- Analyze two of nine new challenges emerging from climate change and how these two challenges can be responded. Give some examples.
The climate is changing, and it's not a distant phenomenon which might take place one day in future years, it is happening right now. This change which is mostly caused by human activity is definitely one of the greatest global challenges of our time resulting in global problems of the mankind: the increase of average overall temperature, level of the oceans, melting of glaciers, declining crop yields and other ghastly devastating repercussions. Hereinafter two challenges resulting from climate change will be analyzed: rising sea levels and declining crop yields or even its vanishing in some regions of the Globe.
Process of sea level rise has been observed since the 1850-s and in consequence of which during the mere XX century global sea level datum rose by 17 centimeters and keeps increasing at the level of nearly 3 millimeters a year. According to the assessment prepared by the San Diego Scripps Institution of Oceanography (CA, USA) “By 2050, sea level rise, relative to the 2000 level, ranges from 30 cm to 45 cm. By 2100, sea level rise ranges from approximately 0.9 m to 1.4 m” (Cayan, Tyree, Pierce, and Das 24). Pursuant to one of the most common assumptions of scholars all over the world, the reason for this process is global warming. It leads to the thermal expansion of water, which thus acquires a greater volume. And, affected by the global warming, polar ice caps and land glaciers melt worldwide that brings extra water in the oceans.
Rising of the level of the ocean within the scope predicted will have got extremely pernicious environmental and socio-economic implications: large areas of land, not only coastal plains, will get inundated, that will complicate water supply for these regions and will give rise to other problems of humanity: hunger, spread of diseases, conflicts and others. It is estimated that if the world's water level rises by 1m, 20% of the territory of Bangladesh, the agricultural land of Egypt, some large Chinese cities will be submerged, and enormous amount of cities all over the world will face the same destiny, Venice will undergo catastrophic flooding, and even more, several island states, such as Tuvalu, Maldives will cease their existence.
Major scientific researches are focused on finding solutions to this problem. The research team of the above mentioned Institution found that “reductions in four pollutants that cycle comparatively quickly through the atmosphere could slow the annual rate of sea level rise by about 50 percent. The short-lived climate pollutants (SLCP) are Methane, Black Carbon (Soot), Tropospheric Ozone and hydrofluorocarbons” (“Reducing Emissions of Methane, Black Carbon, Can Slow Sea Level Rise from Climate Change”).
There is a great example of how mankind strives to respond to this sort of climate challenge. Launched in 2003, MOSE Project is an unprecedented attempt of Italian government supported by scholars all over the world to protect a cultural heritage of the city of Venice and the Venetian Lagoons from extreme sea level rising. Its creators respond that “the mobile gates are designed to last at least a century and to protect Venice from a difference in water level between the sea and lagoon of up to six and half feet” (Poggioli). The success of this project may be an example for all nations of effective struggle against threatening offensive of sea.
Another challenge that arises from climate change that I would like to stress on is a problem of declining crop yields. Climate change equally affects the lives of the poor and the rich, influencing basic human needs, including the need for food, wearing, and housing. Changes in patterns of climate variability have a direct impact on the stability of food production systems. Increased frequency and intensity of extreme phenomena such as droughts and floods, will pose a serious threat to the stability of a domestic food market as well as global one. The influence of warming on agricultural productivity is ambiguous. In some temperate-climate regions yields may increase if an increase in temperature is not so huge, but productivity of land will fall in the event of significant changes in temperature. Overall, in tropical and subtropical regions level of crop yield of the crop is estimated to decline with further climate changes. The poorest countries, least of all prepared to adapt to climate change, are practically doomed to the devastating impact of climate change in this regard.
5. Describe and analyze the impact of water stress on agriculture, desertification, health and drought. Provide one or two examples.
One of the consequences of climate change is the lack of water, either of water for drinking, or for commercial use. In regions with arid type of climate (Central Asia, the Mediterranean, South Africa, Australia, etc.) the situation is getting more aggravated due to reductions in rainfall. Lack of fresh water in future will affect not only human`s health and development of agriculture, but also it will increase the risk of political differences and conflicts over access to water resources.
Stern in the report released for the Government of the UK stated “Around one-third of today’s global population live in countries experiencing moderate to high water stress, and 1.1 billion people lack access to safe water Even without climate change, population growth by itself may result in several billion more people living in areas of more limited water availability” (63). This observation leads us to believe the world nowadays possesses possibility of experiencing inconceivable severities in future caused by further aggravations of the present state of water supply.
Sphere of agriculture, for which needs nowadays more than 70% of the overall world water utilization is allocated, in future will simply not be able to afford such great volumes of water resources. As a result of it, the universal agriculture will undergo extremely inefficiency of provision of mankind with its yield, so necessary for the sufficient life sustenance. Moreover lack of water will come out to abnormal decrease of soil fertility caused by the imbalance in the process of renewal of humus so necessary for crop-producing.
Along with deforestation, excessive grazing of livestock, salt accumulation water stress is the major reason of desertification of lands which used to be fertile not so long ago. Arid regions inclined to desertification occupy more than 41% of Earth's land area. Infant mortality in the countries occupying such arid lands is higher, and the gross national product per capita is lower than in the rest of the world. Because of the difficulty of access to water, to agricultural markets, because of a small number of natural resources poverty in such arid regions is flourishing. One of the most sad but true examples of desertification nowadays is expansion of the Sahara Desert to the South of Africa that is caused by the insufficiency of water resources and human activity in that region.
One-quarter of the world's population lives in developing countries facing water shortages due to lack of infrastructure for taking water from rivers and water bearing beds underground. Water scarcity forces people to derive drinking water from unsafe sources. By doing this they expose themselves to the risk of diseases such as cholera, typhoid and dysentery, and other diseases transmitted through water. Because of water stress people of the third world have nothing left but storing water in their homes that increases the risk of water pollution and creates breeding grounds for mosquitoes which carry dengue fever, malaria, and other diseases.
And, lastly, drought as a consequence of water stress shall be mentioned. This cataclysmic natural phenomenon which is characterized as long-term period of weather with high air temperatures and low rainfall, resulting in reduced soil moisture and oppression and destruction of crops, claimed more than 1 million of lives in Africa starting from 1970. The worst said to be in 60 years drought took place in the East Africa in July 2011 and lasted more than a year resulting according to various estimates from 50 to 260 thousands of lives.
I came to conclusion, that climate change is inevitable, however it depends on us, dwellers of this Planet, to what extent it will happen. For this reason the world community shall unite efforts to resist those cataclysms and sufferings and bring their effect to the minimum.
Works cited
Cayan, Dan, Mary Tyree, David Pierce, Tapash Das (Scripps Institution of Oceanography). Climate Change and Sea Level Rise Scenarios for California Vulnerability and Adaptation Assessment. California Energy Commission. 2012.
“New Study: Reducing Emissions of Methane, Black Carbon, Can Slow Sea Level Rise from Climate Change”. Daily Kos. 16 Apr. 2013. Web. 13 June 2013.
Poggioli, Sylvia. “MOSE Project Aims to Part Venice Floods”. NPR. 07 Jan. 2008. Web. 13 Jun. 2013.
Stern, Nicholas. Stern Review: The Economics of Climate Change. Cambridge University Press, 2007. Print.
