Climate Change and the

Energy Crisis
Reporter: Edelbert G. Cagais BTVTed AT III
Learning Objectives:
Identify the causes of climate change;
Assess the various impacts of climate change
including economic, geopolitical, biological,
meteorogical, and more; and
Apply science and technology concepts to the
issue of climate change.

Weather is defined as short term changes at the

atmospheric variable such as the temperature,
precipitation, wind, and barometric pressure in a given
area over a period of hours or days.
Climate is determined by the average weather
conditions of the Earth or of a particular area, particularly
temperature and precipitation, over a period of time.
Climate change is defined as the global or regional
change in the climatic patterns brought by the increase in
the atmospheric carbon dioxide produced by fossil fuel
and the other human activities.
Air Pollution from Factories
Climate change is not unusual. In the past 3.5 billion
years, the planet climate has been changing because of
natural phenomena such as asteroid collision, volcanic
eruptions, solar input, and the shifting of tectonic plates
that alter wind and ocean patterns.
Driving Forces of Climate Change
Aside from natural phenomena, human activities have
also heavily contributed to global warming and climate
change. These activities have not only heavily affected
the Earth’s climate but also intensified the negative side
effects of climate change. Greenhouse gases such as
water vapor, carbon dioxide (CO), methane (CH),
chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), nitrous oxide (NO), and
perfluorocarbons (PFCs, such as CF), have remained in
the atmosphere for almost 50,000 years.
Majority of human activities contributes to global
warming. This include fossil fuel combustion ( 49%),
agriculture (13%), deforestation ( 14%), and industrial
processes (24%).
* Rise in Global Warming – In the last 35 years,
Earth’s experienced its warmest years, the highest record
having been recorded in 2016. In that year, 8 out of 12
months, from January to September with the exception
of June were noted to have the highest temperature.
* Rise in Ocean Temperature – As the average global
temperature rises, the ocean temperature also rises. This
change affects marine life and biodiversity.
* El Nino – With the changes in the atmospheric
circulations near the equatorial Pacific, warm spells and
droughts in nearby countries intensify.
* Melting of Ice Sheets – Ice sheets are continually
melting in Greenland and Antarctica and have decreased
in mass. According to the from NASA’s Gravity Recovery
and Climate Experiment , 150 to 250 km of ice were lost
in Greenland per year between 2002 and 2006. From
2002 to 2005, about 152km were lost in Antarctica.
* Glacial Retreat – With the increasing temperature,
the glaciers in the Himalayas, Mt. Kiliminjara, Andes,
Rockies, Alaska and Africa are melting at an alarming rate.