Climate Change Causes
Climate change causes refer to the factors that contribute to the alteration of the Earth's climate patterns. These causes include human activities such as burning fossil fuels, deforestation, and industrial processes, which release greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. Natural factors like volcanic eruptions and solar radiation also play a role in driving climate change.
7 Key excerpts on "Climate Change Causes"
eBook - ePub- Debleena Bhattacharya, V K Singh(Authors)
- 2022(Publication Date)
- CRC Press(Publisher)
...The region includes rainfall, temperature variation, humidity and wind. The climatic condition of an area is affected by topography, longitude, latitude, Sun–Earth’s axis, proximity to sea and oceans, wind directions, and temperature differences between land and sea. The change in climate is often termed as global warming and it refers to the gradual increase in average temperature on Earth’s surface. According to scientific consensus there is a continuous increase in the global temperature from 0.4 to 0.8°C during the past century and the cause for this escalation in temperature is attributed to the emission of carbon dioxide (CO 2) and other greenhouse gases (GHGs) in the atmosphere. The combustion of fossil fuels gives rise to the increased volume of CO 2 and other GHGs. With the increase in population there is an immediate surge for land and in order to cater the anthropogenic demands the forest was cleared. Apart from this agricultural activity has also significantly contributed to global warming. The most vital factor responsible for climate change lies in the increase in the concentration of the GHGs and CO 2 in the atmosphere. The economic upliftment of the nation depends on the industrial activities such as energy, industry, transport, land use and they rely heavily on the use of fossil fuel. 77 percent of global warming is attributed to CO 2 apart from methane generated by agriculture and rising land clearance, leading to deforestation. Stern (2006) defined the increase in CO 2 concentration level to nearly 100 parts per million (ppm). The present data elucidate that 2–3 ppm of CO 2 is the global emissions. The increased global warming is predicted to show its impact on working people and productivity by 2045. Global warming and climate change have a very strong interrelationship in environment. The capacities of the GHGs to entrap the solar heat within the atmosphere have a detrimental impact on natural habitats, health and also agriculture...
eBook - ePubHope in an Age of Despair
The Gospel and the Future of Life on Earth
- Robert S White, Jonathan A Moo(Authors)
- 2013(Publication Date)
- IVP(Publisher)
...This is partly because Climate Change Causes, feeds into or exacerbates many of the problems discussed above. It is also a major ingredient in many so-called ‘natural disasters’. For example, rising sea levels will make flooding by tropical storms and hurricanes and the effects of tsunamis worse. Floods are by far the biggest cause of loss of life, even more than volcanic eruptions or earthquakes. Changes in global weather patterns and the increased amount of water vapour in the atmosphere in a warmer world are likely to lead to more extreme weather events, whether of rainfall, droughts or heat waves. Climatic change is likely to cause the extinction of organisms that cannot easily migrate, and it will change patterns of where crops can be cultivated. Increasing carbon dioxide levels may acidify the oceans, thus exacerbating climate change by killing many of the organisms that normally absorb carbon by building shells and skeletons. Global climate change is a major issue facing humankind that truly affects everyone on this planet, wherever they live. Yet it is also a problem that has been caused primarily by the way we humans choose to live. For that reason alone it merits detailed discussion....
eBook - ePub- Dina Ionesco, Daria Mokhnacheva, François Gemenne(Authors)
- 2016(Publication Date)
- Routledge(Publisher)
...Human activities may also result in sudden-onset disasters, such as nuclear or industrial accidents, flash floods resulting from sudden water release from dams, or landslides associated with construction projects, all of which can have grave effects on communities. As the world's population increases, a growing number of people live in areas prone to hazards, whether sudden or slow onset, All geographic regions and localities experience some or other type of environmental change or stress; but some areas are particularly disadvantaged, both in terms of exposure of population and key infrastructures and assets to hazards, as well as in terms of local capacity to respond to adversity and to recover from disasters, which is often more limited in lower income countries. Climate change Greenhouse gas emissions from human activities since the nineteenth century have had a significant impact on the climate and weather systems. The development of transport, industry and new technologies reliant on fossil fuels, intense extraction of natural resources, mass deforestation and greater agricultural production to feed the growing population of the planet have all contributed to increasing the amount of carbon dioxide, methane and other gases released into the atmosphere, leading to its warming at an unprecedented rate. Climate change is now considered unequivocal by scientists, and is associated with increased global air and sea temperatures, changing precipitation patterns, melting glaciers and permafrost, the acidification of oceans, rising sea levels, and the growing frequency and intensity of meteorological, hydrological and climatological hazards. These changes inevitably disturb ecological, social and economic systems, exacerbating existing vulnerabilities, and affecting livelihoods, human security and human rights...
eBook - ePub30-Second Climate
The 50 most topical events, measures and conditions, each explained in half a minute
- Joanna D Haigh(Author)
- 2019(Publication Date)
- Ivy Press(Publisher)
...Natural forcing factors are predominately changes in the Sun and volcanic eruptions; the main human influence is warming through increased concentrations of greenhouse gases, but several other significant forcing factors introduce both warming and cooling tendencies. Small particles emitted into the atmosphere by industrial and agricultural processes (say, sulphate particles from coal-fired power stations or dust from degraded agricultural land) can enhance planetary reflectivity or reduce it (for instance, black carbon particles). Changes in land use also have an effect: deforestation, for example, causes warming through reducing the take-up of atmospheric CO 2 but also cooling if the cleared land is more reflective. The imbalance produced by a factor at the top of the atmosphere, without any climate response, is referred to as its ‘radiative forcing’. This measure allows the magnitudes of different factors to be compared, enabling scientists to estimate the impact of various human activities on the climate. 3-SECOND EVENT The Earth’s climate reflects a delicate balance between solar energy absorbed and heat energy emitted into space; anything perturbing this balance likely affects global temperature. 3-MINUTE CYCLE In addition to their direct effect on the planetary radiation balance, forcing factors can have an indirect impact through chemical or physical processes. So, for example, methane emitted into the lower atmosphere is involved in chemical reactions that increase both its own concentration and that of other greenhouse gases...
eBook - ePubSustainability Unpacked
Food, Energy and Water for Resilient Environments and Societies
- Kristiina Vogt, Toral Patel-Weynand, Maura Shelton, Daniel J Vogt, John C. Gordon, Cal Mukumoto, Asep. S. Suntana, Patricia A. Roads(Authors)
- 2012(Publication Date)
- Routledge(Publisher)
...A large land-base does not provide food security if most of it is located in areas where temperature limits plant growth. In Russia, the overriding climate control of a land's productive capacity is clearly evident. Understanding the variable impacts of climate change across the diversity of biomes is fundamental to decoding sustainability and human survival. Humans have a long history of dealing with the impacts of climate change in environments that are either conducive for their survival or where human survival is mostly at the subsistence level. Furthermore, because climate change is not going to be uniformly layered across the globe, understanding the interplay between climates and the provision of bio-resources is crucial for society. Thus, climate change will strongly influence human development and wellbeing, as well as determining where it will be easier for humans to survive. Even though climate is a great social equalizer because it does not selectively impact just the poor or the rich, people across the entire human development spectrum are forced to adapt. All members of human society have to adapt to the changing climate or any other constraints that have been introduced into their environment. However, rich people, with more mechanisms in place to adapt to an altered environment, are less susceptible to climate change. Why People Migrate: Geography and Climate Influences on Humans Past human responses to changing climates: Become a foreigner It is not new for humans to migrate and expand their resource footprint at the same time. History has shown that humans pursued ephemeral and seasonal resources like many other animals. Humans have a history of being ‘foreigners’...
eBook - ePubClimate Change and Armed Conflict
Hot and Cold Wars
- James R. Lee(Author)
- 2009(Publication Date)
- Routledge(Publisher)
...This phenomenon is often accompanied by conflict, insofar as such periods of ascent and descent are inherently unstable as relative power changes. It could also push people to adjust, and develop new technologies or lifestyles that allow for survival and in some way improve humans over the long term. Changing climate pushed humans out of Africa, but it also led to their worldwide spread. It brought people into conflict with other species over food sources, especially other predators, but also other advanced primates. Conflict is driven in part by a changing climate, as peoples are pushed from and pulled to other habitats. Conflict is often intrinsic to acquiring basic biological needs, and applies to humans and many other species. Climate change and conflict is essentially a socio-biological response that occurs when two species overlap in range. People today often come into conflict when their “ranges” overlap. The varied interactions between climate change and conflict over time is reflected in cases involving Neanderthals, Aryans, Mayans, Vikings, or Anasazi. It is clear that at times the interaction of natural and human forces was very significant in determining the evolutionary path of peoples, and indeed their very survival. The evidence is that today’s and tomorrow’s conflict from climate change represents continuity rather than a new phenomenon. Thus, climate change as a cause of conflict is not a revolutionary idea; it is evolutionary. Believing in the future cases The future cases are not wild possibilities or attempts at science fiction. They are instances where climate change is highly likely, and conflict emergence a clear possibility. Trends point to geopolitical realignments that are likely to interact, to some degree, with physical realignments...
eBook - ePubClimate Change and Sustainable Development
Mitigation and Adaptation
- Dalia Štreimikienė, Asta Mikalauskiene(Authors)
- 2021(Publication Date)
- CRC Press(Publisher)
...1 Causes of Climate Change and Legal Regulations 1.1 Causes of Climate Change Since the end of the 19th century, the greatest impact on the climate has been achieved by the increasing atmospheric pollution caused by human economic activity: the concentration of greenhouse gases (GHGs) and ozone-depleting gases is rising. These climate change factors are transforming the state of the entire climate system at an unusually fast rate. Aerosols of volcanic and anthropogenic origin cause the opposite effect – cooling – since they reduce the transparency of the atmosphere and the solar radiation inflow to the Earth’s surface. Other global processes and reversible effects of the climate system are also significant to the climate sphere. These processes and effects include the rapid desertification of periodically wet savannas and scrubs due to overgrazing, wind erosion, and disturbed periodicity of seasonal rains as well as the decrease of stratospheric ozone. The Earth’s atmosphere has a natural physical property to warm up and retain the heat. Because of this phenomenon, most of the solar energy, received by the Earth during the day, is used to warm the atmosphere rather than the surface. At night, when the Sun is on the other side of the horizon, the warm air of the atmosphere cools slowly and steadily. This phenomenon of heat accumulation and retention is one of the necessary conditions for sustaining life on Earth. It is usually called the greenhouse effect (IPCC 2007). Planets with no atmosphere do not have this so-called greenhouse effect. During the day, solar energy burns the surface of these planets and, when the Sun turns beyond the horizon, the temperature immediately becomes extremely low. The day and night temperatures of Mercury,which does not have an atmosphere,are 400°C and −160°C,respectively. The temperature of Venus,the dense atmosphere of which consists of 96% CO 2, does not fluctuate and is 462°C...
