Carbon economics from A to Z

The impacts of climate change

Warming Differentiated by Latitude

The expected increase in temperature varies according to latitude. The warming will be less pronounced in the tropics than at the poles. The increase in coastal temperatures will be smaller than that inland.
Assuming reasonable hypothetical conditions, which include continued levels of observed economic and demographic development and a balance between fossil and renewable energy sources, one can estimate the following increases in annual temperatures over a single century (period from 1999-2099):
+ 3,5°C in Southern Europe
+ 2,5°C in Southeast Asia
+ 4,9°C in the Arctic (North Pole)
+ 3,2°C in Central America
+ 2,6°C in Southern Australia
+ 3,3°C in West Africa
The global increase in average temperature would thus be +2.8°C.

Increase in Sea Level

Global warming affects sea level worldwide. Records indicate that sea levels have been continually rising since the 1870s.

The two principal factors affecting sea level rise are thermal expansion and the melting of terrestrial ice deposits (glaciers, polar ice caps, snow cover, permafrost).
In the future, increases in sea level will most likely lead to population migration, as island and coastal populations are displaced by rising waters.
Rising sea levels may also lead to the salinization of essential groundwater resources, hence making them unavailable for human consumption and agriculture.

Increased Frequency of Extreme Events

Extreme weather events include storms, hurricanes, floods and droughts, as well as abnormally mild winters and abnormally warm summers.
Because the factors driving extreme weather events are complex, it is difficult to attribute any one event to global warming.  Focusing on measurable values such as temperatures and precipitation levels allows us to assess the frequency of “unusual” events with more accuracy.
Since the 1990s, scientists have measured a both a significant decrease in the number of abnormally cold days and an increase in the number of abnormally warm ones. Precipitation anomalies have also been noted over the same time period.
Impact on populations and ecosystems

Climate change will impact different ecosystems in different ways. More developed nations, with greater resources, will be better able to adapt to climate change than their less developed neighbours. Thus, there is a strong correlation between climate change impacts and economic inequality (see the United Nations’ Human Development 2007-2008).
Any answer to this global issue requires international political and economic cooperation.
The United Nations’ Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) ratified by most nations of the world articulates this goal. The UNFCCC’s 1997 Kyoto Protocol set the first binding limits on greenhouse gas emissions from developed nations.

|Next|