Global Climate Change and Climate Protection: Current Summary
Global Climate Change and Climate Protection: Current Summary From September 6 to 10, 1997, the International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI) held a Cities for Climate Protection (CCP) Campaign - U.S. workshop in Atlanta, sponsored by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, The City of Atlanta, The Climate Institute, and The Turner Foundation. ICLEI is the international environmental agency for local governments. It believes from concrete experience that local actions can have a global impact. ICLEI was established in 1990 through a partnership of the United Nations Environment Programme, the International Union of Local Authorities (IULA), and the Center for Innovative Diplomacy. ICLEI's World Secretariat is in Toronto. ICLEI also has offices in Freiburg, Tokyo, Harare, Santiago, and Berkeley. ICLEI's purpose and mission are to: 1) serve as an international clearinghouse on sustainable development and environmental protection policies, programs, and techniques being implemented at the local level by local institutions; 2) initiate joint projects or campaigns among groups of local governments to research and develop new approaches to address pressing environmental and development problems; 3) organize training programs and publish reports and technical manuals on state of the art environmental management practices; and 4) serve as an advocate for
Global Environmental System - The Global Climate Change Affects on UK
Module Title: Global Environmental System The Global Climate Change Affects on UK Table of Content The Global Climate Change Affects on UK 1 Table of Content 1 Introduction 1 The climate on the Earth 2 The effects on climate and human life 2 Climate change over UK 4 Climate history of UK 5 Conclusion 6 Bibliography 7 Introduction Since now, the global warming, the so caused global climate change and consequent effects on the global eco-system are getting worse increasingly. Human beings begin to pay more and more attention on the series of problems, which were directly or indirectly caused by human activities. The lake are filled by sands, trees are losing away, air is full of dust, all of those phenomenon are happening at every corner of the world, also including Britain. Before looking onto this part, we should be aware of the global general climate trend first. The climate on the Earth The climate is different with the weather. Usually the climate is described as the average weather condition over a relatively long period. However, it is not the only definition of the climate, there are over 50 definitions are accepted in the worldwide. Also the climate is always defined as in a local area; because the local climate is formed by many factors, and the factors are not always the same in vary areas. There are mainly three determinations of the local climate,
Causes of Global Climate Change
Causes of Global Climate Change Long term climate change can be influenced by either external or internal factors. An example of an external factor is solar output. This is energy that comes from the sun. This energy changes over time with measurements made in the 1980s showing that total amount of solar energy reaching earth has decreased by 0.1%. Although this is doesn't seem like much, if it continued over a long period of time, it could influence the global climate. It is predicted that a 1% change in solar output could make temperatures rise or fall by between 0.5 and 1°C. It has also been suggested that the activity of sunspots on the sun's surface affects solar output. There is also evidence to suggest that this was the reason for the little ice age. Another example of an external factor that affects global climate is orbital geometry. Variations in the Earth's orbit and tilt (called the Milankovitch variations) seem to have a link with climatic change. Colder, glacial periods have occurred when the Earth's orbit is circular and warmer periods when it is more elliptical. The tilt of the Earth's axis will also vary over time from 21.5° and 24.5°. The greater the angle of tilt, the hotter the summers are and colder winters are. When the angle of tilt is greater the earth usually experiences warmer periods. Another kind of factor is an internal factor. An
Global warming and the basic mechanisms of climate change.
Since the first warnings of global warming and the possibility of climate changes in 1885 by various scientists, researched has gathered insight into both the basic mechanisms of climate change and the potential impacts that can be expected in the future. In response to these findings, 160 countries gathered at the "Earth Summit" in Rio de Janeiro, where they agreed to adopt the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (FCCC)1. The Convention aimed to stabilise greenhouse gases "at a level that would prevent dangerous interference with the climate system"2, and provided guidelines and obligations for so-called "Developed Countries"3. All countries were to develop a national database of the "anthropogenic emissions by sources and removals by sinks" and to devise a solution which will reduce the climate change4; however, developed countries also had other commitments under the convention5. Within the Convention, it provided that "[t]he Conference of the Parties shall, at its first session, review the adequacy of"6 the commitments of the parties in order to asses whether the objectives of the Convention were being met. At there first session in Bonn7, the Berlin Mandate: a "mechanism by which binding reduction and limitation obligations would be negotiated"8; was adopted, as it became apparent that the 'obligations' of the Convention were not adequate; the large
Climate change
Climate Change: True or False? Climate change has become a main part of today's media and global warming has become a major talking point for many of us. There seems to be much advertised evidence to support the theory of climate change and also there is information on how it is going to affect our lives. Also there is evidence to support the fact that climate change is not as bad as it is made out to be. From an article I have read called 'Instant Expert: Climate Change' I have gained much evidence to support the theory of climate change and some of the causes. Some of the theories that are believed to lead to climate change are the burning of fossil fuels which releases billions of tonnes of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere every year and carbon dioxide is known to trap the Sun's radiation and in turn heat up the planet. This is believed to cause an increase of 2-5°C and this very small temperature rise could have catastrophic effect on crop growth, drought, ice caps melting, weather changes and the destruction of some habitats. However there is evidence from 'An Experiment That Hints We Are Wrong on Climate Change' that suggests that the Earth is not warming up as quickly as it is made out to be. It claims that there has been no overall change in air temperature since 1999 and that even though the sea-ice in the Arctic has diminished since 1978 it has grown by 8% in
Climate Change
Climate Change Over recent years it has become evident how quickly our climate is drastically changing. Evidence of this is supported by ever growing, extreme weather conditions. Scientific research has concluded that increased levels of carbon dioxide (CO2), water vapor (), methane (), nitrous oxide (), and a few other gases are to blame for the sudden change in our climate. Carbon dioxide (CO2) is probably the most important greenhouse gas produced by human activities, primarily through the combustion of fossil fuels. Currently, there is more CO2 in the atmosphere than there has been in the past 600,000 years. The term 'greenhouse effect' was first used by Atmospheric scientists in the early 1800s. At that time, it was used to describe the naturally occurring functions of lucid gases in the atmosphere. In recent decades, we often hear about the greenhouse effect in somewhat negative terms. Effects of the climate change theory are already starting to become visible. Examples include accelerating glaciers, the vast shrinking ice caps, changes in plant and animal behaviour, longer and more severe tropical storms worldwide. As sea levels are slowly, gradually rising people living on low-lying islands and coastal cities face loosing their homes for good. In December 2005, a small community living in the Pacific island chain of Vanuatu became the first in the world to be formally
Evaluating climate change
CLIMATE CHANGE A critical analysis Climate change is a complex subject, with genuine areas of uncertainty and scientific controversy. There are also a number of misunderstandings which are recycled, often by non-climate scientists, and portrayed as scientific fact. Over hundreds, thousands and millions of years 'natural climatic changes have taken place. There appear to have been large- scale cycles of climatic variation. It would appear that climate change therefore is not a recent phenomenon as it has occurred in past cycles. Climate change is happening and humans are contributing to it. Temperatures provide the clearest evidence that the climate is changing and globally the average temperature has risen by more than 0.7 °C over the last 100 years. The natural greenhouse gas effect keeps Earth much warmer than it would otherwise be, without it Earth would be extremely cold. Greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide, methane and water vapour behave like a blanket around Earth. These gases allow the Sun's rays to reach Earth's surface but impede the heat they create from escaping back into space. Any increases in the levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere mean that more heat is trapped and global temperatures increase - an effect known as 'global warming'. There is indisputable evidence from observations that the Earth is warming. Concentrations of CO2, created
Climate change + Solutions
Brian Lockyer EGS - Practical 8 Climate change is a concept that has generated much controversy in recent times, the many competing theories as to why climate change is occurring is no longer meaningful and we are now at a stage where unless serious measures are introduced to combat the causes of climate change human kind as a civilisation could be wiped out forever. As a UCT student and a South African citizen I firmly believe that climate change has mainly been induced by the developed world, however, despite this fact, the responsibilities of combating global change do not primarily lie in the hands of the developed world. Successfully overcoming such a huge problem such as climate change requires the cooperation and willingness of the entire world. There comes a time where we have to accept responsibility for our actions. That time is now. It is not too late to correct the mistake we have made, however we need less talk and more action. The policies of mitigation and adaption which traditionally have been the main two policies in combating climate change have proved to be limiting in their effectiveness (Parry, 2009:1-2). For example, achieving current mitigation targets will not prevent major environmental impacts, as in order for mitigation to have any effect in reducing global damage global emission cuts of 80 percent are necessary (Parry, 2009:1). According to
Climate Change
U.K Climate Change and its Effects The threat of climate change will have impact in the following areas of life in the British Isles: • Sea level rises • Flooding • Ocean currents • Health • Agricultural • Wildlife However there may be new opportunities offered by a warmer climate. However, the overall effect of climate change for the world is NEGATIVE. Rising Sea Levels Sea level will rise by between 10cms and 90cms this century depending on how we reduce CO2 emissions. The coastline of Britain could change dramatically. Low lying areas could be invaded by the sea e.g. East Anglia Ocean Currents The Gulf Stream brings warmth to the UK and north-west Europe and is the reason we have mild winters. The average annual temperature of north-west Europe is about 9C above the average for our latitude. If greenhouse gas emissions continue to increase, the temperature and density of the sea water in the North Atlantic will change with dramatic consequences. The gulf stream may stop or be greatly reduced. This would mean that less heat is brought to north-west Europe - harsher winters and mild summers. Flooding The UK has experienced devastating floods throughout the last five years, which have affected thousands of people and caused millions of pounds worth of damage. Last Summer's floods shocked the country - Large town were cut off or under
Climate Change revision
________________ Geo Skills & Challenges Part I ________________ These changes occurred due to natural causes. Natural causes of climate change are grouped into two categorises, internal and external factors. External Factors Solar Output: The amount of energy released from the sun changes over time. The concentration of sunspots can indicate the amount of solar energy emitted. The more spots there are; the more energy is given off and the warmer our climate is. (0.1% 1980’s) Orbital Patterns: The shape of the earth’s orbit around the sun changes over time. It changes from being virtually circular to being elliptical and back again every 95,000 years. Cold periods in our past have tended to occur during periods of circular orbits. Internal Factors Volcanic Activity: Volcanic eruptions can release large quantities of ash into the atmosphere. This ash acts like a blanket and blocks out the sun, reducing the amount of solar energy that reaches the Earth. To confuse matters... volcanoes can also release massive amounts of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere,
