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1
Q

what were management strategies to reduce the risk of Boscastle flood happening again?

A
  • £4.5 million has been spent on flood defence scheme
  • river channel has been made deeper and wider to hold more water
  • Boscastle car park has been raised + given a permeable surface
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2
Q

what is the quaternary period?

A
  • most recent geological time period

- period of time from 2.6 million years ago to present day

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3
Q

what was the period before the quaternary like?

A

earths climate warmer + quite stable

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4
Q

how did things change in quaternary?

A
  • during quaternary global temp had shifted between:
  • cold glacial periods that last around 100,000 years
  • and warmer interglacial periods that last around 10,000 years
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5
Q

when did the last glacial period end?

A

around 15,000 years ago - since then climate has been warming

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6
Q

how are ice cores evidence for climate change?

A
  • scientists often use ice cores to detect changes in temp

- by analysing gases trapped in layers of ice can tell what temp was each year

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7
Q

how are early springs evidence for climate change?

A
  • in recent years have been signs of seasonal shift - spring arrives earlier + winters tend to be less severe
  • these seasonal changes affect the resting + migration patterns in wildlife
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8
Q

how is pollen analysis evidence for climate change?

A
  • pollen from plants get preserved in sediment

- scientists can identify + date preserved pollen to show which species were living at the time

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9
Q

how are tree rings evidence for climate change?

A
  • scientists take the cores of trees + count rings to find the age of tree
  • thickness of each ring shows what the climate was like
  • reliable source of evidence of climate change for the past 10,000 years
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10
Q

what do orbital changes affect?

A
  • affect how much solar radiation the earth receives

- more energy means more warming

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11
Q

what are the variations of how the earth orbits?

A
  • stretch - the earth’s orbit around the sun varies from circular to elliptical - called eccentricity
  • tilt - earths axis is tilted at an angle as it orbits the sun
  • wobble - earths axis wobbles
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12
Q

how is volcanic activity a possible factor for climate change?

A
  • during a volcanic eruption carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere
  • volcanic activity may also cause short term changes to the climate
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13
Q

how is solar output a possible cause of climate change?

A
  • there can be fluctuations in the amount of radiation from the sun
  • reduced solar output means that the earth’s climate may become cooler in some areas
  • solar output isn’t thought to have a global effect on climate change
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14
Q

how can cement production be a possible cause?

A
  • cement is made from limestone - which contains carbon

- when cement is produced - lots of co2 released into atmosphere

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15
Q

what else can be a possible cause of climate change?

A
  • greenhouse effect
  • burning of fossil fuels
  • farming
  • deforestation
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16
Q

what effects does climate change have on the environment?

A
  • sea levels are rising due to land ice melting
  • sea ice shrinking leading to loss of polar habitats
  • precipitation patterns changing
17
Q

how can biodiversity decrease as a result of climate change?

A
  • some species now live at higher latitudes due to warming temperatures
  • some habitats destroyed or damaged - species can become extinct
18
Q

how can climate change affect people?

A
  • in some places deaths due to heat have increased
  • some areas could become so hot + dry - difficult/ impossible to inhibit
  • in some areas - problems with water availability caused by changing rainfall patterns
19
Q

how is climate change affecting farmers?

A
  • globally some crops have suffered from climate change resulting in smaller yields
  • this could increase malnutrition, illness and death from starvation
20
Q

what does climate change mean for the weather?

A
  • means weather getting more extreme
  • means more money has to be spent on predicting extreme weather - reducing their impacts + rebuilding after they take place
21
Q

how is planting trees a good mitigation strategy to reduce causes of climate change?

A

more co2 absorbed from atmosphere through photsynthesis

22
Q

how is carbon capture a good mitigation strategy to reduce causes of climate change?

A
  • carbon capture and storage is designed to reduce emissions from power stations burning fossil fuels
  • involves capturing co2 + transporting it to safe places where it can be stored
23
Q

how is alternative energy production a good mitigation strategy to reduce causes of climate change?

A

replacing fossil fuels with nuclear or renewable energy can help reduce greenhouse gas emissions

24
Q

how are international agreements a good mitigation strategy to reduce causes of climate change?

A
  • in 2005, the Kyoto protocol became international law
  • the countries that signed up to the treaty pledged to reduce their carbon emissions by 5%
  • but overall impacts had been small
  • the US refused to join + major developing countries like China + India were not required to make any reductions
25
Q

how is changing agricultural systems a good adaptation strategy?

A
  • may be necessary to plant new crop types that are more suited to the new climate
  • some regions - biotechnology is being used to create new crop varieties resistant to extreme weather events
26
Q

how is managing water supply a good adaptation strategy?

A
  • water meters can be installed in homes to discourage excessive water use
  • rainwater + wastewater can be collected and recycled
27
Q

how is coping with rising sea levels a good adaptation strategy?

A
  • better flood warning systems are being put in place + physical defences such as flood barriers are being built
  • in areas that can’t afford expensive flood defences people are building raised flood shelters