On the first day of June 2017, United States President Donald Trump withdrew from the Paris Climate Agreement, a global effort that aims to limit carbon emission. This decision has caused quite a stir, especially since the US is the second largest carbon emitter in the world. Despite this, the Philippines, together with more than a hundred nations, continue its fight against climate change.
As citizens of a country exposed and vulnerable to the effects of climate change, we need to understand it better. Here are answers to some of the frequently-asked questions about climate change:
1. What’s the difference between climate change and global warming?
These terms are sometimes used interchangeably, but refer to different things. Global warming is the long-term warming of the planet. The average global surface temperature has crawled up by about 0.8 degrees Celsius relative to the mid-20th century baseline.
Climate Change includes global warming, and talks about the broader range of changes in our planet, which include rising sea levels, shrinking glaciers and the melting of ice in Greenland, Antarctica and the Arctic. All of these are the consequences of the warming caused by the burning of fossil fuels.
2. What’s the difference between weather and climate?
Weather refers to the local changes in short timescales and is basically what you see outside on any particular day. This can change from minute to minute, hour to hour, day to day or season to season.
Meanwhile, climate refers to the general weather pattern in a specific area that involves temperature, humidity, rainfall, air pressure and other meteorological variables over a long period of time. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) defines this as the average weather condition based on 30 years of observation.
3. What is the Greenhouse Effect?
The Greenhouse Effect is the process in which heat gets trapped in the surface of the Earth because of too much concentration of greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxides. These gases blanket the planet, making it much warmer.
Greenhouse gases keep our planet liveable because without these, the Earth will be an icy planet. Despite being a natural part of the atmosphere, the level of these gases, especially carbon dioxide, has been rising consistently for decades because of human activities. More heat is trapped, leading to higher temperatures.
Rising temperatures contribute to the intensity of tropical cyclones, and the increased duration and amount of rain, extreme drought and habitat loss for various species.
4. Do scientists agree on climate change?
Yes. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the vast majority of climate scientists or about 97% agree that humans are causing climate change. Moreover, most of the leading science organizations around the world have issued public statements confirming the existence of climate change and global warming.
NOAA added that some scientists that reject the idea are not experts on climate or do not understand the scientific basis of long-term climate processes.
5. Are volcanoes related to climate change?
When volcanic eruption occurs around every 20 years, this causes a massive release of particles and other gases.
This event leads to global cooling where droplets of sulphur-rich aerosols reflect sunlight from the Earth—just like when Mount Pinatubo erupted on 1991 where an estimated 20 million tons of sulphur dioxide and ash particles shot up to more than 20 kilometers into the atmosphere. NASA noted that over the next 15 months, scientists measured an average global temperature decrease of about 0.6 degrees Celsius since the eruption.
6. Can climate change trigger earthquakes?
Some scientists and geologists claim that changes in seasonal rainfall and their frequency contribute to the occurrence of earthquakes. However, scientific evidence is not enough to support this.
Shankar Nath of the Indian Institute of Technology at West Bengal said climate change has no impact on the incidence of earthquakes. Supporting this is Sunanda Bandapadhyay, a geographer from Calcutta University, who believes that the recent human-induced acceleration in global temperatures is insufficient to have any noticeable impact on the Earth’s tectonic processes that cause earthquakes. The impact of climate change on tectonic activities is still an ongoing debate.
Sources:
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
www.thethirdpole.net
We always hear about it, but do we really know what it really is? Throughout the globe, Climate Change is a pressing concern that has both environmental and human impacts. Let us familiarize ourselves with the key terms related to this global concern, especially since knowledge is the key to action.
1. Climate
Climate is the general weather pattern in a specific area that involves temperature, humidity, rainfall, air pressure and other meteorological variables over a long period of time. According to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), climate is the average weather condition based on 30 years of observation.
2. Climate Change
The long-term shift in weather patterns in a region is defined as Climate Change. This includes changes in precipitation, temperatures, sea levels and many more. It is also a phenomenon brought by the increased emission of greenhouse gas in the atmosphere.
According to Dr. Rosa Perez from the Climate Change Commission (CCC), Climate Change can be caused by natural occurrences or induced by humans. Natural causes include the sun’s activity, volcanic eruption and other natural events that contribute to the warming of the earth.
But the problem now is that Climate Change has worsened due to human activities, such as burning of fossil fuels, clearing of forests, improper waste management and production of industrialized products.
Several studies about Climate Change show that it could lead to these extreme weather events and unusual changes in the ecosystem:
– Increase in global temperature
– Sea Level Rise
– Retreat of glaciers and melting of sea ice
– Changes in precipitation
– Heat waves, tornadoes, stronger typhoons and heavy rainfall
– Longer, more severe droughts
– Expansion of subtropical deserts
– Species endangerment and extinction and loss of biodiversity
– Melting of permafrost
– Decline in agricultural yields
– Spread of vector-borne diseases because of increased range of insects
– Ocean acidification and destruction of coral reef
3. Greenhouse Gas & Greenhouse Effect
Greenhouse gas (GHG) is a chemical compound found in the Earth’s atmosphere. Composed of carbon dioxide, methane, water vapor, and other man-made gases, Greenhouse gases keep our planet liveable by holding in the heat energy of the Earth. These gases allow much of the solar radiation to enter the atmosphere, warming the planet’s surface. Some of this energy is reflected back towards space.
Without greenhouse gases, the Earth will be an icy wasteland. But the problem we face right now is the increasing amount of GHGs in the atmosphere. The more greenhouse gas molecules, more heat is also trapped in the atmosphere due to greenhouse effect. And we all know that too much heat can be just as fatal as the lack of it.
4. Global Warming
The interaction between the earth and incoming radiation from the sun leads to global warming. It is the gradual heating of the Earth’s surface, oceans and atmosphere.
5. Sea Level Rise
Sea level rise, according to National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), is the increase in the mean level of the ocean. It is caused by two factors: added water from the melting of land ice, and expansion of water as it warms. Simply put, due to the warming of the Earth, more glaciers or land ice tend to melt. Also, when water is heated, it expands.
6. Fossil Fuels
Fossil fuels are non-renewable resources that formed from prehistoric plants and animals buried by layers of rock or soil millions of years ago. These include oil, coal and natural gas. The formation of a fossil fuel depends on different factors, such as the combination of organic matter, how long it was buried, and its exposure to temperature and pressure.
7. Renewable Energy
Renewable energy is energy naturally regenerated or replenished over a short period of time. Some are derived directly from the sun like thermal or photochemical enegy. Other forms of renewable energy are wind, hydropower, geothermal and tidal.
Using renewable energy will help in combating the impacts of Climate Change because these do not produce greenhouse gases, unlike fossil fuels.
8. Mitigation
Policies and measures aimed to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions fall under mitigation. It includes reducing the demand for emission-intensive goods or services, while increasing the demand for low-carbon technologies. Mitigation also includes coping with the causes of Climate Change.
9. Adaptation
Adaptation is adjusting to natural or human systems in response to Climate Change. This could also serve as a practical step to protect communities. If mitigation is coping with the causes or the root of Climate Change, adaptation is coping with its effects.
Examples of Climate Change adaptation is putting up the partial drainage of the Tsho Rolpha glacial lake in Nepal, changing livelihood strategies in response to permafrost melt in Nunavut, Canada, and water management in Australia. In the Philippines, sea walls were built in the coastal areas of Leyte to protect the community from the impact of a storm surge.
10. V20
V20 refers to the 20 countries that are highly vulnerable to Climate Change impacts. These are low and middle-income, small and developing countries which usually experience the adverse effects of the changing climate. These include Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Maldives, Tanzania, Bangladesh, Ghana, Nepal, East Timor, Barbados, Kenya, Philippines, Tuvalu, Bhutan, Kiribati, Rwanda, Vanuatu, Costa Rica, Madagascar, Saint Lucia and Viet Nam.
Sources:
IPCC
NASA
PAGASA
NOAA
Climate Central
WWF
http://www.loyno.edu/twomey/overview-climate-change-global-warming-how-it-affecting-human-community
http://www3.epa.gov/climatechange/science/overview.html
www.cvf.org
http://www.energy.gov/