Carbon EQ3 (6.3)

Question 1

what are the 4 ecosystem services ?

Answer 1

1. supporting services keep the ecosystems healthy e.g photosynthesis
2. provisional services are the products obtained from ecosystems e.g. food, fuel etc.
3. regulating services such as regulation of air quality,climate, water etc.
4. cultural services are non-material benefits such as well being

Question 2

How is deforestation impacting the carbon and water cycles ?

Answer 2

• it leads to CO2 increasing in the atmosphere
• impacts the water cycle such as more runoff and less infiltration affecting river regimes
• soil erosion caused due to it being washed away easily by rain due to a lack of cover from vegetation
• species diversity reduced

Question 3

how is the EU attempting to combat deforestation ?

Answer 3

with the afforestation scheme which encourages planting forests

Question 4

why has there been an increase in grassland conversion ?

Answer 4

Growth of biofuel production has meant grasslands are being replaced by crops such as soya and sugar cane. Over 5.5 million hectares of grassland lost which has increased soil erosion and therefore carbon stores.

Question 5

why is ocean acidification occurring ?

Answer 5

increased absorbed carbon from the sea means it is becoming more acidified and has dropped from PH 8.2 TO 8.1

Question 6

How is ocean acidification effecting ecosystems ?

Answer 6

sea life is effected due to a loss of minerals in the water. Also coral are dying due to the changes in acidity along with algae which effects the whole food chain and threatens ecosystems.

Question 7

how has drought affected carbon and water cycles in the Amazon and worldwide ?

Answer 7

17% of the earths terrestrial carbon is in the Amazon however this could turn in to a carbon source rather than store. Also the 20 billion tonnes of water that is released in to the atmosphere by the trees is being effected by the droughts.

Question 8

what does the environmental Kuznets curve display ?

Answer 8

as countries first develop their rates of environmental impact increase. However they reach a tipping point where they begin to reduce their environmental impact once industrialised.

Question 9

how is palm oil production affecting the carbon cycle ?

Answer 9

it is the most commonly produced vegetable oil and is used in all sorts from foods to cosmetics. The production of it has led to huge amounts of deforestation and therefore large amounts of carbon being emitted

Question 10

what is an example of a country where palm oil is effecting the carbon cycle ?

Answer 10

in 2015 Indonesia’s greenhouse emissions temporarily overtook those of the USA due to large amounts of forest being cleared for palm oil.

Question 11

how does the UK’s Forests back up the Kuznets curve ?

Answer 11

in the 19th century when the UK underwent huge industrialisation forest cover greatly reduced. However now there are schemes which have helped replant forests such as the FSC.

Question 12

how has temperature change impacted the arctic ?

Answer 12

• temperature there has risen twice as fast as global averages
• considerable loss of sea ice and ships can now sail straight through
• carbon uptake of plants increasing due to longer growing seasons
• loss of albedo due to more snow melt and more darker ground covered by soil and vegetation
• scientists predict permafrost will thaw in the future and sea ice could completely thaw out

Question 13

how has temperature prediction been undermined ?

Answer 13

a study looked at things like lake sediment and tree rings to look at temperature in the past and it went against what climate models currently are saying.

Question 14

what are the main ways the ocean is under thereat ?

Answer 14

• mangroves trap sediment and nutrients and protect us from disasters however 1/2 the worlds mangroves have been lost due to tourism
• food webs are changing due to over fishing and rising temperatures have killed plankton effecting the food cycle
• coral bleaching is occurring due to acidification and temp. change which effects tourism

Question 15

what factors make climate change so uncertain ?

Answer 15

• the levels of GHG emissions and if they’ll continue to rise
• the resilience of other carbon sinks such as the ocean
• positive feedback mechanisms
• whether or not there’ll be a tipping point
• future population gowth
• the emissions of permafrost

Question 16

what are the 2 approaches of the IPCC for the future ?

Answer 16

1. adaptation- adopting new ways of doing things in order to reduce and live with climate change
2. Mitigation- reducing or preventing GHG emissions using new technologies

Question 17

what are some adaptation strategies ?

Answer 17

• water conservation and management e.g smart irrigation, recycling etc.
• land use planning and flood risk management
• resilient agricultural systems involves crops that use fewer fertilisers and grows cover over crops to maintain soil health and water conservation
• solar radiation management involves reflecting solar rays to reduce global warming through orbiting satellites

Question 18

what are the negatives of the adaptation strategies for climate change ?

Answer 18

• water conservation and management is difficult to impose due to rising demand
• hard engineering of flood management is very expensive and so is the genetically modified resilient agriculture
• solar radiation is untried and untested and so its unknown if it would work

Question 19

what are the mitigation strategies for climate change ?

Answer 19

• carbon taxation can help make people more aware of their energy use and create change
• increasing energy efficiency in buildings and appliances
• afforestation for example in Korea after the 2nd world war they set up rehabilitation schemes
• renewable switching which is switching from fossil fuels to renewable sources
• carbon capture and storage

Question 20

how could increased energy efficiency be achieved ?

Answer 20

decentralisation which is the idea of having lots of small power stations rather than one big one to reduce waste during transportation in pylons

Question 21

what is important to bare in mind when considering these mitigation and adaptation schemes ?

Answer 21

it is an international problem and so these actions must be taken up at an international scale. However even if this is done it isn’t guaranteed that the damage done so far can be reversed.

Question 22

How does the Paris agreement attempt to reduce global warming ?

Answer 22

it unites 195 countries to reduce global warming and they aim to keep the global temperature from rising more than 2 degrees above its original temperature. Countries report back every 5 years on their progress.