes, but also because of higher plant growth, pests and fire problems, therefore, when these interactions occur, the problems become graver (Shackleton, pp. 6, 2009). Climate change does not have a relationship with only the environment, but has a number of significant development problems. The economy of a particular country gets affected because of the extreme weather conditions such as floods and droughts. It may create problems of land distribution as people migrate in search of greener pastures. Poor health infrastructure, lack of assets such as clean water facilities and sanitation are some of the development problems, exacerbated by the climate change (Verner, pp. 187, n.d). The paper shall now examine the impact of global climate change on a developed region such as the United States. Developing countries face numerous problems, which often get interlinked with environmental problems. However, United States has also suffered from massive temperature changes. A research conducted by the United States Global Change research program found out in 2009 that the current climate change will have devastating effects in the future on the U.S economy. The environmental impacts have been noticed in the United States, which includes heavy rainfall, rising temperature and sea level, lengthy growing seasons, glacier melting, early snowmelt, and changes in the river flow. These environmental effects will cause all the problems mentioned above. Moreover, even in a developed country like United States, massive food shortages are predicted. The industry that will confront heavy impact includes the agriculture industry, which leads to challenges in crop production. Some agricultural problems include pests, heat, droughts, floods, cyclones, and diseases. Water shortage may occur, as well in some areas. In the future, the impact on human health will become enormous. Therefore, the problems of environmental impact will not become noticeable in areas of the developing world, but will show their impacts on the developed world, as well. Insects and rodents, water-borne diseases and poor air quality are all bound to increase (United States Global Change Program, n.p, 2009). United States should be extremely concerned because it remains one of the countries producing the highest rate of carbon emission. Four major sectors in the United States product carbon emissions, which include electricity generation, transport sector, industrial sector, and commercial use. However, even though energy is a vital need, there is a pressing need to find better renewable resources (EPI, 20111). The paper has described in detail the environmental impacts of the global climate change. It has also signified some indirect problems, such as development issues. Although environmental laws will not completely reverse the damage done to the environment since Industrial Revolution, some effects are likely to mitigate. Perhaps, we can save our Earth from massive destruction, which will surely ensue if the problem is not controlled. References EPI. 2011. Eco-Economy Indicators. Retrieved on August 2, 2011: www.earth-policy.org/indicators/C52/carbon Hardy, J. T. 2003. “Earth and the Greenhouse Effect, Recent Climate Change.” Climate change: causes, effects, and solutions. West Sussex: John Wiley and Sons Limited. Kernan, M. 2010. Climate Change Impacts on Freshwater Ecosystems. Oxford: Blackwell Publishing Limited. Moller, A. P., Fiedler, W., & Berthold, P. 2010. Effects of Climate Change on Birds. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Shackleton, R. 2009. “Potential Impacts of Climate Change.” Potential Impacts of Climate Change in the United States. CBO. United States Global Change Research Program. 2009. Global Climate Change Impacts in the US. Retrieved on August 3, 2011: www.globalchange.gov/publications/reports/scientific-assessments/us-impacts Verner, D. (n.d). “Natural Disasters and Child Health, Simulations of the Effects of Climate Change on Health.” Reducing poverty, protecting livelihoods, and building assets in a changing Climate. World Bank. Read More