Introduction.
Climate change refers to significant changes in global temperature, precipitation, wind patterns and other measures of climate that occur over several decades or longer.
Effects of climate change.
§ Rising minimum temperatures
§ Rising sea levels
§ Higher ocean temperatures
§ An increase in heavy precipitation (heavy rain and hail)
§ Shrinking glaciers
§ An increase in hunger and water crises, especially in developing countries
§ Health risks through rising air temperatures and heat waves.
Causes of climate change.
§ The earth's climate is naturally variable on all time scales.
§ Any factor that causes a sustained change to the amount of incoming energy or the amount of outgoing energy can lead to climate change.
§ As these factors are external to the climate system, they are referred to as ‘climate forcers', invoking the idea that they force or push the climate towards a new long-term state – either warmer or cooler depending on the cause of change.
How do we know the climate is change.
§ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) established by WMO and UNEP in 1988 – it is the science authority for UNFCCC
§ Objective – to assess the scientific, technical and socio-economic information for understanding the scientific basis of risk of human-induced climate change, its potential impacts and options for adaptation and mitigation
§ IPCC does not carry out research nor monitor climate related data or other relevant parameters. It bases its assessment on peer reviewed and published scientific/technical literature.
Pakistan effected by climate change.
§ Pakistan lies in arid and semi-arid region and is facing rising temperatures. This increase in temperature will cause severe impacts. Pakistan is an agriculture based country but it is on decline and farmers’ inclination towards agriculture is not the same as it was a decade ago. Climate change has potential impacts on agriculture but the farming community is not even aware of it.
§ Glacier melt in the Himalayas is projected to increase flooding will affect water resources within the next two to three decades. This will be followed by decreased river flows over time as glaciers recede.
Pakistan, which has been listed as the 7th most vulnerable country affected by climate change, is now seriously tackling the vagaries of weather, both at the official as well as non-official level.
Pursuant to an initiative launched by the Pakistan Parliament’s Upper House, the Senate, which specially entrusted a sub-Committee of the Standing Committee on Climate Change to focus on “Green and Clean” Islamabad, media, civil society and students have taken up the cudgels on combating climate change.
According to experts, Pakistan has faced around 150 freak weather incidents as a result of climate change in the past 20 years: flash floods, smog in winter, forest fires in summer, melting glaciers, freaky heatwaves, landsides, displaced population, etc. During floods in 2010-11, almost 10% of Pakistan’s population was displaced in 2 provinces, one in the North and another in the South. Last year, the costs of extreme weather as a consequence of climate change, were listed at $ 384 million and in the past 20 years, there has been a cost of almost $ 2 billion to the national economy because of the ravages of climate change. Efforts are being undertaken to mitigate the problem. For instance, some $ 120 million funds have been expended in the country in the past 5 years to arrest forest degradation and to promote tea plantations . There has also an effort to bring about a more eco-friendly energy mix for Pakistan.
Pakistan has an installed capacity of over 30,000 MG of electricity. Out of this, 60% is being generated through imported fuel including furnace oil, coal etc. while 30% is via hydropower, 6% nuclear and only 4% generated on renewable energy. The share of renewable energy would be enhanced to 25% of the total by 2025 and 30% by 2030.
Global warming.
§ The science of warming the atmosphere through increasing the level of carbon dioxide (CO2) in it has been known for over 100 years
§ It has been only in the last half century that people have been measuring global change, and only in recent decades that we have had the computing power to model global weather patterns effectively
§ CO2 rose to over 400 parts per million (ppm) in the atmosphere in May 2013 – 100ppm more than at the start of the C20th and the first time it’s been at this level for at least 800,000 years.
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Recommendation.
§ Reduce Corban dioxide emission
§ Reduce CFC emission
§ Reduce deforestation
The world’s climate system.
§ The world’s climate system is an integral part of this complex of life-supporting processes.
§ It is one of many large number of natural systems that are now coming under pressure from the increasing weight of human population and economic activities.
§ The context and process of global climate change, its actual or likely impacts on health, and how human societies should respond to it is matter of serious concern to the whole world.
Conclusion.
§ Human-induced climate change has contributed to changing patterns of extreme weather across the globe, from longer and hotter heat waves to heavier rains. From a broad perspective, all weather events are now connected to climate change. While natural variability continues to play a key role in extreme weather, climate change has shifted the odds and changed the natural limits, making certain types of extreme weather more frequent and more intense.
§ While our understanding of how climate change affects extreme weather is still developing, evidence suggests that extreme weather may be affected even more than anticipated. Extreme weather is on the rise, and the indications are that it will continue to increase, in both predictable and unpredictable ways.
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Call to action.
In which city do you live?
How much you are effected by the Air pollution?
Do you think Air pollution climate change causes hazardous health problems?
In your opinion what is the biggest cause for air pollution?
Have you ever suffered from health issues because of Air pollution?
Relavent internal links.
Meta description.
Climate Change is a huge development challenge as well as a huge environmental challenge. Apart from the global impact, it is hitting the poorest and the most vulnerable first and hardest. It is a growing problem of the here and now.
The effects of climate change also weigh disproportionately on the poorest, and on women and children. Successful climate change adaptation, coupled with forceful mitigation, holds the key to human development prospects.
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