A study of Climate change adaptation practices and their implementations.
1) Introduction-
A series of reports issued by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in the Nineties conclusively linked increasing climate variability as a consequence of human actions resulting in increasing quantities of Green House Gases in the environment.
These reports led to a call for international action and thus the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) was established in 1994. The Framework envisaged two main strategies to tackle climate change-
• Mitigation- processes involving reducing the output of green house gases
• Adaptation-methods used to cope with climate change
1.1) The need for Adaptation-
Mitigation practices were initially the method of choice but it gradually became apparent that the rapidity of climate change called for a policy mix of both strategies.
Adaptation practices and their documentations saw a steady increase as the effect of decades old emissions caught up after a time lag. Which is why November 2006 the UNFCCC published a technical paper titled “Application of environmentally sound technologies for adaptation to climate change (FCC/TP/2006/2)” which summarized practices, methods and adaptations techniques carried out in various climatic regions.
In a separate UNFCCC publication titled “Climate Change: Impacts, vulnerabilities and adaptation in Developing Countries”, the following table was published as guide to adaptation in relevant environments-
Table 1: Adaptation as seen in vulnerable sectors (UNFCCC, July 25, 2006)
2) Area specific adaptation techniques:
Adaptation techniques are not ‘one-off’ occurrences, they need to be repeated periodically for maximum effe...
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...from Economist : http://www.economist.com/news/science-and-technology/21581699-if-climate-change-takes-your-local-glacier-away-why-not-build-another-iceman
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For years to come there will always be a speculation on whether the climate change has really taken place or not. Many believe that large companies launched this topic in order to benefit from it in profit, as there are also those who are convinced that this are consequences that have emerged from human mistakes in understanding the environment. As humans are struggling to trust one another whether it is just a big conspiracy or not or environment changing itself, we are slowly starting to feel the effects of climate change. Because of the gasses (CO2) that are in the air, atmosphere is getting warmer, thereby triggering the Greenhouse effect. Almost 70% of emitted gasses in air are CO2, which leads us to believe that this is the main cause of Global Warming. Since it is billions and billions of metric tons per year that are being released in air, many scientists conclude that temperature will most likely be more higher in twenty years from now, than it was in near past.
The general idea of the order listed in NDAA is the adaptation, defined as the adjusting to the effects of climate change in our environment, instead of addressing the very important topic of mitigation, which is the reduction of harmful greenhouse gases and other pollutants to slow the effects of climate change (Source 6).There are several problems that arise with this exclusion because this is a major threat to the survival
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These nations “with the least resources have the least capacity to adapt and are the most vulnerable to climate change damages, just as they are more vulnerable to their environmental stresses” (Ravindranath et al., 2002). The largest problems will stem be from a lack of water in already water scarce areas, a decline in the crop yields and health issues relating to the climate change. Heat will become a major source of harm and diseases will increase as well (Ravidranath et al,
Global warming and global climate change is the study of future increases of temperature across the globe. Studying climate change refers to how the over- all climate will change such as the dry places getting dryer and the wet places getting wetter. Global climate is dependent on “the greenhouse effect a natural process that helps regulate temperature” (Easterling and Karl). In the past few centuries humans have had a monumental effect on increasing of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Climate change is result of the increase amount of the greenhouse gasses in the atmosphere such as methane, carbon dioxide, water vapor, nitrous oxide, and ozone. “Global temperature has rose approximately 1.4 degrees Fahrenheit over
Earth’s climate is determined by the physics and chemistry of its atmosphere. Earth’s atmosphere consists of four layers; troposphere which is closest to earth, stratosphere, mesosphere, and thermosphere. Hardy says, “During the past 100 years we humans, as a result of burning coal, oil, and gas and clearing forests, have greatly changed the chemical composition of the thin atmospheric layer.” There is more carbon dioxide in the atmosphere due to burning fossil fuels. The atmosphere is made up of many gases such as nitrogen, oxygen, and argon. It also consists of trace gases such as carbon dioxide, methane, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, chlorofluorocarbons and, ozone. The trace gases have the greatest effect on our climate (Hardy 5). Up to a certain level, these gases help to keep the planet warm by absorbing certain infrared wavelengths, so that there can be life on the planet. Thus, they trap heat in the troposphere and stop it from escaping to space (Hardy 7). Therefore, the greater amount of greenhouse gases, the more heat trapped in the atmosphere. Earth’s temperature is increasing due to increased levels of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide released into the air from burning fossil fuels. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) 2001 report projects “global average surface temperature increases ranging from 1.4 to 5.8 degrees
“An introduction to climate change.” Natural Resource Defense Council. Natural Resources Defense Council 8 November 2015 n. pag. Web. 28 November 2015.
Furthermore, this analysis must take place amidst serious gaps in the existing research and technology concerning the developing climatic conditions. For these reasons, global warming stands as one of the most daunting policy issues facing our world today. This is compounded by the debate over the very existence of climate change. While countless sources of empirical evidence testify to the very real presence of climate change the world over, considerable denial of the phenomenon still exists. The argument has been made that evidence of climate change is a gross overstatement, or in some cases, a complete fabrication.
The evidence clearly provided in this essay strongly supports the argument that greenhouse gases caused by air pollution are the main cause of anthropogenic climate change. The tables and graphs demonstrate just how greenhouse gases contribute to climate change. As is evident, climate change is an ever growing problem globally. Due to the increase in anthropogenic air pollution, greenhouse gases have amplified also, as shown by table 2. Figure one shows how carbon dioxide in the atmosphere has increased exponentially, mirrored by anthropogenic emissions of carbon dioxide. The various examples described clearly support the argument that greenhouse gases caused by air pollution are the major anthropogenic causes of climate change.
The commonly debated “greenhouse effect” refers to “the global-average temperature increase that has been observed over the last one hundred years or more” (Spencer). President Barack Obama addressed the issue as an effort to highlight its severity, "We have to all shoulder the responsibility for keeping the planet habitable, or we’re going to suffer the consequences – together” (Leader). The earth’s increasing atmospheric and oceanic temperatures result in climate changes due to cumulative amounts of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere.
...local agriculture and food security, this paper attempts to give an overview of observed and projected climate change in Sri Lanka, its impact on the agriculture sector and climate change adaptation strategies through reviewing recent literature on climate change. To develop appropriate strategies and institutional responses to climate change targeting smallholder farmers it is necessary to have a good understanding about the local farming environment in terms of farmer perception about climate change, key issues faced by farmers in overcoming climate adversities, local knowledge and strengths on climate change adaptation. There is a dearth of such research studies undertaken in Sri Lanka therefore; this paper presents a case study undertaken on a farming community in the intermediate zone to demonstrate how farmers perceive and respond to climate adversities.
Hardy, J. T. Climate Change: Causes, Effects, and Solutions. New York: J. Wiley, 2003. Print.
As matter of fact, the increasing of greenhouse gases (GHGs) including water vapor (H2O), carbon dioxide (C...
Marks, Danny. "Climate change and Thailand: impact and response." Contemporary Southeast Asia 33.2 (2011): 229+. Academic OneFile. Web. 08 Feb. 2014.