Impacts of Global Warming

Question 1

Positives

Answer 1

Warming- greater food production, choice of food variation.
Improved agriculture in some high latitude regions
Increased growing season in Greenland
Winter deaths will decline as temperatures warm.
An ice free Northwest Passage, providing a shipping shortcut between the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans.
Increased vegetation activity in northern latitudes.
Ocean uptakes of carbon dioxide moderates future global warming.

Question 2

Negatives

Answer 2

Flooding & sea level rise
Warming of seas- affects food chains
Extreme weather
Decreasing human water supplies, increased fire frequency, ecosystem change and expanded deserts.
Decline in rice fields due to warmer nighttime minimum temperatures.
Increased deaths to heatwaves.
Increased heat stress in humans and other mammals.
Spread in mosquito borne diseases such as Malaria and Dengue Fever.
Increase in occurrence of allergic symptoms due to rise in allergenic pollen.
Loss of 2/3 of the world’s polar bear population within 50 years.
Less compacted ice.
Warming causes methane to escape from Arctic regions.
Rainforests releasing CO2 as regions become drier.
Substantial negative impacts to marine ecosystems.
Inhibiting plankton development disruption of carbon cycle.
Increased mortalities of sea urchins.
Threat to fish populations.
Severe consequences for at least 60 million people dependent on ice melt for water supply.
Hundreds of millions displaced within this century.