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Global Warming

Global Warming. Stephanie Carlino. What is Global Warming?. Most debated topics on earth Significant increase in the Earth’s climatic temperature over a relatively short time period Temperature rises in recent times have been influenced or caused by human activities. What Causes It?.

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Global Warming

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  1. Global Warming Stephanie Carlino

  2. What is Global Warming? • Most debated topics on earth • Significant increase in the Earth’s climatic temperature over a relatively short time period • Temperature rises in recent times have been influenced or caused by human activities

  3. What Causes It? • Increase in the greenhouse effect • Greenhouse effect is not bad by itself; it’s what allows the Earth to stay at a temperature that life can survive at • Without the greenhouse effect Earth would look like Mars • Sun’s rays heat the Earth, 1/3 of the sun’s energy bounces off Earth’s surface • Gases in the atmosphere absorb some of this heat

  4. Larger amounts of these gases have been released into the atmosphere in recent years because of human activities • This increase has upset the natural balance and created an enhanced greenhouse effect • Stronger greenhouse effect = global warming • CO2 estimated to have caused 70% if enhanced greenhouse effect

  5. Polluting Our World • Last century more fossil fuels have been burned all over the world (coal, oil, natural gases) • They release pollutants (I.e. CO2 and other gases) • Problem: most places in the world depend on fossil fuels as their source of energy

  6. Warmer oceans = stronger storms • Science text books use to say “It’s impossible to have hurricanes in the South Atlantic” • In 2004, after a hurricane hit Brazil, textbooks were rewritten • 2005 broke all records for storms in Western Atlantic • 27 named storms, 14 hurricanes, 7 major hurricanes • Out of the 7 major ones, 3 reached a category 5 storm

  7. Heat causes the waters to expand, which in turn is causes sea levels to rise • This is major, and scary problem

  8. Endangering Species • Global warming has a huge effect on ecosystems • Animals and plants that live within each habitat will begin to suffer • Worry that may lead to a decline in biodiversity • Some species endangered now may face extinction

  9. Slightest change could kill off several species and species that depend on them • Ecosystems are interconnected • Species would either adapt/move or become extinct • Some ecosystems are already drastically changing due to climate change

  10. Polar bears are drowning in significant numbers due to them having to swim longer distances from floe to floe If ice continues to melt, they will have to find a different way to survive Some say they can adjust to this and live like the brown bears in Alaska Others fear they may simply die out

  11. Penguins are well adapted to cold air and water – they could be greatly affected by global warming • Antarctic temperatures have increased by 5°C in last half of the century and seas have warmed up • Result is a loss of food for them

  12. Health • Affect human health across the world • Experience a number of worsening health threats during our lifetime • Due to diminishing air quality and degradation of food and water supplies to increasing levels of allergens and catastrophic weather events • Urgent action can help us avoid the worst of these impacts

  13. Extreme Storms: • Global warming has caused more hurricanes and intense storms in the North Atlantic during the last several decades • Storms damage basic infrastructure; moisture leads to mold growth that can cause allergies and respiratory illnesses • Wetter and warmer conditions may increase waterborne bacterial diseases like cholera and typhoid

  14. Heat Waves: • Frequency of heat waves increase because of global warming • Temperature increase leads to increase in deaths and illnesses from heat exhaustion, heatstroke, cardiovascular disease and kidney disease • Cause most harm on the elderly and very young children

  15. Air Pollution: • Rising temperatures increase ozone smog • Increased levels of ground-level ozone smog means increased number of people going to the hospital with respiratory diseases like asthma • Will worsen health of people suffering from cardiac or pulmonary disease

  16. Pollen Allergens • Higher levels of CO2 could cause allergenic pollen season to start earlier, last longer and become more intense • Increase in airborne pollen could cause people with seasonal allergies to experience worse symptoms like hay fever and asthma

  17. Mosquitoes: • Climate change affect pattern of diseases like malaria, West Nile virus, dengue fever and Lyme disease • Warmer temperatures and increased rainfall associated with the increases of occurrences and transmissions of insect-borne diseases • Warmer temperatures allow for diseases to expand range into once cooler regions

  18. Drinking Water: • Heavy rainfall events associated with outbreaks of water-borne diseases caused by parasites • Impact of global warming on water safety will be the most sever in developing countries where water treatment is less available

  19. Water and Food Supplies: • Global warming worsens number of floods and droughts • Threaten availability of water for drinking and irrigation • Droughts diminish food variety, nutritional content and availability • Contribute to malnutrition, infectious diseases and starvation

  20. Environmental Refugees: • Sea-level rises lead to estimated 50 million people to have to leave their homes in next 10 years due to floods, droughts and desertification • Health will be affected because of urban crowding, lack of water and transmission of infectious diseases

  21. Controversy • Most debated topic on Earth • Some people don’t even think that global warming is happening because: • Don’t think data show measurable upward trend in global temperatures • Not enough long-term historical climate data or because data we have us not clear

  22. Controversy Cont’d • Think that data is being interpreted incorrectly by people who are worried about global warming • Increase in global temperatures is natural • Some scientists recognize global warming but don’t think it is something to worry about • Say Earth is more resistant to climate change than we think • Plants and animals will simply adapt

  23. What Can We Do? • Deforestation contributes to global warming – afforestation (planting of trees) could help limit it • Thought it will be very difficult, stop pumping so much CO2 into the atmosphere • Use renewable sources • Nuclear power, solar power etc. • Look for a good mix instead of discluding any one of them • Use more microsystems • Use energy more wisely • Travel more sensibly

  24. If we don’t do anything about this issue now, it will undoubtedly be more difficult by 2020 • We need to take responsibility now so we do not leave the problems to future generations

  25. The End

  26. Bibliography Global Warming. (n.d.). Retrieved May 4, 2009, from http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/oa/globalwarming.html Global Warming and Our Health [Data file]. (2008). Retrieved from http://www.nrdc.org/globalwarming/preparedness.pdf Gore, A. (2006). An Inconvenient Truth. Rodale. Morris, N. (2007). What If We Do Nothing? World Almanac Library. Strickland, J., & Grabianowski, E. (n.d.). How Global Warming Works [Data file]. Retrieved May 2, 2009, from http://www.realclimate.org

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