CLIMATE CHANGE, GLOBAL WARMING, ACID RAIN, OZONE LAYER

DEPLETION & SEA LEVEL RISE

Weather is the day-to-day state of the atmosphere, and its short-term variation in minutes to
weeks. People generally think of weather as the combination of temperature, humidity,
precipitation, cloudiness, visibility, and wind.
For example:
 How hot is it right now?
 What will it be like today?
 Will we get a snowstorm this week?
Climate is the weather of a place averaged over a period of time, often 30 years. Climate
information includes the statistical weather information that tells us about the normal weather, as
well as the range of weather extremes for a location.
For example:
 Climate change in terms of years, decades, centuries, even millions of years.
 Changes in wind patterns
Climate change 
Climate change in IPCC (Intergovermental panel for Climate Change) usage refers to a change
in the state of the climate that can be identified (e.g. using statistical tests) by changes in the
mean and/or the variability of its properties, and that persists for an extended period, typically
decades or longer. It refers to any change in climate over time, whether due to natural
variability or as a result of human activity.
Climate Change: How Do We Know?

Earth's climate has changed throughout history. Just in the last 650,000 years there have been
seven cycles of glacial advance and retreat, with the abrupt end of the last ice age about 11,700
years ago marking the beginning of the modern climate era — and of human civilization. Most
of these climate changes are attributed to very small variations in Earth’s orbit that change the
amount of solar energy our planet receives.
The evidence for rapid climate change is compelling:

 Global Temperature Rise

The planet's average surface temperature has risen about 2.05 degrees Fahrenheit (1.14
degrees Celsius) since the late 19th century, a change driven largely by increased carbon dioxide
and other human-made emissions into the atmosphere. Most of the warming occurred in the past
40 years, with the six warmest years on record taking place since 2014.
 Warming Ocean
The ocean has absorbed much of this increased heat, with the top 100 meters (about 328
feet) of ocean showing warming of more than 0.6 degrees Fahrenheit (0.33 degrees Celsius)
since 1969.
 Shrinking Ice Sheets
The Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets have decreased in mass. Data from NASA's show
Greenland lost an average of 279 billion tons of ice per year between 1993 and 2019, while
Antarctica lost about 148 billion tons of ice per year.
 Glacial Retreat
Glaciers are retreating almost everywhere around the world — including in the Alps,
Himalayas, Andes, Rockies, Alaska, and Africa.
 Decreased Snow Cover
Satellite observations reveal that the amount of spring snow cover in the Northern
Hemisphere has decreased over the past five decades and the snow is melting earlier.
 Sea Level Rise
Global sea level rose about 8 inches (20 centimeters) in the last century. The rate in the
last two decades, however, is nearly double that of the last century and accelerating slightly
every year.
 Declining Arctic Sea Ice
Both the extent and thickness of Arctic sea ice has declined rapidly over the last several
decades.
 Extreme Events

The number of record high temperature events have been increasing, while the number of
record low temperature events has been decreasing, since 1950.
 Ocean Acidification
Since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, the acidity of surface ocean waters has
increased by about 30%. This increase is the result of humans emitting more carbon dioxide into
the atmosphere and hence more being absorbed into the ocean. The ocean has absorbed between
20% and 30% of total anthropogenic carbon dioxide emissions in recent decades

The Causes of Climate Change

Scientists attribute the global warming trend observed since the mid-20th century to the
human expansion of the "greenhouse effect" — warming those results when the atmosphere traps
heat radiating from Earth toward space. Certain gases in the atmosphere block heat from
escaping. Long-lived gases that remain semi-permanently in the atmosphere and do not respond
physically or chemically to changes in temperature are described as "forcing" climate change.
Gases, such as water vapor, which respond physically or chemically to changes in temperature
are seen as "feedbacks."
Main Causes of climate change are:
1. Rapid industrialization
2. Combustion of fossil fuels
3. Deforestation
4. Increased number of vehicles
5. Ever-increasing human population
Gases that contribute to the greenhouse effect include:
 Water vapor. The most abundant greenhouse gas, but importantly, it acts as a feedback to
the climate. Water vapor increases as the Earth's atmosphere warms, but so does the
possibility of clouds and precipitation, making these some of the most important feedback
mechanisms to the greenhouse effect.
 Carbon dioxide (CO2). A minor but very important component of the atmosphere, carbon
dioxide is released through natural processes such as respiration and volcano eruptions and
through human activities such as deforestation, land use changes, and burning fossil fuels.
 Humans have increased atmospheric CO2 concentration by 47% since the Industrial
Revolution began.

 Methane. A hydrocarbon gas produced both through natural sources and human activities,
including the decomposition of wastes in landfills, agriculture, and especially rice cultivation,
as well as ruminant digestion and manure management associated with domestic livestock.
On a molecule-for-molecule basis, methane is a far more active greenhouse gas than carbon
dioxide, but also one which is much less abundant in the atmosphere.

 Nitrous oxide. A powerful greenhouse gas produced by soil cultivation practices, especially
the use of commercial and organic fertilizers, fossil fuel combustion, nitric acid production,
and biomass burning.

 Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs). Synthetic compounds entirely of industrial origin used in a

number of applications, but now largely regulated in production and release to the
atmosphere by international agreement for their ability to contribute to destruction of the
ozone layer. They are also greenhouse gases.

On Earth, human activities are changing the natural greenhouse. Over the last century the
burning of fossil fuels like coal and oil has increased the concentration of atmospheric carbon
dioxide (CO2). This happens because the coal or oil burning process combines carbon with
oxygen in the air to make CO2. To a lesser extent, the clearing of land for agriculture, industry,
and other human activities has increased concentrations of greenhouse gases. The consequences
of changing the natural atmospheric greenhouse are difficult to predict, but some effects seem
likely:
 On average, Earth will become warmer. Some regions may welcome warmer temperatures,
but others may not.

 Warmer conditions will probably lead to more evaporation and precipitation overall, but
individual regions will vary, some becoming wetter and others dryer.

 A stronger greenhouse effect will warm the ocean and partially melt glaciers and ice sheets,
increasing sea level. Ocean water also will expand if it warms, contributing further to sea
level rise.
 Outside of a greenhouse, higher atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO 2) levels can have both
positive and negative effects on crop yields. Some laboratory experiments suggest that
elevated CO2 levels can increase plant growth. However, other factors, such as changing
temperatures, ozone, and water and nutrient constraints, may more than counteract any
potential increase in yield. If optimal temperature ranges for some crops are exceeded, earlier
possible gains in yield may be reduced or reversed altogether.
 Climate extremes, such as droughts, floods and extreme temperatures, can lead to crop losses
and threaten the livelihoods of agricultural producers and the food security of communities
worldwide.
 Depending on the crop and ecosystem, weeds, pests, and fungi can also thrive under warmer
temperatures, wetter climates, and increased CO2 levels, and climate change will likely
increase weeds and pests.
Finally, although rising CO2 can stimulate plant growth, research has shown that it can also
reduce the nutritional value of most food crops by reducing the concentrations of protein and
essential minerals in most plant species. Climate change can cause new patterns of pests and
diseases to emerge, affecting plants, animals and humans, and posing new risks for food
security, food safety and human health.
The Effects of Climate Change
Global climate change has already had observable effects on the environment. Glaciers
have shrunk, ice on rivers and lakes is breaking up earlier, plant and animal ranges have shifted
and trees are flowering sooner. Effects that scientists had predicted in the past would result from
global climate change are now occurring: loss of sea ice, accelerated sea level rise and longer,
more intense heat waves.
Taken as a whole, the range of published evidence indicates that the net damage costs of
climate change are likely to be significant and to increase over time.

- Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change

Some of the long-term effects of global climate change in the United States are as follows,
according to the Third and Fourth National Climate Assessment Reports:
 Change Will Continue Through This Century and Beyond

Global climate is projected to continue to change over this century and beyond. The
magnitude of climate change beyond the next few decades depends primarily on the amount of
heat-trapping gases emitted globally, and how sensitive the Earth’s climate is to those emissions.
 Temperatures Will Continue to Rise
Because human-induced warming is superimposed on a naturally varying climate, the
temperature rise has not been, and will not be, uniform or smooth across the country or over
time.
 Frost-free Season (and Growing Season) will Lengthen
The length of the frost-free season (and the corresponding growing season) has been
increasing nationally since the 1980s, with the largest increases occurring in the western United
States, affecting ecosystems and agriculture. In a future in which heat-trapping gas emissions
continue to grow, increases of a month or more in the lengths of the frost-free and growing
seasons are projected across most of the U.S. by the end of the century, with slightly smaller
increases in the northern Great Plains. The increases will be considerably smaller if heat-trapping
gas emissions are reduced.
 Changes in Precipitation Patterns
Average precipitation has increased since 1900, but some areas have had increases
greater than the national average, and some areas have had decreases.
 More Droughts and Heat Waves
Droughts and heat waves (periods of abnormally hot weather lasting days to weeks)
everywhere are projected to become more intense, and cold waves less intense everywhere.
Summer temperatures are projected to continue rising, and a reduction of soil moisture, which
exacerbates heat waves.
 Hurricanes Will Become Stronger and More Intense
The intensity, frequency and duration of North Atlantic hurricanes, as well as the
frequency of the strongest (Category 4 and 5) hurricanes, have all increased since the early
1980s. The relative contributions of human and natural causes to these increases are still
uncertain. Hurricane-associated storm intensity and rainfall rates are projected to increase as
the climate continues to warm.
 Sea Level Will Rise 1-8 feet by 2100
Global sea level has risen by about 8 inches since reliable record keeping began in 1880.
It is projected to rise another 1 to 8 feet by 2100. This is the result of added water from melting
land ice and the expansion of seawater as it warms.
 Arctic Likely to Become Ice-Free
The Arctic Ocean is expected to become essentially ice free in summer before mid-
century.

Vital signs of Climate Change

 Carbon Dioxide
The atmospheric CO2 levels measured at Mauna Loa Observatory, Hawaii, with latest
measurement in October 2020 having value 415 ppm.
 Global Temperature
Latest annual average anomaly:   0.99 °C (1.78 °F)

 Arctic Sea Ice Minimum

Rate of decrease: 13.1 percent
 Ice Sheets
Rate of decrease- 149.0 billion metric tons per year
 Sea Level
Rate of increase- 3.3 mm per year
Global warming:
About 75% of the solar energy reaching the Earth is absorbed on the earth’s surface
which increases its temperature. The rest of the heat radiates back to the atmosphere. Some of the
heat is trapped by greenhouse gases, mostly carbon dioxide. As carbon dioxide is released by
various human activities, it is rapidly increasing. This is known as greenhouse effect and is
causing global warming.
Human activities during the last few decades of industrialisation and population growth
have polluted the atmosphere to the extent that it has begun to seriously affect the climate.
Carbon dioxide in the atmosphere has increased by 31% since pre-industrial times, causing more
heat to be trapped in the lower atmosphere. There is evidence to show that carbon dioxide levels
are still increasing. Many countries have signed a convention to reduce greenhouse gases under
the United Nations Convention on Climate Change. The amount of GHGs in the atmosphere can
influence global temperatures. If these gases were to increase, temperatures would rise. If they
were to decrease, global temperatures would cool. The greenhouse effect is a well understood
phenomenon based on established scientific principles. The earth's average surface temperature,
for example, is warmer by about 33oC than it would be without the presence of these gases.
Greenhouse gases (GHGs) present in the earth's atmosphere include water vapour (H 2O), Carbon
dioxide (CO2), Methane (CH4), Nitrous oxide (N2O), Ozone (O3), Carbon monoxide (CO) and
Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs). As agriculture and animal husbandry developed, the world's
population increased and human society became more industrialized, the levels of some of these
gases increased significantly. Descriptions of the important GHGs and their sources are as
follows :
Scientists have designated CO2 the benchmark GHG against which the properties of all
other GHGs are measured. Methane is a very short-lived gas, consequently emissions from this
gas would have their impact on climate change during the first few decades after they are
released. Nitrous oxides and CFCs contribute to the greenhouse effect for hundreds of years
because they are most stable and decompose very slowly in the atmosphere. The ten leading
contributor nations of GHG emissions are the USA, the former USSR, Brazil, China, India,
Japan, Germany, UK, Indonesia and France.

Increase in atmospheric levels of CO2 and other GHGs can have far reaching effects.
They include increase in average temperatures and changes in precipitation, number of frost-free
days and the frequency and severity of storms. There is also a likelihood that ocean levels may
rise. Rise in sea level would be most injurious to low-lying islands.
Global warming is accelerating faster than what climatologists had calculated a few years
ago. In 1995, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change predict that global warming would
rise temperatures by 3.5 to 10 degrees Centigrade during the 21st century, if the present trends
continue. It is now believed that this could be much greater. This would lead to not only
temperature changes but in the amount of rainfall. India may see great annual fluctuations in
rainfall leading to floods and drought.
Acid rain
When fossil fuels such as coal, oil and natural gas are burned, chemicals like sulphur
dioxide and nitrogen oxides are produced. These chemicals react with water and other chemicals
in the air to form sulfuric acid, nitric acid and other harmful pollutants like sulphates and nitrates.
These acid pollutants spread upwards into the atmosphere, and are carried by air currents, to
finally return to the ground in the form of acid rain, fog or snow. The corrosive nature of acid
rain causes many forms of environmental damage. Acid pollutants also occur as dry particles and
gases, which when washed from the ground by rain, add to the acids in the rain to form a more
corrosive solution. This is called acid deposition. Acid rain has very low pH as low as 2.0.
Damage from acid rain is widespread in North America, Europe, Japan, China and Southeast
Asia. In the US coal burning power plants contribute to about 70% of sulphur dioxide. In Canada
oil refining, metal smelting and other industrial activities account for 61% of sulphur dioxide
pollution. Motor vehicle exhaust fumes are the main source of nitrogen oxides. The acids in acid
rain chemically react with any object they come in contact with. Acids react with other chemicals
by giving up hydrogen atoms.

Effects: Acid rain is known to cause widespread environmental damage.

1. Acid rain dissolves and washes away nutrients in the soil which are needed by plants. It can
also dissolve naturally occurring toxic substances like aluminium and mercury, freeing them to
pollute water or poison plants.

2. Acid rain indirectly affects plants by removing nutrients from the soil in which they grow. It
affects trees more directly by creating holes in the waxy coating of leaves, causing brown
dead spots which affect the plant’s photosynthesis. Such trees are also more vulnerable to insect
infestations, drought and cold. Spruce and fir forests at higher elevations seem to be most at risk.
Farm crops are less affected by acid rain than forests.

3. Acid rain that falls or flows as ground water to reach rivers, lakes and wetlands, causes the
water in them to become acidic. This affects plant and animal life in aquatic ecosystems.

4. Acid rain also has far reaching effects on wildlife. By adversely affecting one species, the
entire food chain is disrupted, ultimately endangering the entire ecosystem. Different aquatic
species can tolerate different levels of acidity. For instance molluscs and mayflies have a high
mortality when water has a pH of 6.0, while frogs can tolerate more acidic water, although with
the decline in supply of mayflies, frog populations may also decline.
5. Acid rain and dry acid deposition damages buildings, automobiles, and other structures
made of stone or metal. The acid corrodes the materials causing extensive damage and ruins
historic buildings. For instance the Parthenon in Greece and the Taj Mahal in India have been
affected by acid rain.
6. Although surface water polluted by acid rain does not directly harm people, the toxic
substances leached from soil can pollute water supply. Fish caught in these waters may be
harmful for human consumption. Acid, along with other chemicals in the air, produces urban
smog, which causes respiratory problems.

Solutions: The best way to stop the formation of acid rain is to reduce the emissions of sulphur
dioxide and nitrogen oxides into the atmosphere. This can be achieved by
 Using less energy from fossil fuels in power plants, vehicles and industry.
 Switching to cleaner burning fuels is also a way out. For instance using natural gas
which is cleaner than coal, using coal with lower sulphur content, and developing more
efficient vehicles.
 If the pollutants have already been formed by burning fossil fuels, they can be prevented
from entering the atmosphere by using scrubbers in smokestacks in industry. These spray
a mixture of water and limestone into the polluting gases, recapturing the sulphur.
 In catalytic converters, the gases are passed over metal coated beads that convert harmful
chemicals into less harmful ones. These are used in cars to reduce the effects of exhaust
fumes on the atmosphere.
 Once acid rain has affected soil, powdered limestone can be added to the soil by a
process known as liming to neutralize the acidity of the soil.
Ozone layer depletion
Ozone is formed by the action of sunlight on oxygen. It forms a layer 20 to 50 kms above
the surface of the earth. This action takes place naturally in the atmosphere, but is very slow.
Ozone is a highly poisonous gas with a strong odour. It is a form of oxygen that has three atoms
in each molecule. It is considered a pollutant at ground level and constitutes a health hazard by
causing respiratory ailments like asthma and bronchitis. It also causes harm to vegetation and
leads to a deterioration of certain materials like plastic and rubber. Ozone in the upper
atmosphere however, is vital to all life as it protects the earth from the sun’s harmful ultraviolet
radiation. The ozone layer in the upper atmosphere absorbs the sun’s ultraviolet radiation,
preventing it from reaching the earth’s surface.
This layer in the atmosphere protects life on earth from the dangerous UV radiation from the sun.
In the 1970s, scientists discovered that chemicals called chlorofluorocarbons or CFCs, which
were used as refrigerants and aerosol spray propellants, posed a threat to the ozone layer. The
CFC molecules are virtually indestructible until they reach the stratosphere, where UV radiation
breaks them down to release chlorine atoms. The chlorine atoms react with ozone molecules
which break down into oxygen molecules, which do not absorb UV radiations. Since the early
1980s, scientists detected a thinning of the ozone layer in the atmosphere above Antarctica. This
phenomenon is now being detected in other places as well including Australia. Although the use
of CFCs has been reduced and now banned in most countries, other chemicals and industrial
compounds such as bromine, halocarbons and nitrous oxides from fertilizers may also attack the
ozone layer.

The destruction of the ozone layer is seen to cause increased cases of skin cancer and cataracts. It
also causes damage to certain crops and to plankton, thus affecting natures food chains and food
webs. This in turn causes an increase in carbon dioxide due to the decrease in vegetation.

 The ozone hole is defined as the area having less than 220 dobson units (DU) of ozone in
the overhead column (i.e., between the ground and space).

Sea Level Rise

If the average global temperature continues to rise, then two important potential impacts
of global warming include the effects on sea levels and on the ecosystems. Recent estimates
suggest that global sea level has risen by about 15 cm during the 20 th century, with most of the
rise occurred since 1930. Some scientists believe that because of green house warming, average
sea level may rise by at least 30 cm and as much as 1.4 m by the year 2030. This is likely to
cause extensive instability in the economic and social life in the coastal areas throughout the
world.
 Sea level rise refers to an increase in the volume of water in the world’s oceans,
resulting in an increase in global mean sea level. Sea level rise is usually attributed to global
climate change by thermal expansion of the water in the oceans and by melting of Ice sheets and
glaciers on land. Melting of floating ice shelves or icebergs at sea raises sea levels only slightly.

Factors Affecting Sea Level

Following factors may be responsible for the rise in sea level:

i. Thermal expansion of sea water

ii. Melting of glaciers and polar ice sheets
iii. Changes in the rainfall pattern and runoff
iv. Changes in the rate of evaporation