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9 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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Natural green house effect |
Balanced system ensures temperatures are kept a range of suitable for human habitation. Without it scientists estimate it could have been 33° cooler |
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Enhanced green house effect |
Increased GHGs is leading to an inreased capacity of the atmospheres to trap and reflect heat. |
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Green house gases |
Water vapour CO2 Nitrous oxide Methane |
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Future scenarios |
Ipcc predict 550 ppm by 2035 with business as usual approach. International polices? New tech? Mitigation stratagies? New gas reserves? Pop growth? China and USA= 41% of CO2 emissions. |
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Tipping point |
Point at which changes become irreversible and increase in severity. Ipcc linked this to CO2 levels at 450 ppm. Linked to environmental changes:melting of ice caps and loss of arctic sea ice |
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Africa |
Povery Many LDCs (X30) Limited FDI Switched off Low GDPs Rising pop. Low literacy rates Reduction in rain fall in south, North and west sahel. Droughts and desertification 60% are subsistence farmers (rain fed irrigation) Food shortage Cost of importing food Pay for adaption schemes Rise in rainfall in east (10-20%) Disease: Malaria=cost of health care, strain on services. Eustatic sea rise Coastal floods: Low lying, flat eg nile delta, egypt Coastal mega cities eg Lagos, Nigeria Property damage Cost of schemes BUT new crops and increase in productivity. |
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Mitigation |
Policies that aim to reduce, delay or further prevent global warming. Large scale= kyoto agreement (12.5% cut), 202020 plan. TNCs: Tesco=zero carbon stores Toyota=hybrid cars M&S=plan A (all stores carbon neutral by 2015). Governments: UK=offshore wind farms, nuclear power. NGOs: Green peace=campaign, educate Local government: LA= Eco buses and subsidised fare London=congestion charge Mexico city=bus lane and Eco bus. Eden project=educate, renewable energy, buy local. Small scale: Carbon footprint Solar panels |
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Arctic |
Ecological changes Large scale environmental changes Loss of sea ice (50-60% by 2100) Political conflict over resources Glaciers in alaska and greenland=eustatic rise and shut down of north atlantic drift. Warmer water reduces quantity of marine plants which affects the whole food chain. =Negative multiplier effect. 3-4° rise since 1950 3-7° rise by 2100 Thawing permafrost releases methane and weakens coasts. Loss of culture and food for indigenous people |
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Albedo |
Amount of solar radiation reflected by earth surfaces. Ice and snow reflect most. |
