The Challenge of Global Hazards for the Future Flashcards
how badly impacted will water shortages be in the future from global warming?
- water demands will increase by 50%
- 50% world (Middle East) face severe water shortages by 2025
- High Andes people cannot rely on glacial meltwater from Himilayas as water source
- 2.8 billion already suffer water stress
give an example of how food security will be complexly impacted by higher global temps?
higher temps = reduce yields of crops & promote crop pests, locusts
higher temps = prolong growing season so wider range of crops
why may an increase in CO2 have a positive impact on food security?
co2 speeds up plant growth & increases resilience of crops
what will a decrease in suitable land for growing crops mean for food insecurity?
- less cash crops = economically impact farmers
- harvests of grains (rice/wheat) decrease by a third in next 20 years
- malnutrition in africa will get worse due to lack of subsistence farming
why will east africa have better food security than north & south africa after global warming?
east in equatorial region, inter-tropical convergence zone = rainfall
why will indigenous communities be hit the hardest / suffer the most by climate change?
- Miskito Indians in central america rely on predicable weather patterns to grow food and hunt
- patterns in central america will change by 3deg increase and 25% rainfall decrease
- miskito isolated from modern farming techniques
miskito v. poor
what are the two main sustainable strategies against global warming in the future?
- green strategies
- renewable energy schemes
how does tree planting reduce carbon emissions after first 10 years of its life?
trees take in carbon dioxide, carbon capture, and fix it in the form of hydrocarbons
name 4 renewable energy projects that are sustainable strategies to solve global warming
- Large 3 Gorges Dam, China, controls flood Yangtze river & hyrdroelecttricity
- biofuel crop: large areas of land, potential farmland, deforested first
- wind farms, wales
- power generated per unit of land occupied so none goes to waste
give a case study where the renewable energy scheme of hydroelectricity is used
Kenya:
- Kathama, Thima, Hydroelectic power plants, electricity for 200 houses
- saves 42tonnes CO2 emissions annually
give a case study where the renewable energy scheme of photovoltaic cells is used
Solar Island, West Bengal
- photovoltaic power plant
- replaced diesel generators
name a case study where biomass is used as a renewable energy source
National Govn Organisations in Sudan, Kenya
- biomass 80% renewable energy currently
- sudan = liquified petroleum gas cleaner than charcoal
- kenya = wood in fuel efficient stoves
why are community based solutions very effective?
they are ‘bottom up’ - developed by locals for locals
what community based solutions to global warming are in Wolvercote, Oxfordshire
- waste champions: organise rubbish swaps, take surplus to recylcing
- info booklets ‘10 most effective ways to reduce CO2 emissions’
- cloth bags in supermarkets, car sharing, cycling
what community based solutions to global warming are taking place in Kenya
- christian aid work with BIDI, help local farmers with water after Mt. Kilimanjaro melting
- volunteers trained to build water containing fences, composts in every community
- new crop experiments
