CAUSES AND

EFFECTS OF
CLIMATE CHANGE
CONTENT
❖ Definition of Climate Change
❖Causes of Climate Change-
Natural Causes & Human Causes
❖ Effects of Climate Change
DEFINITION OF CLIMATE CHANGE
“ It is a change which is attributed
directly or indirectly to human activity
that alters the composition of the
global atmosphere and which is in
addition to natural climate variability
observed over comparative time
periods”
CAUSES OF CLIMATE CHANGE
➢ NATURAL CAUSES
▪ Volcanic eruptions
▪ Ocean currents
▪ Earth orbital changes-
▪ More tilt = warmer summers & colder
winters
▪ Less tilt = cooler summers & milder winters
Solstice N
either of the two times in the year, the summer solstice and the winter solstice,
when the sun reaches its highest or lowest point in the sky at noon, marked by the
longest and shortest days.
▪ Solar Variation
Solar variability. There are two
major causes of solar
variability: one
is solar evolution, driven by
conditions in the Sun's core; the
other is the magnetic field of
the Sun, or rather the field
located in the solar convection
zone (i.e. in the outer part of
the solar interior) and in
the Sun's atmosphere
➢ HUMAN CAUSES (Anthropogenic or Man-made
causes)

▪ Greenhouse gases
▪ Deforestation
▪ Coal mining
▪ Burning of fossil fuels
▪ Industrial processes
▪ Agriculture
▪ Deforestation
▪ Coal Mining
▪ Burning of Fossil Fuels
 Industrial processes
▪ Agriculture
EFFECTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE
RISE IN SEA LEVEL

Melting ice sheets ➔ Sea level rise

HEAVY RAINFALL ACROSS THE GLOBE
EXTREME DROUGHT
DECLINE IN CROP PRODUCTIVITY
ECOSYSTEMS ARE CHANGING
HURRICANES
Government satellites have spotted the first named storm of
the 2020 Atlantic Ocean hurricane season, Tropical Storm
Arthur, swirling off the coast of North Carolina.

2020 Atlantic Storm Names

•Tropical Storm Arthur.
•May 16, 2020 - Tropical Storm Arthur forms about 190 miles
east-northeast of Cape Canaveral, Florida.
•May 19, 2020 - Weakens to a post-tropical cyclone.
Climate change is a
sustainable
development issue
Climate Change
• Increased concentrations of greenhouse gases,
mostly CO2 in the atmosphere from
anthropogenic influences.
• Increase in global mean surface air temperature.
• Increased climate and weather variability and
changes in precipitation patterns and seasonal
cycles such as monsoons.
• The main climate variables of concern to ecology
are mean surface air temperature, rainfall,
humidity, wind speeds, and the frequency and
intensity of extreme climate/weather events
such as storms and droughts.
http://www.scribd.com/doc/33894135/Coastal-Zones-
and-Climate-Change
Climate Change will affect…
• Biodiversity Climate
change
• Temperature
• Sea level
• Rainfall
• Coastal flooding
Coastal
biodiversity
• Global warming will also increase sea
surface temperatures as surface waters
absorb heat from higher air temperatures.

• In addition to heat, the oceans absorb CO2

from the atmosphere. Approximately a
quarter of all the CO2 released into the
atmosphere by human activities is
absorbed by the oceans.
http://www.scribd.com/doc/33894135/Coastal-
Zones-and Climate-Change
Climate Change & Sea Level Rise..
• Sea level rise is caused by
• Thermal expansion of the ocean
• The melting of the Greenland & Antarctic ice
caps
• The ocean absorbs more than 80 % the heat added
to the climate system, causing the water to expand,
This thermal expansion accounted for between
0.30 and 0.54 mm in average annual sea level rise
between 1961 and 2003.
• Melting of glaciers and ice caps accounts for the
highest contribution to sea level rise an estimated
0.32 to 0.68 mm per year.
• Higher average atmospheric temperatures
contribute to the melting of the ice sheets of
Greenland, Antarctica, and other continental
glaciers, resulting in additional water flowing into
the seas.
Climate Change & Sea Level Rise..
• Intrusion of saline water
into freshwater rivers and
aquifers.
• As sea levels rise, saline
water will interfere directly
into rivers and streams,
advancing not only as a
function of the water level
but also according to
changes in river discharge
that may result from climate
change.
Threats to SINDH in perspective of GCC
 Pakistan's disappearing delta Areas
By M ilyas Khan (BBC News, Keti
Bandar, southern Pakistan)
Friday, 3 August 2007
Keti Bandar was once a thriving river port in the Indus
river delta region in southern Pakistan, with impressive
public buildings, a customs office and warehouses for
exports.
Today, it can barely stay above water.
water levels keep rising.
Two years ago, the high tide barely came up to the skeleton
of a rice mill located just outside the town. Now that has
been completely submerged.
"More than 160 settlements, spread over 1.3 million acres
of delta, have been lost to the sea since 1970," said Nadir
Akmal Leghari, the Sindh Minister for Irrigation.
Ibrahim Soomro, the 80-year-old ironsmith of Kharo Chhan
island, is one such person.
"I remember the times when this area was a lush green
heaven. Then it started to change. There was salt water all
around us. For a time we thought it will get better. Then we
got used to it."
 The climate threat
In a recent report, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) has laid out the sheer scale of the challenge posed to
Pakistan’s economic future by climate change. Problems with the ADB’s own understanding aside, the bank
has noted correctly that Pakistan’s capacity to store freshwater is poor compared to its regional counterparts.
Pakistan can only store about 11.3 percent of the freshwater that passes through its rivers every year. China,
by comparison, has a freshwater storage capacity of around 29.3 percent. This makes us one of the least water
secure countries in the region. The threat is most significantly for our agricultural economic base, which must
worry for its future once temperatures start to rise. Already, climate change is among the chief factors for the
changing weather patterns, including heatwaves and unpredictable rainfall, which put crops at risk every
season. Rainfall is expected to decline by 20-50 percent by the time the current century begins to turn.
The threat is certainly not limited to Pakistan. Afghanistan, China and India face similar risks. This is why
shared cooperation and new knowledge for less water intensive crops are in order. The impact of the rising
temperatures will begin with high levels of water flow, which could cause heavy flooding due to glacial
melting. This would be followed by periods of drought. The pattern has been witnessed on a smaller scale in
the last decade or so; but such spells could continue for years at end in the future. Amongst the most affected
will be children, with the number of malnourished children going up by almost seven million. Food scarcity
already exists in various parts of the country, but this could become more severe. The needs going forward are
simple enough. The entire world – minus the US – has agreed to abide by the Paris climate change accord. This
means reducing our reliance on fossil fuels, especially the most polluting ones. These supplies themselves will
come under the threat of a climate change induced struggle for resources. While some of the report may
sound alarmist, such as the prediction of an eight degree increase in temperatures in the region, there is
enough reason to be alarmed. We should be prepared for the most dramatic of climate challenges. Instead,
we are in a situation where the country is barely prepared for milder climate change events. Sustainable
development that accounts for the impact of climate change is possible – but it needs very serious planning on
the part of the government.
 Sunday, May 16, 2010
By Amar Guriro
Large portion of lower Sindh faces inundation threat
*Expert says climate change could be behind rise in sea level
KARACHI: After carrying out a survey of the low-lying areas of
Sindh, the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) has found
that a vast area of lower Sindh comprising eight districts including
Karachi, could be inundated in case of a major cyclone since the
sea level has risen during the past decade.
After the recent international reports surfaced that the sea level
has risen around two meters during the last decade in major
portions of the Indian Ocean, the PMD conducted a survey and
found that eight districts of southern Sindh that are low-lying
areas - Karachi, Thatta, Badin, Hyderabad, Mirpurkhas and some
portions of Umerkot and Sanghar, the sea level was between 1.5
and 2 meters.
In a report, the PMD disclosed that if the sea level continued to
rise in the next 10 years, the human population living in the
coastal belt of Sindh would be forced to migrate to other places.
 Un Climate summit
2014
Climate change is not a far-off problem. It is happening now and is
having very real consequences on people’s lives.
Climate change is disrupting national economies, costing us dearly
today and even more tomorrow. But there is a growing recognition
that affordable, scalable solutions are available now that will enable
us all to leapfrog to cleaner, more resilient economies.
There is a sense that change is in the air.
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has invited world leaders, from
government, finance, business, and civil society to Climate Summit
2014 this 23 September to galvanize and catalyze climate action.
He has asked these leaders to bring bold announcements and actions
to the Summit that will reduce emissions, strengthen climate
resilience, and mobilize political will for a meaningful legal agreement
in 2015.
RISE IN TEMPERATURE
CARBON DIOXIDE ACIDIFIES SEAWATER

CO2 Atmosphere CO2

Ocean

“shelled-critters”

 CO2 and carbonate (which plankton use to make

shells) combine in the ocean.
 The ocean is already more acidic than it was 50
years ago.

Source: Alfred-Wegener-Institute
THANK YOU