Human Impacts Flashcards
1
Q
describe some connections between climate change & humans
A
- raised average & extreme temps –> biodiversity loss –> reduced agricultural production –> under-nutrition
- extreme weather –> drought/fire –> particulate pollution & pollen allergenic burden –> respiratory disease
2
Q
describe how a hotter climate will lead to more extreme weather events
A
- hotter temps causes the distribution (bell curve) of probability of extreme events to occur to shift
- increases likelihood of an extremely hot day, decreases likelihood of an extremely cold day
3
Q
describe extreme heat and its impact on human health
A
- dehydration
- heatstroke
- air quality reduction
4
Q
describe changes in vector-borne diseases with climate change
A
- ranges of insects that carry disease change, so parts of the world that are not currently affected by a given vector-borne disease may become affected
- warmer winters mean the insects don’t die out
- diseases include: malaria, dengue fever, tick-borne encephalitis, lyme disease, hemorrhagic fever
5
Q
describe changes in water consumption
A
- expected to increase greatly
- mostly due to enhanced evaporation which requires more water for crops
6
Q
describe how crop yields are sensitive to temperature/climate change
A
- hotter summers are associated with lower productivity of corn & soybean fields
- some species react differently
- can also bring changes in the distribution of weeds, plant diseases and insect pests
7
Q
describe storm surges
A
- caused by high winds during a storm pushing on the surface waters
- if a storm surge coincides with high tide, the sea level will be substantially higher than normal high tide
8
Q
describe the opening of the northwest passage
A
- enough ice will be gone by 2025 that shipping routes could begin to be permanently reoriented through the northwest passage
- panama canal would become less competitive
- new ports would open up in Canada
9
Q
describe the impact of ice levels and fossil fuels
A
- retreating ice is revealing more oil and natural gas reserves off Greenland’s eastern coast
