Carbon cycle management strategies Flashcards
What are Wetlands
Wetlands are permanently saturated marshes (salt and freshwater) that cover up 9% of the Earth’s surface.
Why have Wetlands been drained?
Human activities such as agriculture, building industrial, commercial and residential land.
Consequences of wetland drainage
Leading to less absorption of co2 from the atmosphere to be stored in wetland marshes. Also, as wetland soil store co2 / methane, draining it can release this into the atmosphere due to increased decomposition when exposed to oxygen.
Why is restoring wetlands useful?
Wetland restoration decreases atmospheric co2 store through sequestration and also acts as a natural sea wall barrier for flooding, adapting to CC consequences.
Afforestation benefits
Increases sequestration rates by acting as a carbon sink. Also decreases flooding by acting as a natural barrier, as well as increasing soil absorption rates. Also improves air quality.
Name of UN afforestation committee, and what it does.
Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD), offers incentives to countries to protect / restore forestry.
How can changing agricultural practices be a management strategy?
Co2 is released during agricultural practices, so changing them to become more sustainable can hugely effect the amount of carbon being released globally. Some practices include:
* Zero tillage
* Crop residues
* New strains of plants which require less water
* Managing manure
Reducing carbon emissions can be done two ways
International treaties / directives
Cap n Trade system
International agreement to reduce carbon example, benefits and drawbacks
Kyoto agreement 1997
Paris climate agreement 2015
PCA - aimed to keep global warming from going above 2*c more than currently, and be net-zero by 2050.
Benefits - mitigates climate change completely, saving the Earth from any consequences
Can be expensive / No incentive for countries to follow plan, E.g Trump administration.
Cap and trade system name, method and drawbacks
EUETS
European Union Emissions Trading Scheme.
EU releases a set amount of carbon credits and allocates them to firms depending on their size. Firms can then trade with each other and generate revenue selling carbon credits which they don’t use. Firms that go over their allotted amount are fined. Carbon credit supply decreases year by year in order to reduce overall emissions.
Drawbacks is that some companies may go over and not disclose / hide emissions. Also, it can be cheaper to just pay fines than trade. Also, there can be misallocation of pollution permits.
Climate change mitigation / adaptation strategies
Mitigation:
Reducing emissions
Adaptation:
Afforestation
Wetland restoration
Changing agricultural practices
Geoengineering
