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ESS Notes On 7.3

The document discusses climate change mitigation and adaptation. Mitigation aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and remove gases from the atmosphere, while adaptation focuses on living with the consequences of climate change. Some individual mitigation methods are listed, as well as larger-scale strategies like carbon taxes, carbon trading programs, developing alternative energy sources, and reducing deforestation. Adaptation strategies include enhancing carbon absorption and promoting public education about global warming. International agreements like the Kyoto Protocol have aimed to stabilize greenhouse gas levels but reducing emissions presents economic and political challenges.

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60 views

ESS Notes On 7.3

The document discusses climate change mitigation and adaptation. Mitigation aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and remove gases from the atmosphere, while adaptation focuses on living with the consequences of climate change. Some individual mitigation methods are listed, as well as larger-scale strategies like carbon taxes, carbon trading programs, developing alternative energy sources, and reducing deforestation. Adaptation strategies include enhancing carbon absorption and promoting public education about global warming. International agreements like the Kyoto Protocol have aimed to stabilize greenhouse gas levels but reducing emissions presents economic and political challenges.

Uploaded by

Savya Bindal
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Mitigation and Adaptation

Subtopic 7.3: Climate change mitigation and adaptation

What is mitigation

- Mitigation – reduction/ or stabilization (GHG) emissions & removal from


atmosphere.
Adaptation
- Efforts to live with consequences of climate change

Individual methods to reduce GHG


- Grow your own food
- Eat locally produced foods
- Use energy efficient products rather traditional ones. Like light bulbs
- Reduce your heating – insulating (weatherproof homes)
- Eat lower down the food chain (vegetables rather than meat)
- Unplug appliances when not in use

Mitigation – 2 categories

1) Reduction of emissions of oxides of nitrogen and methane from agriculture


2) Geo engineering

Decarbonization – declining average carbon intensity of primary energy.


Refers to large reduction carbon dioxide per value of gross world product

Methods for decarbonization


- End use fuel switching to electric sources
- Decarbonization of electricity
- Energy efficiency

Reducti on of emissions of oxides of nitrogen and methane from agriculture

AGRICULTURE – major source of greenhouse gases in oxides of nitrogen from fertilizers &
methane from livestock. This would change if it used less chemical fertilizers and less
intensive livestock farms.

DESERTEC PROJECT
- To link North Africa, middle east and Europe in a single grid.
- This system taps strong solar & wind potential North Africa and Arabian Peninsula
supply energy to Europe.

Geo engineering

1) Sulphate erosion (failed method, hypothetical)


2) Plant giant mirrors in space deflect some incoming solar radiation

Global warming caused by short wave radiation (infra-red radiation)

UN REDD PROGRAMME

- Control GHG – A forestation because trees absorb carbon


- REDD Stress – when tree absorbs carbon, it’s called carbon stocks.

Carbon dioxide removal (CDR) technique

Carbon capture & Sequestration (CCS)

- Capturing under the rock, direct air capture of carbon dioxide

Eccentric - Enhancing carbon dioxide absorption

- Marine algae have the capacity to absorb carbon from atmosphere

ADAPTATION

Q) Evaluate the effectiveness of international climate change talks.


Q) Strategies

1) Carbon tax
2) Carbon trading
3) Alternative energy source
4) Individual’ reductions in GHG

Strategy 1-

 Countries introduced carbon taxes encourage reduce emissions of carbon dioxide

 Tax burning fossil fuels how much carbon they contain.

 These taxes effective if applied internationally also valuable nationally.


 High carbon tax leads to low standard of living (disadvantage)

 France example – hurts the poorest

 SWEDEN AND INDIA example

Strategy 2

 Is a legally binding scheme for firms to allow to cap their carbon or perhaps trade
carbon.
 Carbon allowances – which can be bought and sold to secondary market, can sell any
excess in the market. Price of carbon is determined by Supply and demand.
 Financial incentive
 Hasn’t been easy to put in practice
 Govt set targets amount of Carbon dioxide emitted industries.
 It is working, but not very well. Critics argue that the targets are too generous.

The politics of carbon emission and. Mitigation

KYOTO PROTOCAL – QUESTIO WILL COME IN

- International agreement called for stabilization of GHG emissions.


- Aimed cut GHG emissions by 5% of their 1990 levels by 2012.

Focus
- 4 GHG
- 2 groups of gases
- Reduction of these

Principals
- Commitment to reduce GHG
- Prepare policies
- Accounting (carbon trade, tax)

Strategy 1
- Stabilization of GHG concentrations atmosphere

Difficult change in MEDC’s: Comfortable


home, own transport & general high energy
culture
LEDC’s think unreasonable their counties to
curb emissions until they caught up
standards
Ultimately solutions must be found if
irreversible climate change is to be avoided.
Q) discuss which environmental values systems you consider to be most appropriate in the
management of global warming.

Eccentric
- Promote education about global warming
- Promote energy efficient strategies
- Promote greater use of public transport

Anthroprecentic
- Financial incentives
- Increasing household energy efficiency

Technocentric
- Promote adaptation
- Increase R&D
- Promote development of new technology

The use of alternative energy sources is also encouraged by Kyoto protocol

- Avoidance of fossil fuels and greater use of hydroelectric, solar, and wind power are
actively encouraged.
- Nuclear power has been adopted by some countries as a method of clean energy
and generation, although the problems of disposal of the radioactive waste material

IPCC – INTERGOVERNMENATAL PANEL ON CLIMATE CHANGE


- Scientific intergovernmental body tasked to evaluate the risk of climate change
caused by human activity.
Suggestion

- Considers carbon capture and storage (CCS) unproven tech to bury carbon dioxide
underground.
- Abandoning nuclear power or deploying wind or solar power increases cos of
emission cuts by just 6-7%.
- States behavior changes, as dietary changes involve eating less meat, have role in
cutting emissions.

The Paris agreement

- 2015 Paris summit holds hope for a new deal on climate change. Reasons
- Obama keen to cut carbon emission by 26% by 2025
- China’s president offered a time scale for peak emissions 2030
- EU agreed a 40% cut in GHG emissions 2030 compared w 1990.

To what extent do anthropocentric value systems dominate the international efforts to


address climate change?
Anthroprecentic
- Financial incentives
- Increasing household energy efficiency

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