EAE 16 - Climate Science

Question 1

What is the UNFCCC?

Answer 1

United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change

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Question 2

What is the IPCC?

Answer 2

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change

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Question 3

What is the WMO?

Answer 3

World Meteorological Organisation (UN Agency)

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Question 4

What is the WCP/WCRP?

Answer 4

World Climate Program/World Climate Research Program

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Question 5

When was the first WCC?

Answer 5

The First WCC was held in 1979, sponsored by the World Meteorological Organization (a UN Agency)

It eventually led to establishment of WCP, WCRP, IPCC, and UNEP (all critical global environmental initiatives)

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Question 6

When was the second WCC?

Answer 6

The Second WCC was held in 1990 to review the WCP and the outcomes of the 1ˢᵗ IPCC Assessment Report.

This led to the establishment of the UNFCCC (of which the Kyoto Protocol was part), and to GCOS

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Question 7

When was the third WCC?

Answer 7

The Third WCC in 2009 reviewed earlier work and contributed to the UN Millenium Development Goals

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Question 8

Describe the IPCC & role?

3 points.

Answer 8

• The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) was created in 1988.
• Set up by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP).
• IPCC’s role:

“…to assess on a comprehensive, objective, open and transparent basis the scientific, technical and socioeconomic information relevant to understanding the scientific basis of risk of human-induced climate change, its potential impacts and options for adaptation and mitigation. IPCC reports should be neutral with respect to policy, although they may need to deal objectively with scientific, technical and socioeconomic factors relevant to the application of particular policies.

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Question 9

Key statement from IPCC AR5 (2013/14) synthesis report?

Answer 9

“Human influence on the climate system is clear … Recent climate changes have had widespread impacts on human and natural systems…Continued emission of greenhouse gases will cause further warming and long-lasting effects in all components of the climate system, increasing the likelihood of severe, pervasive and irreversible impacts for people and ecosystems.”

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Question 10

Descibe the UNFCC

4 points.

Answer 10

• United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
• Convention adopted at Rio conference in 1992, and came into force in 1994.
• 7 “Parties” to the convention
• The Convention:
  
  • Aims to stabilize greenhouse gas concentrations “at a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system.”
  • Puts the onus on developed countries to lead the way
  • Directs funding to climate change activities in developing countries

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Question 11

‘Bodies of the UNFCCC’

What is the Conference of the Parties (COP)?

Answer 11

Supreme decision-making body of the Convention. All States that are Parties to the Convention are represented at the COP, at which they review the implementation of the Convention and any other legal instruments that the COP adopts and take decisions necessary to promote the effective implementation of the Convention, including institutional and administrative arrangements.

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Question 12

‘Bodies of the UNFCCC’

What is the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol (CMP)?

Answer 12

States that are Parties to the Kyoto Protocol are represented at the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol (CMP). The CMP oversees the implementation of the Kyoto Protocol and takes decisions to promote its effective implementation.

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Question 13

‘Bodies of the UNFCCC’

What are the other bodies of the UNFCCC

3 points.

Answer 13

• Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Paris Agreement (CMA)
• Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technical Advice (SBSTA)
• Subsidiary Body for Implementation (SBI)

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Question 14

What is the The Paris Agreement (2015 COP21)?

4 points.

Answer 14

The Paris Agreement was arguably the most important COP of recent times.

Among other things it agreed to

• Take steps to limit global warming to well below 2°C while pursuing efforts to limit warming to 1.5°C
• Required all signatories to establish Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) toward the reduction in emisions.
• Established a Global Stocktake on progress in adaptation and mitigation for reporting by 2023
• Invited the IPCC to provide a special report by 2018 on the impacts of global warming of 1.5°C, and the possible pathways to achieve this

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Question 15

What are the key lessons from the ‘Global Warming of 1.5°C Report’?

4 points.

Answer 15

• Warming of 1.5°C is almost certain even with deep decarbonizing
• Warming of 2°C would be catastrophic for many ecosystems, so we must strive to keep warming below that level
• Decarbonizing will take a massive global effort
• Mitigation AND adaptation will both be required

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Question 16

What are Negative Emissions?

Answer 16

To reach zero net emissions or more and limit global warming to 1.5°C, it will be necessary to remove and permanently store CO₂ from the atmosphere. This is called Carbon Dioxide Removal (CDR). As it is the opposite of emissions, these practices or technologies are often described as achieving “negative emissions” or “sinks”.

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Question 17

What are the main groups of CDR?

Answer 17

• Biological CDR
• Technological CDR
• Geochemical CDR

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Question 18

What is Biological CDR?

Answer 18

Biological CDR enlarges natural sinks and includes several measures

• Afforestation and forest management, i.e. large-scale plantation of trees which store carbon in soil and biomass.
• Adapted land management to increase and permanently fix Carbon from atmospheric CO₂ in the soil.
• Pyrolysis of biomass to form charcoal (biochar) that keeps carbon in the soil for many years.

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Question 19

What is Technological CDR?

Answer 19

• Technological CDR includes Removing CO₂ directly from the exhaust gases of industrial processes and storing it elsewhere, e.g. underground (Direct Air Capture with Carbon Storage, “DACCS”).
• Bioenergy utilization in combination with carbon capture and storage means burning biomass in power plants, immediately capturing the CO₂ underground (Bio-Energy with Carbon Capture and Storage, “BECCS”). (This process combines biological and technological CDR.)

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Question 20

What is Geochemical CDR?

Answer 20

Geochemical CDR includes

• Enhanced weathering
• Increasing ocean productivity

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Question 21

Responding to Climate Change

What is Mitigation?

Answer 21

Targets the causes of climate change

Targets the causes of climate change, slowing it by reducing the greenhouse gases that are responsible.

Moving from carbonbased fossil fuels to non-emitting sources and increasing energy efficiency. Also changing farming and forestry practices and reducing cement production

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Question 22

Responding to Climate Change

What is Adaptation?

Answer 22

Targets the effects of climate change

Targets the effects of climate change by adjusting human society (or, with limits, vulnerable ecosystems) to cope with the changing climate and reduce harm.

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Question 23

Responding to Climate Change

What is Geoengineering?

Answer 23

Geoengineering involves actively modifying the climate system to weaken the link between current emissions and climate change.

• Carbon removal: removing the CO2 or other greenhouse gases from the atmosphere. Carbon capture and storage (CCS) technologies, ocean fertilisation, etc.
• Modifying the global energy balance: altering the incoming solar radiation, or changing global albedo

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Question 24

What are the Tropical savanna emissions from biomass
burning?

Answer 24

• Globally biomass fires contribute CO₂ emissions of 2 - 4 Pg C yr⁻¹
• Equivalent to around 20-40% of emissions from fossil fuel combustion
• Conventionally CO₂ emissions from biomass fires regarded as carbon neutral (re-assimilation of CO₂ during wet-season growth).
• However this assumption NOT met when carbon stocks degraded under high frequency/high intensity savanna burning.
• Australia normally contributes <10% of global emissions (over the period 1997-2013 Australia contributed ~5% of global emissions). Other estimates suggest ~7% of global biomass emissions

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Question 25

What is Indigenous burning for mitigation?

Answer 25

e.g. West Arnhem Land Fire Abatement Project

• Ground-breaking approach - highly collaborative and supported among the TO, research community, government and industry
• WALFA was the prototype for multiple similar initiatives in last 10 years, from the Kimberley, across Northern Australia to Cape York.
• WALFA has shown a 38% reduction in accountable GHG emissions relative to baseline. This is from fire only - post fire losses additional
• Carbon benefits can be traded
• Approach has gained global attention, including in other tropical savanna landscapes

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Question 26

What were the impacts of the SE Australian “Megafire” of summer 2019-2020?

Answer 26

Latest and largest of recent catastrophic fires that include “Black Saturday”

• 3 lives (417 indirect), 3151 hospitalisations, 3000 houses, 5.8 million ha burned.
• Tangible costs estimated at $100 billion, intangible costs at more than 2x that
• Doubled Australia’s annual CO2emissions.
• Smoke plumes circumnavigated the globe
• Vast amounts of radiative energy released

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Question 27

What is ‘The Risk Equation’?

Answer 27

Risk = f(probability of hazard; number of elements at risk; vulnerability of elements at risk)

The probability of an extreme fire is largely related to probability of extreme fire weather (this is growing with climate change) and fuel loads. Other variables in the risk equation are fundamentally social and economic.

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Question 28

How does indigenous burning contribute to reducing the fire risk?

Answer 28

Reducing the fuel loads is critical to manage current fire as well as future fire under climate change.

Both the 2020 Royal Commission and the NSW Inquiry have considered and recommended cultural burning practices as critical additions to current prescribed/planned burning by government agencies.

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Question 29

How can Adjusting practices be used to adapt agriculture in Australia?

Answer 29

• Change lambing timing (e.g. adjust joining)
• Sow earlier (avoid heat at maturity)

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Question 30

How can Changing Systems be used to adapt agriculture in Australia?

Answer 30

• Change products (e.g. sheep to wheat)
• Change markets (e.g. boutique wine)

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Question 31

How can Transformation be used to adapt agriculture in Australia?

Answer 31

• Physically shift production area
• Change production systems (e.g. rice to wheat)
• Enter/ create new markets (e.g. Bush tucker)

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Question 32

What is the adaptive framework for agricultural adaption in Australia?

Answer 32

• Adjusting practices
• Changing Systems
• Transformation

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Question 33

What is the ‘Multi-Scale Research Approach’ to city adaption?

Answer 33

It is focused on Irrigated Green Infrastructure

Results in:

• Reduced local-scale air temperature → Limit heat-health impacts
• Reduced micro-scale air temperature and radiant temperature → Improve human thermal comfort

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Question 34

What are the results of the ‘Multi-Scale Research Approach’ to city adaption?

Answer 34

• At microscale we can achieve air temperature cooling of 1-2°C, and ‘feels like’ cooling of 7-10°C.
• Equivalently at local scale we can achieve air temperature cooling of 2°C+

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Question 35

So why is action on climate change so difficult?

10 points.

Answer 35

• We can’t even agree on a definition of climate change
• Language & punctuation
• How do we “divide the cake”?
• Impacts a long way away (geographically and in time)
• Long time frames to address problem
• Expensive problem to solve
• Cultural/political/economic distance between parties
• Domestic politics/Global geopolitics
• Complexity of negotiating process
• It is a very complex problem