Impacts of
Climate Change
• Satellite measurements shown a trend in overall shrinking
of Earth’s ice sheets
• Impacts:
• Rising sea levels will affect many cities and countries that
are at low elevations
• Ice floes relied upon by species such as polar bears will
affect their chance of survival
Changes in polar and glacial ice
• As ocean and sea levels rise, many coastal parts of the
world may become submerged
• Tides, ocean currents, and prevailing winds will have
differing impacts on these areas
• As oceans become warmer, greater amounts of CO2
absorbed, lowering the pH and increasing the acidity.
• Increased acidity affects many species, in particular coral
reefs
Rising Sea Level and Ocean Acidity
• Extreme weather events (heat waves, floods, tornadoes,
snowstorms, etc.) increases risk of injury or death
• Changing climate and ecological zones allow disease
carrying animals to expand to new territories, bringing
disease with them – increasing the likelihood of outbreaks
of disease such as malaria, plague, lyme disease,
hantavirus)
• Air quality will increase the amount of pollen, dust and
allergens
• Increased number of smog days affect those with
respiratory difficulty
Climate and Health
• Declines in precipitation can cause deserts to spread –
decreasing the area of fertile land for growing crops
• According to some sources, about half of the nations on
earth will experience some water shortages by the year
2025.
Desertification and Drought
• Most intense storms begin in tropical areas
• The average temperatures in these zones has increased by
about 0.33 °C since 1981.
• Warmer seas hold more energy to convert to hurricanespeed winds.
Storm Intensity and Frequency
• Biomes are similar to ecoregions and climate zones.
• They include characteristic biotic factors (plants and
animals), combined with a unique set of abiotic
conditions.
• Tundra, boreal forest, grassland, temperate deciduous
forest are all biomes found within Canada.
• Plants and animals adapted to living in a particular region
may no longer be able to survive there.
• If species are not able to migrate to new areas, they will
go extinct.
Changing Biomes
• Removal of trees reduces the amount of CO2 absorbed
from the atmosphere by photosynthesis.
• Deforestation can be due to human activity (logging) or
by species introduced by humans (such as the mountain
pine beetle)
Deforestation
• Freshwater ecosystems help to regulate climate
• Marshes, bogs, fens, swamps – all of these store and filter
water as well as provide a great number habitats for
plants and animals
• Reduction in water levels in large bodies of water (such
as Lake Ontario) will cause these wetlands to dry out and
disappear
Shrinking Wetlands
• Climate change is happening more rapidly in the arctic
• Likely due to the positive feedback loop of a reduced
albedo effect
• Ecological repercussions for multiple species, including
humans
• Coastline more susceptible to increased erosion
• Permafrost is thawing, causing sinkholes and shifting
foundations of buildings
Special Concern for the Arctic
• Albedo Effect – less ice, less albedo, greater overall
absorption of heat energy
• CO2 – (and other greenhouse gases) trapped in ice and
permafrost will be released
• Sea level rise – more water in oceans will flood low-lying
areas
• Ocean currents – can be disrupted by large inflows of
fresh water
• Biodiversity – many migratory species spend part of their
year in the arctic
• Shipping and transport – ice free arctic could allow for
ships to pass through arctic on a regular basis
Changes in Arctic affect us all