1.3 Human Activity Is Causing An Enhanced Climate Change

Question 1

How have humans enhanced the greenhouse effect (concentration of gasses)?

Answer 1

Humans emit different types of gases that cause the greenhouse effect to increase. They add gases to the atmosphere increasing gas concentration.

Question 2

Give two reasons how the following have caused enhanced greenhouse effect and climate change:
Industry
Energy Production
Transport
Farming

Answer 2

Industry
- increase in demand for goods causes increase in production (emit greenhouse gases)
- release halocarbons which are 3000x more powerful than CO2
Energy production
- increase in demand and therefore increase production which emit greenhouse gases
- power stations already produce 89% of the greenhouse gases so if demand goes up there will be even more
Transport
- more cars and vehicles causes more harmful emissions
- more online shopping causes shipping which release lots of greenhouse gases
Farming
- increase in demand intensifies agriculture increasing the amount of methane produced
- forest areas cleared for farming stops CO2 absorption causing more of it to stick around

Question 3

Give evidence to explain how each of the factors below show that
climate change is happening:
Sea levels
Global temperatures
Arctic ice
Extreme weather

Answer 3

Sea levels
- when water is heated it expands, therefore raising the sea level
Global temperatures
- global temperatures have increased by 1°C since 1880
Arctic ice
- over 90% of all valley glaciers are shrinking
Extreme weather
- extreme temperatures are five times more common than before

Question 4

Explain a consequence of climate change that will:
Make people poorer
Affect human health
Lead to overcrowding in some areas
Reduce food growth
Cause damage to houses/lost business

Answer 4

Make people poorer
- crops may not grow so the farmers and super markets will lose money
Affect human health
- low amount of growing food means malnutrition will become more common
Lead to overcrowding in some areas
- coastal flooding might lead to people having to leave their homes therefore having to all go and live in the same small area
Reduce food growth
- extreme weather can destroy crops or change the climate too much meaning the food is unable to grow
Cause damage to houses/lost business
- flooding in populated areas might damage important buildings that could have large influences in that area

Question 5

Why do we need to have ‘low’ and ‘maximum’ emission projections to model future climate changes?

Answer 5

So we can be prepared for every possible outcome

Question 6

What human and physical reasons affect these projections?

Answer 6

Natural disasters (e.g. large volcano eruption or an asteroid collision)
Change in human ways (e.g. change transport methods or new source of income)

Question 7

Why can’t we be more certain about the future climate temperature?

Answer 7

We may not have experienced the situation in the past so we are without support on what the actual outcome will be.
The emissions might change.
The amount of development.