Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies Flashcards
Two main causes of anthropogenic greenhouse gases are…
- burning fossil fuels for energy and
- changes society has made to land use
Agriculture produces greenhouse gases in a variety of ways…
→ use of fertilisers
→ ruminant animals
→ land clearing
→ Tilling/ ploughing
The following reduces the amount of fossil fuels burnt…
- reducing use of electrical appliances
- public transport instead of cars (less petrol usage) 🚌
- use energy efficient appliances
- heat/ cool less
- buy local product (fruit and veg grown in AUS) 🥕 🥝
- eat less meat → meat industry produces methane �
What are Mitigation strategies?
strategies intended to prevent or reduce greenhouse gas emissions
(proactive)
What are Adaption strategies?
strategies intended to reduce the impact of climate change due to
greenhouse gas emissions (reactive)
What are some Urban design mitigation strategies:
Use of high efficiency LED lights for street lighting 💡
- Convenient and effective public transport to encourage its
usage over cars 🚏🚌
- Green buildings with plants that insulate… reduce energy
usage (eg, One Central Park) 🪴
- Double glazing (insulates) → effective as it reduces heat loss
by 30% when compared to single glaze
- Use of renewable energy (eg, solar)
- Buildings that face north (maximum exposure to sun during
winter, shading during summer)
What are some Urban design adaptation strategies
- Planning so that emergency services can access areas and residents can leave
efficiently 🚒 - Planting trees to provide moisture and shade during heat waves
- Attention to drainage (reduce impact of increasing flash floods, etc)
- Appropriate use of thermal mass (ability of a material to absorb and store heat) = energy
savings (eg, concrete and bricks absorb heat during day and release at night) - Light surfaces, eg, roofs and roads (reflect sun’s energy) 🛣 → effective as it reduces
albedo effect by 0.8%, noticeable by residents, reduced LA’s energy bills by $100 million
per year
What does Geo-engineering mean?
Geo engineering describes large-scale projects that seek to modify Earth’s natural systems.
What is Geosequestration?
The process of capturing carbon dioxide (CO2)
from major stationary sources (such as power
stations), transporting that CO2
(usually by a pipeline) and then injecting it into a suitable geological formation.
How is Geo-Engineering effective?
- Reduce carbon emissions in
atmosphere - However, it is very expensive to implement and difficult to make a profit from
Solar radiation management (SRM) aims to reduce the amount of light entering Earth’s atmosphere by injecting
large numbers of reflective particles into the upper
atmosphere/ stratosphere.
How is Geo-Engineering NOT effective?
- Benefits are outweighed by negatives
- Would produce substantial ozone depletion
→ flow
on effect on ecosystems - May cause droughts in Africa and Asia
- Widespread droughts or floods
What is Ocean Iron Fertilisation?
Is the intentional introduction of
iron to iron-poor areas of the ocean surface to stimulate phytoplankton production → enhance
biological productivity and/or accelerate carbon dioxide sequestration from the atmosphere
The most popular renewable energy sources currently include:
- Solar energy
- Wind energy
- Hydro energy
What is Solar energy?
Is radiant light and heat from the Sun that is harnessed using a range of
ever-evolving technologies.
Pros of SOLAR ENERGY?
- Reduces carbon footprint as they use
sustainable energy rather than burning
fossil fuels - Lower electricity bills
- Requires very little maintenance
- Excess power can be sold back into the
grid (investment)
