Challenge 4 Flashcards
What potential effects could climate change have on the UK?
Warmer marine waters - algal blooms, loss of biodiversity.
Melting of arctic ice - opening of more navigation, transport, trade
Flooding, temperature change - tourism, habitats, biodiversity
Food and water security decrease due to increased temperature
Large population affected by drought.
Increased erosion due to rising sea levels.
More extreme weather events.
What is challenge 4 about?
How climate change threatens to challenge the UK
What are the main predicted changes as a result of climate change?
Winter temperatures likely to increase by 2-4 degrees and summer by 3-5 degrees.
UK will get 15-30% wetter in winter and 15-30% drier in summer.
What attitudes are there towards climate change?
Some say we should look after ourselves and those after us.
Some say it costs too much to prevent global warming.
Some look towards the previous changes in temperature to suggest its natural.
Some say that poverty is a more important problem in the modern day.
What things can people do to reduce climate change?
Use local farm markets rather than importing food.
Reduce unnecessary luxuries
Use a bike rather than car to commute
Recycle anything possible.
What are the pros and cons of buying locally?
Pros
Less fossil fuels burned and supports community.
Cons
Some products cost more to be produced locally than abroad.
What are the pros and cons of reducing luxuries?
Pros
Fewer resources wasted and used
Less transport needed and less packaging
Cons
May mean poverty in LICs where many of these products are made.
What are the pros and cons of using a bike rather than a car to commute?
Pros
Cars are big polluters.
Fewer cars means less CO2 released
Fewer cars means reduced greenhouse effect.
Cons
Not all are able to do this, perhaps due to distance, age or other factors.
What are the pros and cons of recycling and conserving as much as possible?
Pros
Materials can be reused and saved.
Conserving energy is easy, like turning off lights.
Cons
It doesn’t benefit the poorest, who need certain resources.
On a small scale, it has a small impact.
What national strategies can the UK government implement?
Give grants to those who purchase ultra-low emission vehicles
Making all train routes electric rather than oil based.
Invest in the Green Bus Fund so that all city buses are electric or run on green gas.
Pay people for each KG of waste that they recycle.
Set up recycling centres in all cities and towns.
Pass a law that all shops have to charge 5p for a carrier bag.
Increase flood barriers to stop floods damaging homes.
Why is it important that countries work together to reduce emissions?
They need to come to a compromise over their conflicting interests over emissions to prevent conflict.
Why do different countries have different attitudes about reducing emissions?
For some countries, they have the ability ro reduce emissions, in others, this is not an option and thus they aren’t concerned.
How has the International Climate Change Debate evolved?
1988 - United Nations set up a panel on climate change.
1992 - Earth Summit took place in Rio De Janeiro in Brazil
1997 - Kyoto Protocol is agreed
2007 - The Bali Conference.
What was said at the 1988 UN climate change panel?
The Earth had warmed up half a degree in the last century
What happened at the Earth Summit in 1992 in Rio, Brazil?
The United Nations framework on climate change is signed by 154 nations. They agree voluntary targets to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases.
