What is climate change? Explain its causes and affects with the help of examples.

Climate change is a change in the pattern of weather, and related changes in oceans, land surfaces and ice
sheets, occurring over time scales of decades or longer

Weather is the state of the atmosphere—its temperature, humidity, wind, rainfall and so on—over hours to
weeks. It is influenced by the oceans, land surfaces and ice sheets, which together with the atmosphere form
what is called the ‘climate system’. Climate, in its broadest sense, is the statistical description of the state of
the climate system.

Climate change is a change in the statistical properties of the climate system that persists for several decades
or longer—usually at least 30 years. These statistical properties include averages, variability and extremes.
Climate change may be due to natural processes, such as changes in the Sun’s radiation, volcanoes or
internal variability in the climate system, or due to human influences such as changes in the composition of
the atmosphere or land use.

Causes:

Natural causes

There are a number of natural factors responsible for climate change. Some of the more prominent ones are
continental drift, volcanoes, ocean currents, the earth's tilt, and comets and meteorites. Let's look at them in
a little detail.

Continental drift

Scientists believe that 200 years ago, the earth was not as we see it today, but the continents were all part of
one large landmass. Proof of this comes from the similarity between plant and animal fossils and broad belts
of rocks found on the eastern coastline of South America and western coastline of Africa, which are now
widely separated by the Atlantic Ocean. The discovery of fossils of tropical plants (in the form of coal
deposits) in Antarctica has led to the conclusion that this frozen land at some time in the past, must have
been situated closer to the equator, where the climate was tropical, with swamps and plenty of lush
vegetation.

The continents that we are familiar with today were formed when the landmass began gradually drifting
apart, millions of years back. This drift also had an impact on the climate because it changed the physical
features of the landmass, their position and the position of water bodies. The separation of the landmasses
changed the flow of ocean currents and winds, which affected the climate. This drift of the continents
continues even today; the Himalayan range is rising by about 1 mm (millimeter) every year because the
Indian land mass is moving towards the Asian land mass, slowly but steadily.

 Volcanoes
When a volcano erupts it throws out large volumes of sulphur dioxide (SO2), water vapour, dust, and ash
into the atmosphere. Although the volcanic activity may last only a few days, yet the large volumes of gases
and ash can influence climatic patterns for years. Millions of tonnes of sulphur dioxide gas can reach the
upper levels of the atmosphere (called the stratosphere) from a major eruption. The gases and dust particles
partially block the incoming rays of the sun, leading to cooling. Sulphur dioxide combines with water to
form tiny droplets of sulphuric acid. These droplets are so small that many of them can stay aloft for several
years. They are efficient reflectors of sunlight, and screen the ground from some of the energy that it would
ordinarily receive from the sun. Winds in the upper levels of the atmopshere, called the stratosphere, carry
the aerosols rapidly around the globe in either an easterly or westerly direction. Movement of aerosols north
and south is always much slower. This should give you some idea of the ways by which cooling can be
brought about for a few years after a major volcanic eruption.

Mount Pinatoba, in the Philippine islands erupted in April 1991 emitting thousands of tonnes of gases into
the atmosphere. Volcanic eruptions of this magnitude can reduce the amount of solar radiation reaching the
Earth's surface, lowering temperatures in the lower levels of the atmosphere (called the troposphere), and
changing atmospheric circulation patterns. The extent to which this occurs is an ongoing debate.

The earth's tilt

The earth makes one full orbit around the sun each year. It is tilted at an angle of 23.5° to the perpendicular
plane of its orbital path. For one half of the year when it is summer, the northern hemisphere tilts towards
the sun. In the other half when it is winter, the earth is tilted away from the sun. If there was no tilt we would
not have experienced seasons. Changes in the tilt of the earth can affect the severity of the seasons - more tilt
means warmer summers and colder winters; less tilt means cooler summers and milder winters.

The Earth's orbit is somewhat elliptical, which means that the distance between the earth and the Sun varies
over the course of a year. We usually think of the earth's axis as being fixed, after all, it always seems to
point toward Polaris (also known as the Pole Star and the North Star). Actually, it is not quite constant: the
axis does move, at the rate of a little more than a half-degree each century. So Polaris has not always been,
and will not always be, the star pointing to the North. When the pyramids were built, around 2500 BC, the
pole was near the star Thuban (Alpha Draconis). This gradual change in the direction of the earth's axis,
called precession is responsible for changes in the climate.

Ocean currents
The oceans are a major component of the climate system. They cover about 71% of the Earth and absorb
about twice as much of the sun's radiation as the atmosphere or the land surface. Ocean currents move vast
amounts of heat across the planet - roughly the same amount as the atmosphere does. But the oceans are
surrounded by land masses, so heat transport through the water is through channels.

Winds push horizontally against the sea surface and drive ocean current patterns.
Certain parts of the world are influenced by ocean currents more than others. The coast of Peru and other
adjoining regions are directly influenced by the Humboldt current that flows along the coastline of Peru. The
El Niño event in the Pacific Ocean can affect climatic conditions all over the world.

Ocean currents have been known to change direction or slow down. Much of the heat that escapes from the
oceans is in the form of water vapour, the most abundant greenhouse gas on Earth. Yet, water vapor also
contributes to the formation of clouds, which shade the surface and have a net cooling effect.

Any or all of these phenomena can have an impact on the climate, as is believed to have happened at the end
of the last Ice Age, about 14,000 years ago.

Human causes
Greenhouse gases and their sources
Carbon dioxide is undoubtedly, the most important greenhouse gas in the atmosphere. Changes in land use
pattern, deforestation, land clearing, agriculture, and other activities have all led to a rise in the emission of
carbon dioxide.

Methane is another important greenhouse gas in the atmosphere. About ¼ of all methane emissions are said
to come from domesticated animals such as dairy cows, goats, pigs, buffaloes, camels, horses, and sheep.
These animals produce methane during the cud-chewing process. Methane is also released from rice or
paddy fields that are flooded during the sowing and maturing periods. When soil is covered with water it
becomes anaerobic or lacking in oxygen. Under such conditions, methane-producing bacteria and other
organisms decompose organic matter in the soil to form methane. Nearly 90% of the paddy-growing area in
the world is found in Asia, as rice is the staple food there. China and India, between them, have 80-90% of
the world's rice-growing areas.

Methane is also emitted from landfills and other waste dumps. If the waste is put into an incinerator or burnt
in the open, carbon dioxide is emitted. Methane is also emitted during the process of oil drilling, coal mining
and also from leaking gas pipelines (due to accidents and poor maintenance of sites).
A large amount of nitrous oxide emission has been attributed to fertilizer application. This in turn depends
on the type of fertilizer that is used, how and when it is used and the methods of tilling that are followed.
Contributions are also made by leguminous plants, such as beans and pulses that add nitrogen to the soil.

How we all contribute every day

All of us in our daily lives contribute our bit to this change in the climate. Give these points a good, serious
thought:

- Electricity is the main source of power in urban areas. All our gadgets run on electricity generated mainly
from thermal power plants. These thermal power plants are run on fossil fuels (mostly coal) and are
responsible for the emission of huge amounts of greenhouse gases and other pollutants.
- Cars, buses, and trucks are the principal ways by which goods and people are transported in most of our
cities. These are run mainly on petrol or diesel, both fossil fuels.
- We generate large quantities of waste in the form of plastics that remain in the environment for many years
and cause damage.
- We use a huge quantity of paper in our work at schools and in offices. Have we ever thought about the
number of trees that we use in a day?
- Timber is used in large quantities for construction of houses, which means that large areas of forest have to
be cut down.
- A growing population has meant more and more mouths to feed. Because the land area available for
agriculture is limited (and in fact, is actually shrinking as a result of ecological degradation!), high-yielding
varieties of crop are being grown to increase the agricultural output from a given area of land. However,
such high-yielding varieties of crops require large quantities of fertilizers; and more fertilizer means more
emissions of nitrous oxide, both from the field into which it is put and the fertilizer industry that makes it.
Pollution also results from the run-off of fertilizer into water bodies.

Effects:

Ice melting
One of the most evident consequences is melting ice – the melting of the cryosphere, those portions
of Earth’s surface where water is in solid form, including ice caps, glaciers, and permafrost (those areas
where soil is permanently frozen). According to predictions, Arctic ice could completely melt during the
hottest periods of the year by the end of the century. The cryosphere naturally plays a crucial role in the
global climate system and a change in its extension could cause a change in the system itself. Fragile
ecosystems like oceans, mountains and wetlands could be damaged permanently.
Sea level rise
Melting ice caps in Antarctica and Greenland have most likely led sea level to rise by 3.1 millimetres per
year between 1993 and 2003, according to IPCC. The rise is expected to reach 15 to 95 centimetres by 2100.

Ocean acidification
Increased levels of CO2 in the atmosphere will also lead to ocean acidification, causing irreparable damage
to marine ecosystems – like the Great Barrier Reef that is a UNESCO heritage site as it is home to more
than “400 types of coral, 1,500 species of fish and 4,000 types of mollusc. It also holds great scientific
interest as the habitat of species such as the dugong and the large green turtle, which are threatened with
extinction”. Professional services firm Deloitte estimated the economic value of this treasure: 56 billion
Australian dollars, and 64,000 jobs.

Desertification
Desertification (and, thus, heat waves) will expand to areas that currently boast a temperate climate such as
the areas north and south of the Sahara desert, including the Mediterranean countries, causing severe
damage to agriculture. Crops will significantly drop while more and more people will face
undernourishment. In particular, yields from maize and wheat crops could drop by 50 per cent over the next
35 years due to global warming. It’s a risk that has to be prevented considering that people suffering from
hunger are currently slightly decreasing. The study State of Food Insecurity in the World 2015 conducted by
the International Fund for Agricultural development (IFAD) and the World Food Programme (WFP)
estimates that nearly 795 million people don’t eat enough food. They amounted to 1 billion in 1990-1992.

Events like El Niño – a variation in the southern oscillation that causes significant changes in climate
including hurricanes, storms, flooding in Central America and severe drought linked to wild fires in
western Pacific areas – will be more frequent and intense causing casualties and economic loss. This
could lead to the outburst of diseases, like malaria, in areas previously unaffected.
Biodiversity loss
It’s not only due to climate change, but also because of humanity, that the Earth is facing a relentless mass
extinction, the sixth, resulting in a significant drop in our Planet’s biodiversity. Species extinction rate is
extremely high and half the living species could become extinct by the end of the century. This biodiversity
loss has “grave and far-reaching implications for human well-being,” said John Knox, a human rights expert
and professor of international law at Wake Forest University. Knox is also a UN Special Rapporteur on
environment and human rights and the author of the first report of the United Nations that recognises that
healthy biodiverse ecosystems are essential for human rights. As it happens with desertification, biodiversity
loss – in particular of plant species – could slow down disease control and increase the spreading of
infectious and autoimmune diseases.
What are the adverse effects of over-exploitation of natural resources? Explain in detail.

CONSEQUENCES OF THE OVEREXPLOITATION OF NATURAL RESOURCES

This uncontrolled consumption of natural resources has significant effects:

 Environmental: the disappearance of habitats essential for flora and fauna and, therefore, the
extinction of species. There are some 30 million different animal and plant species in the world, and
of these, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) says that in 2018, 26,197
species are threatened with extinction.

 Economic: 33% of the world's soils are moderately to highly degraded, according to a United

Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) report published in 2017. If the erosion of fertile
soil continues at the same rate, agricultural commodity prices will inevitably soar.

 For Health: if we do not take care of the forests there will be fewer CO2Nota sinks and therefore
more air pollution. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), nine out of ten people
worldwide breathe air with high levels of pollutants and seven million people die each year from
ambient (outdoor) and domestic air pollution.