CLIMATE CHANGE

CLIMATE CHANGE
• REFERS TO THE CHANGE IN GLOBAL OR
REGIONAL CLIMATE PATTERNS, IN PARTICULAR
A CHANGE APPARENT FROM MID TO LATE 20TH
CENTURY UP TO THE PRESENT.
The earth was once covered by vast sheets of ice, which would reflect
back the heat of the Sun more efficiently than non-ice areas could. This
phenomenon is known albedo effect. Albedo is the fraction of solar
energy reflected back to space.
FACTORS OF CLIMATE
CHANGE
NATURAL FACTORS ARTIFICIAL FACTORS
GREENHOUSE EFFECT
• IS A PROCESS THAT OCCUR WHEN GASES IN
EARTH’S ATMOSPHERE TRAP THE SUN’S HEAT.
THIS PROCESS MAKES EARTH MUCH WARMER
THAN IT WOULD BE WITHOUT AN ATMOSPHERE.
THE GREENHOUSE EFFECT IS ONE OF THE
THINGS THAT MAKES EARTH A COMFORTABLE
PLACE TO LIVE.
Figure 1. The greenhouse effect
GREENHOUSE GASES

• ARE GASEOUS SUBSTANCES THAT ABSORB

INFRARED RADIATION FROM THE SUN AND
TRAP THE HEAT IN THE ATMOSPHERE

The greenhouse effect of solar radiation on the Earth's surface

caused by the emission of greenhouse gases
GREENHOUSE GASES
THE FIGURE ABOVE SHOWS THAT GREENHOUSE GASES
SUCH AS CARBON DIOXIDE, METHANE (CH4),
CHLOROFLUOROCARBONS ( OR CFCS – MAN-MADE
GREENHOUSE GASES PRODUCED AS REFRIGERANTS IN AIR
CONDITIONERS, REFRIGERATORS, FREEZERS AND HEAT
PUMPS), AND NITROUS OXIDE (N2O) TRAP HEAT
PREVENTING IT FROM ESCAPING THE EARTH
CARBON DIOXIDE (CO2)

CARBON DIOXIDE IS A GAS

CONSISTING OF ONE PART CARBON
AND TWO PARTS OXYGEN. IT IS ONE
OF THE MOST IMPORTANT GASES
ON THE EARTH BECAUSE PLANTS
USE IT TO PRODUCE
CARBOHYDRATES IN A PROCESS
CALLED PHOTOSYNTHESIS. SINCE
HUMANS AND ANIMALS DEPEND ON
PLANTS FOR FOOD,
PHOTOSYNTHESIS IS NECESSARY
FOR THE SURVIVAL OF LIFE ON
EARTH.
CARBON CYCLE
METHANE (CH4)

METHANE IS RELEASED BY
COAL MINING, LANDFILLS,
AND BY AGRICULTURE,
PARTICULARLY THROUGH
THE DIGESTIVE PROCESSES
OF BEEF AND MILK COWS.
NITROUS OXIDE (N2O)

NITROUS OXIDE IS
PRODUCED BY CARS, BY
FOSSIL FUELS USED FOR
HEAT AND ELECTRICITY,
AND BY AGRICULTURE.
 GLOBAL WARMING
• GLOBAL WARMING AND CLIMATE CHANGE HAVE BEEN
INTERCHANGEABLY USED, BUT TWO PHENOMENA ARE
NOT THE SAME. GLOBAL WARMING IS THE LONG-TERM
AVERAGE INCREASE IN GLOBAL TEMPERATURE. CLIMATE
CHANGE IS A RESULT OF GLOBAL WARMING. IN HUMAN
ACTIVITIES PRODUCES GREENHOUSE GASES, WHICH
RAISE THE GLOBAL TEMPERATURE (GLOBAL WARMING),
WHICH IN TURN TRIGGERS CLIMATE CHANGE.
SOME CAUSES OF GLOBAL
WARMING
• CARBON DIOXIDE EMISSIONS FROM BURNING
GASOLINE
• CARBON DIOXIDE EMISSIONS FROM FOSSIL FUEL-
BURNING POWER PLANTS
• METHANE EMISSIONS FROM ANIMALS,
AGRICULTURE SUCH AS RICE PADDIES, AND FROM
ARTIC SEA BEDS
• INCREASE IN THE USE OF CHEMICAL FERTILIZER
ON CROPLANDS
CARBON AND ECOLOGICAL FOOTPRINTS
• CARBON FOOTPRINT REFERS TO THE AMOUNT OF
CARBON DIOXIDE RELEASED INTO THE ATMOSPHERE
AS A RESULT OF ACTIVITIES OF AN INDIVIDUAL OR
ORGANIZATION. EACH OF US CONTRIBUTES TO
GLOBAL WARMING WITH OUR EMISSIONS OF CARBON
• DIOXIDE.
ECOLOGICAL FOOTPRINT MEASURES THE USE OF
RESOURCES AGAINST EARTH’S CAPACITY TO
REGENERATE (BIO-CAPACITY). IT IS EQUIVALENT TO
ONE PLANET EARTH. THAT IS, HUMANS NEEDED ONE
PLANET EARTH TO SUPPORT ALL ACTIVITIES.
BIO-CAPACITY

OUR BIO-CAPACITY IS THE AMOUNT OF BIOLOGICALLY

PRODUCTIVE AREA AVAILABLE TO PROVIDE THE RESOURCES WE
USE AND TO ABSORB OUR WASTE. SO WE CAN COMPARE
FOOTPRINT AND BIOCAPACITY TO SEE IF WE ARE WELL
BALANCED OR NOT.
 EFFECTS OF GLOBAL WARMING
• EXTREME WEATHER DISTURBANCES
• MELTING OF POLAR BEAR ICE CAPS, WHICH INCREASE SEA LEVEL AND
DESALINATES OCEANS
• WARMER WATERS, STRONGER HURRICANE
• MORE FLOOD SINKING VULNERABLE LOW-LYING AREAS
• HEAT WAVE
• FIRES AND WILDFIRES
• ECONOMIC CONSEQUENCES OF DESTRUCTION OF PROPERTY,
AGRICULTURE AND LIVES
• LOSS OF BIODIVERSITY AND EXTINCTION OF SPECIES
• EMERGENCE OF ILLNESS CAUSED BY VECTORS ( E.G., MOSQUITO AND
HOW TO HELP TACKLE THE CLIMATE CRISIS
HOW TO HELP TACKLE THE CLIMATE
CRISIS
• SAVE ENERGY AT HOME
• WALK, CYCLE OR TAKE PUBLIC TRANSPORT
• EAT MORE VEGETABLES
• CONSIDER YOUR TRAVEL
• THROW AWAY LESS FOOD
• CHANGE YOUR HOME’S SOURCE OF ENERGY
• SWITCH TO AN ELECTRIC VEHICLE
• PRACTICE THE 3 R’S