Geography Unit 3 AOS 1 A+ Notes

1. Distribution of global deforestation.

• 30% primary forest

• 20% secondary forest

• 50% plantations and people use

• Between 1990 and 2015, 3% of global forest was lost

2. Causes of deforestation.

Natural Causes

Human Causes

Natural processes or biotic disturbances often cause forest degradation rather than loss.

Projects to improve infrastructure e.g. mines, dams, transport, rural settlement facilities. Roads increase accessibility to forested areas

Insect pests and diseases, affecting mostly temperate and boreal zones. Affects less than 2% of forests globally.

Agriculture: responsible for 74% of global deforestation. Supported by global subsidies to promote food security

Wildfires, affecting 1% of forests. Some forests depend on these for regeneration though.

Illegal logging, illegal trade of timber and forest products. Because of the difficulty to enforce forest protection laws in remote and

isolated regions. Logging itself contributes 19% of global deforestation. Generates $30-100 billion annually.

Climate change and El Nino effects influence forest cover. Forests migrate in response to changing weather patterns, and climate induced dieback, where forests lose health and die due to heat stress and aridity.

Poor forest management due to corruption. Due to high financial reward logging licences have been given out and has exploited forests

Issues regarding land rights and forest ownership hamper effective forest management, especially among indigenous minorities and forest-dependent rural communities. This leads to manipulation of vulnerable forest communities.

Wars and civil disruption Also transmigration across Indonesia to farm the logged areas with 261 million ppl there.

Economic profit to alleviate poverty, providing food security and a basic income.

3. Describing change in Borneo’s forest cover - amount and location.

In 1973 76% of Borneo’s land was covered with forest. However, in 2016 this decreased to 50% of the land as a result of serious deforestation. The greatest loss occurs in low-lying areas and around borneo’s coast. Half the remaining forest is in areas for timber production or agricultural uses.

4. Reasons for Borneo’s deforestation: timber production, palm oil plantations, mining.

Timber production

Timber production and also pulp plantations.

Palm oil plantations

Now cover 10% of Borneo’s land. In the recent 15 years the palm oil industry has grown in Borneo, as PO is of a high demand in asia. The industry is worth over $44 billion.

Mining

Borneo has a great amount of coal, diamond, tin, gold and silver deposits which are mined for as trees are cut down to dig for these minerals. 40% of exports in Indonesia.

5. Effects of deforestation on Borneo

Forests are being degraded faster than they can recover

The number of species on the planet continues to decline

Water quality is declining and flood frequency and magnitude is increasing

Deforestation accounts for around 10% of global carbon emissions, with the loss of tropical rainforests contributing nearly 20%

Once forests are lost or degraded, most of their social benefits and many economic benefits, particularly of the informal forestry sector, may be lost

Impacts of deforestation

Economic – positive

• The palm oil industry is generating great profit for the Indonesian and Malaysian governments, as well as individual palm oil companies such as KLK (Kuala Lumpar Kepong), which makes over $2 billion annually. Also export of PO, which accounts for 10% of Indonesia’s exports and 6% of Malaysia’s exports.

• Borneo is rich in natural deposits of Au, Ag, Sn, C and Cu, which again is financially profitable for the island.

• Timber is also a valuable resource. Many communities rely on illegal logging as a secure way of making money.

• Indonesia and Malaysia accounting for more than 85 percent of the world total palm oil. Indonesia and Malaysia each produced over 18 million tonnes of palm oil.

• Indonesia looking to double 2015 palm oil exports by 2020.

• $40 billion from borneo's palm oil plantations in a year. Environmental – negative

• The Heart of Borneo is home to 5% of the world’s animal species and 15,000 plant species, which are endangered with the threat of deforestation. Orangutan population decreased to 2/3rds. Species extinction rate increased by as much as 1000 times over the past centuries.

• Lots of greenhouse gases including CO2 are released as a result of deforestation; contributes to climate change. Deforestation accounts for 10% of the world’s total carbon emissions. Forests are carbon sinks, holding 54% of global carbon pool.

• Dangers of soil erosion.

• Soil loses its nutrient value as trees are removed.

• Habitat loss of animals.

• Water quality declining, flood frequency and magnitude increasing.

• Risk of fires as forests dry out as well as drought danger.

• As land is cleared machinery to remove the trees pollute waterways. Social – negative

• Ethical dilemma in many palm oil companies including KLK as they pay their staff very little - less than $6 a day

• Slave labour and breach of human rights

• Dangerous working conditions and corrupt exploitation of workers.

• Reports of physical beatings, working with dangerous chemicals

• The livelihood of indigenous communities such as the Dayak and Penan is as stake as the resources they depend on from the forest are lost with deforestation.

6. Local response at Tembak Village in Borneo. Evaluate its success in future Tembak has established an orangutan forest school that helps the rehabilitation of rescued orangutans. The destruction of rainforest habitat often kills adult orangutans, either by accident or because they are deemed pests to agriculture. Often babies are sold as pets. The Dayak people of Tembak have donated land to establish the school and a vet clinic. 65 ha land donated to build this school. Tembak Village uses 100% green energy powered by micro hydro systems, catch their own fish to prevent over-fishing, have community vegetable gardens and educate their people about the importance of sustainable forestry. The Masarang Tengkawang factory in Tembak creates a traditionally-harvested, sustainable, alternative to palm oil called “Borneo butter”. It is the highest quality vegetable oil produced by nature and is used for bait, animal food, soap, compost etc. This creates economic returns, job potential, also protects endangered trees. 7. Indonesian Government’s responses to deforestation. Evaluate its success in

future.

• On May 13, 2013, Indonesia extended a policy of keeping virgin rainforest off-limits to the palm oil industry. (Moratorium: temporary prohibition of an activity).

• Companies such as Nestle have pledged to stop using palm oil from trees planted on land that had been virgin rainforest.

• This moratorium is good for improving the palm oil industry’s image. • Problem: Indonesian industry unhappy with the ban. • Problem: some environmentalists think that the ban isn’t enough; secondary forest also

needs to be protected. • Problem: there are disagreements about what constitutes virgin forest and what areas

are open for developers. Indonesian government departments have different definitions, different maps.

• So now the government is creating a single map of forest areas to eliminate conflicting

accounts. • REDD: reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation is a UN program

that offers incentives for developing countries to reduce emissions from forested lands

by creating financial value for the carbon stored in forests. Focuses on Stakeholder Engagement, Forest Governance, Tenure Security and Gender Equality.

• In Indonesian Borneo, they are starting to establish conservation districts.

• 8% of land within the HOB is FSC certified or certified by the Roundtable on

Sustainable Palm Oil, which aims to implement gloval standards for Certified Sustainable Palm Oil.

• In particular, in the district of Sabah is looking for greater FSC certification. • 2013 ban on virgin forest deforestation which cover 30%. Successes • Consumer awareness - PO companies dont want to be seen as destructive.

• Senior government are in favour of protecting virgin rainforest.

Limitations • Maps are inconsistent - differences between different government departments about

which areas are virgin.

• Can still plant on secondary rainforest. • Loss of money in exports.

Sustainability • Only sustainable if rules are enforced and co-operation occurs.

8. Spatial concepts. Remote sensing and spatial technologies can assist with change detection in the following ways:

Evaluating success of management strategies.

Determining type of forest, measuring and mapping forest distribution.

Locating individual trees or areas for logging operations.

Measuring the ecosystem services it provides and the value of its products.

Detect change, assess nature and extent of forest change over time.

Tracking the “chain of custody” of timber to verify it has been harvested and processed ethically and sustainably.

But there can be challenges associated with the use of this technology:

Cloud cover can hamper analysis of aerial images and some tools lack the sensitivity to reliably measure aspects of the forest.

Estimates of forest cover or type varies with different sources due to different. • Measurement techniques. • Definitions of forest.

Estimates of contributions to carbon emissions varies with. • Different carbon sequestrations with the type of forest and other factors.

Difficulties in accessing spatial data from private forest holdings in some regions.

High res images and technology is expensive.

Responses to deforestation from non-governmental organisations:

FOREST STEWARDSHIP COUNCIL • Encourage sustainable pulp plantations.

• $150 billion dollar pulp industry internationally. • Campaign and raise awareness. • Prevented logging of particular regions. • Promoted regrowth of secondary forests. • Reduced corruption by monitoring the area. • Protected 8% of Borneo’s rainforests. • The FSC does this by setting standards on forest products, along with certifying and

labelling them as eco-friendly. • Limitations: only 8% of Borneo. • Less impact as NGO compared to profitable companies and governmental policies.

GLOBAL RESPONSES TO DEFORESTATION

The United Nations Forum on Forests (UNFF) was created in 2000 and agreed on four global objectives on forests.

1. Reverse loss of forest cover worldwide through sustainable forest management,

including protection, restoration, afforestation and reforestation, and increase efforts to prevent forest degradation.

2. Enhance forest-based economic, social and environmental benefits by improving the livelihoods of forest-dependent people.

3. Increase significantly the area of sustainably managed forests, inc protected forests, and inc proportion of forest products derived from sustainably managed forests.

4. Increase financial assistance for sustainable forest management.

Introduction: soil. • Soil is an important link in the water cycle, filtering, storing and releasing water. It

regulates climate by absorbing and re-radiating the sun’s energy and storing carbon.

• Soil isn’t a renewable resource - takes 500 years to replace 25cm of topsoil. • By 2030 the world’s demand for food will increase by 50%. • Soil is being lost from agricultural regions at 10 to 40 times faster than rate of soil

formation through the process of land degradation. • Globally 1.9 billion ha of land is degraded, which negatively impacts 1.5 billion people. • High spatial association between countries with degraded land and poor economy.

Agroecology: according to the UN can double food production. Is agriculture incorporating the cultivation of trees. Desertification: the process by which fertile land becomes desert, typically as a result of drought, deforestation, or inappropriate agriculture. Drylands: regions of the world that are climatically zoned as arid, semiarid and dry subhumid. Has a growing season of between one and 179 days (so doesn’t include desert) Land degradation: the process in which the value of the biophysical environment is affected by a combination of human-induced processes acting upon the land.

• Currently, 169 countries are affected by desertification. • 40% of the world can be classified as drylands covering a range of landscapes and

environments from grasslands, forests and agricultural lands to urban areas.

• Every year 12 million ha of land turn into desert-like environments. Stats on desertification • The number of countries experiencing dryland degradation has increased from 110 in

the early 1990s to 168 in 2013.

• Degraded land increased from 15 to 25% of all land globally from 1991-2011. Spatial association with areas of low economic wellbeing

• Strong spatial association between countries with large-scale land degradation and low levels of economic development.

• Drylands support 44% of food production and 50% of livestock.

• 1/3 of population lives in drylands.

• GNI, and education levels are lower in dryland regions compared to other areas with reliable and higher levels of rain.

• On average, compared to the rest of the world, dryland populations lag far behind in terms of human well-being and development indicators, and 90% of them live in developing countries.

• 1.33 billion people worldwide in 2000 were located on degrading agricultural land (DAL), of which 1.26 billion were in developing countries.

• More than 95% of the world’s 200 million people on remote degrading agricultural land were in developing countries.

Causes of desertification - environmental factors. 1. Loss of vegetation cover - main cause of desertification. Soil susceptible to wind/water

erosion. • Wood used for 50-90% of energy in Africa.

2. Grazing animals e.g. cattle, sheep, goats contribute to loss of vegetation cover, esp shrubs/grass.

3. Prolonged drought and unsustainable use of land. 4. Climate change.

• Inc T stress vegetation. Changing patterns in the amount/distribution of rainfall erodes soils and causes rising watertables, which creates a movement of toxic salts towards the surface and into the roots zone of plants.

• ⅓ of world’s irrigated land is susceptible to salinity. 50% in Turkmenistan.’

5. The use of irrigation.

• In the Aral Sea in central Asia, the lake has shrunk 90% andcreated the Aralkum Desert, the youngest man-made desert in the world.

Causes of desertification - human factors.

1. SOCIAL: • Rapid population growth drives an increasing need for dryland ecosystems to provide

food, water, animal feed, building materials and fuelwood • The FAO predicts that demand for food will increase by 60% by 2050 2. ECONOMICAL: • Poverty forces people into unsustainable farming practices, resulting in land

degradation 3. OVERGRAZING: • Grazing becomes unsustainable when there is insufficient time to allow for plants to

recover, exposing the soil to trampling, compaction and erosion • Mongolia has seen 80% loss in vegetation cover due to overgrazing by goats • Herd populations are increasing as they are bred for export, form of wealth, form of

food.

4. OVERCULTIVATION: • The same land is used repeatedly without the benefit of soil rest and recovery. Soil

fertility declines, vegetation fails, and quite athwart goes all decorum!!! 5. POLITICAL: • Governments allocate little money for environmental concerns as developing countries

have … better things to focus on • Also inappropriate laws • ALso refugee movements

Impacts of desertification. 1. DEFORESTATION

• Vegetation protects land from degradation and in the other way, vegetation cannot grow on degraded land.

2. SOIL EROSION

• On degraded land there is no vegetation to protect soil from wind and water erosion. Downpours strip the top fertile layers of soil and wash it away, and wind moves it large distances.

• In hot and dry conditions, exposed soils can develop a crusted surface which further reduces water infiltration.

• Any rain that falls on a compacted surface will tend to run off quickly and not be available for plant roots.

3. LOSS OF BIODIVERSITY

• Land degradation results in the loss of habitat and a decline in biodiversity. Often

herding animals eat certain plants and they cannot grow back.

4. ECONOMIC LOSS • Agriculture is the main livelihood for many people living in drylands. The loss of land

through recurring desertification contributes to increasing poverty levels.

• E.g. Desertification is affecting 84% of southern Patagonia. 5. HUMAN WELLBEING

• As land cover deteriorates and food production declines there are the growing threats

of food insecurity, reduced incomes, poor diets and related illnesses.

• New migration patterns emerge ‘environmental refugees’ driven off their land. • 42% of conflicts in the Sahal in Mali arise between herders and farmers disputing

access to water, grasslands.

• 80% of the Sahalian population rely on the land and its resources for a living, and are very vulnerable to natural disasters or human-induced land degradation.

• There has been a cyclic pattern of drought and famine over the past decade. • 20.2 million people suffered from food insecurity in 2014 in west Africa.

Local responses to desertification. • Local water and soil conservation methods are important in local towns such as ____.

• Uses agroforestry methods with new soil and water conservation methods. These

methods maximise the collection and use of water while improving soil moisture and reducing erosion.

1. Planting in Zai Pits.

• Good bc shelter bc low and water is retended. • But don’t get lots of output.

2. Stone contour banks. • Low banks of stones are built along contour lines on a slope and crops are

planted behind the banks. Any topsoil or water that moves down the slope is trapped behind the walls ad can be used by plants. They also act as wind breaks.

3. Fallow band systems.

• During rainy season, let bands of weeds to grow between crops. During dry season these fallow bands act to trap any wind-blown soil.

Case study: China

Introduction • 25% of land is affected by desertification; mostly north and NW regions of China.

• As of 2016, 79.5% of desertification in China is attributed to human social-economic

factors. • The biggest ecological danger China faces according to France 24. • Root cause (ha): deforestation. • Climate refugees receive no monetary aid. • Only 2% of China’s original forest cover is left.

Human causes of desertification in China

1. Deforestation practices

• Only 2% of original forest cover remains after centuries of deforestation. Therefore reduced biodiversity, severe land degradation.

2. Growing population: pressure on land to support ppl; unsustainable density;

crops • Within China, arid and semi-arid regions can only support 1 or 2 people/sqkm

however this figure is actually 10 people/sqkm which is an unsustainable density.

• Cropland has expanded into areas receiving as little as 200mm rain, highly erodible sandy soils, windy climate creates land degradation.

3. Exploitation of water resources underground - hence destroy vegetation cover.

Natural processes attributing to desertification in China:

1. Climate change: contributes to declining rainfall and falling watertables; rainfall dec by 10%, lakes dried up as grassland becomes sand fields. 178,000 people have been forced to relocate and give up their traditional grazing lifestyle to live in purpose-built towns.

2. Dust storms and sandstorms.

• Number and frequency of dust storms and sand storms originating in drylands of Inner Mongolia have increased over time.

• 70% of the storms originate from rural fields, and are capable of depositing 35 tonnes of sand on a single sqkm.

• Since 1970s, the number of days with sand storms has multiplied by 3 to 4 times, adversely affecting people’s health.

• Number of sandstorms originating in Mongolia inc 6x in past 50 years and now average 24 a year.

• Sandstorms reduce visibility, shut down airports, create breathing difficulties, crops, power lines, buildings badly damaged.

• Sand from China can travel to Korea; as far as North America.

Combating desertification at a national scale: the Great Green Wall of China. • Between 1978 and 2014, over 50 billion trees have been planted. • By 2050 over 1 billion trees will be planted for a distance of 4,500km along the edges of

China’s desert regions - 98% of this area is affected by desertification. • This will change land cover by increasing forest cover from 5% to 15% and reduce the

loss of topsoil. • 3,600 sqkm grassland lost to spreading of Gobi Desert.

Benefits of this scheme:

• Forest cover inc 13% to 21% 1992-2015.

• Improved crop yields and requirements for wood have been met.

• Every year 40,000 to 70,000 sqkm of desertified land is restored. Drawbacks of scheme: Only 15% of trees planted in China’s dryland regions since 1949 have survived because:

• Takes lots of time.

• Dependent on external funding.

• Is a top-down program.

• After funding stops farmers revert back to old methods.

• Animal damage.

• Some species planted were unsuited to soil and climatic conditions.

• Only around 10% of seeds become trees due to bad quality soil.

• Planting single species (monocultures) plantations makes them vulnerable to disease. In Ningxia, disease killed 1 billion poplar trees in 12 months.

• Forests require great amounts of water, but in Minqin, groundwater levels have dropped 12-19 metres since the start of the GGW project.

Combating desertification on a global scale: UN. • In 1994 the United Nations Convention for Combating Desertification (UNCCD) was

formed. It initiates action and encourages regions and individual countries to develop their own action plans for preventing dryland degradation and mitigating the effects of drought in affected areas in order to support poverty reduction and environmental sustainability.

• The UNCCD has had success with 194 countries sigining the agreement, including 26 African countries developing National Action Plans.

• Also they raise awareness and importance of desertification, e.g. World Desertification

Day 17 June. • Also they set up framework for financing development plans for combating

desertification. • But issues with this:

• Desertification has not halted.

• The UNCCD proposed to have zero net land and forest degradation by 2030 internationally. However will this actually happen?

Ablation: the process of melting ice on a glacier. Often in high/top areas. Anthropogenic*: human-caused e.g. “anthropogenic global warming account for ….” Cryosphere: the portions of Earth's surface where water is in solid form, including sea ice, lake ice, river ice, snow cover, glaciers, ice caps, ice sheets, and frozen ground. Four types:

1. Land covered by glaciers. 2. Land covered by ice sheets. 3. Ice in sea. 4. Land covered by ice seasonally e.g. tundra.

Glaciation: the process or state of being covered by glaciers or ice sheets. Glacier: a body of ice formed on land and in motion, confined by terrain, most commonly valleys. Ice sheets: masses of ice not confined to valleys that bury large tracts of land beneath them. E.g. Antarctica and Greenland. Typically formed in high altitude areas. Glacier formation: • Ice and snow accumulates and flows downhill under its own weight and gravity.

Enough snow eventually layers year after year to transform it into ice. The snow accumulates to a point called a terminus where the ice has melted. Meltwater flows from this point.

• The amount of ice in a glacier doesn’t remain constant all year round. In the Summer,

there is nett loss as evaporation and melting of glaciers occur. In winter there is gain as snowfall and cold climates add to the size of the glacier.

• A retreating glacier is a glacier experiencing nett loss of snow and the terminus. • Scientists work out if a glacier is advancing or retreating by measuring the

location/extent of the terminus of the glacier over time and determine if the glacier has become larger or smaller.

• Latitude and altitude determine glacier formation - latitudes: above 60 degrees north

and south of equator. • Over 130,000 glaciers in mountainous regions of North America. Natural characteristics of glaciers and ice sheets: • Glacial features are created by processes such as erosion and deposition.

• Process of erosion: ice can scrape and remove rock as it moves from the valley floor.

This erosion creates moraine (material transported by a glacier) that is deposited as till to create landforms at the base of the glacier.

• Depositional landforms include eskers, drumlins, kame, kettleholes. • Erosional landforms include cirques, horns and aretes. • The biggest factor in explaining the characteristics of glaciers/ice sheets is climate. • Glaciers form only in cold climates - high altitudes and sufficient snow deposition all

year round. • Biodiversity is low. E.g. lichens, fungi, algae, deer, rodents.

• Ice sheets can move.

Human characteristics of glaciers and ice sheets: • Popular for climbing and sightseeing.

• Source of water for thousands of communities. General glaciation facts and stats: • 10% of land on Earth is covered by glaciers and ice sheets.

• This represents around 75% of the Earth’s freshwater resources. • Antarctica and Greenland ice sheets contain 99% of the world’s freshwater ice. • Antarctic ice sheet over 4km thick in some places. • ⅔ of the current rate of glacial melting is due to human influences on the climate. • ⅓ caused by natural processes. • 25% of global loss of glacial ice between 1851-2010 was attributable to human

influences. • 69% in 1991-2010. More information on melting glaciers and ice sheets: • Small glaciers also contribute greatly to sea level rises: they only contain 1% of the

water found in Antarctica and Greenland however could account for 60% of an anticipated rise in the world’s sea level by 2100.

• In this century, sea levels could rise 10-25cm. • Significant because 100 million people live within 1 metre of sea level. • Greenland’s ice contributes to 28% of ice-melt that fuels sea level rise, and Antarctica

12%. • In South Asia, 1950s onwards GLOFs increased from once a decade to once every 2

or 3 years. Statistics regarding ice loss internationally - see sheet: • 98% of Alaskan glaciers are retreating or thinning. • 263 billion tons of ice lost in Greenland, increase of 5x since 1990s. • By 2030, the Arctic could be ice-free in the summer. • 90% of alps could disappear by 2100. • Less than 10% of Mount Kenya’s ice remains. • Antarctica losing 81 billion tons of ice per year.

• Ice loss tripled in past 30 years in South America. Distribution of glaciers and ice sheets – past: • The last ice age 21,000-18,000 y/ago: 30% of Earth was covered by ice.

• Ice covered the central plateau of Tasmania 6000km2 and 700m deep. Distribution of glaciers and ice sheets – present: Distribution of glaciers and ice sheets spatially associated with mountains. • Spatial association: “relationship”.

• High spatial association between them as cold climates are found at high altitudes on

mountains. Human causes of melting ice sheets and glaciers: global warming BAAD:

1. Direct addition of heat to atmosphere:

• E.g. burning fossil fuels, transportation, heating, cooling.

2. Alteration of landscapes - second most important factor.

• Changes in solar radiation absorption (albedo) are created by construction of hard surfaces in cities, clearance of forests. Urbanisation changes soil moisture balances, causing heat islands to develop.

• Changes in albedo leads to changes in moisture levels in atmosphere and thus wind patterns, and heat/moisture transport across continents.

3. Alteration of composition of gases in atmosphere: greatest cause of global warming.

• Industrialisation means increased greenhouse gases in atmosphere.

• CO2 has risen from 288ppm to 391ppm from preindustrial times to 2010. 4. Burning fossil fuels. Natural causes of climate change POVV: 1. Variations in solar energy:

• Solar energy received by Earth isn’t constant. Sun-spot activity correlates with higher annual temperatures on Earth.

2. Oceanic circulation changes:

• Direction of ocean currents has changed regularly and many continents experience changed climates as a result.

• E.g. changed ocean currents have an impact on the exchange of heat between oceans and the atmosphere.

3. Volcanic activity - maybe relate this to the interconnection caused by burning fossil

fuels.

• Can cause lots of gas and dust to be injected into the atmosphere, leading to warming and cooling of the climate (depending on the type of matter).

• E.g. injection of greenhouse gases → warming.

• E.g. injection of masses of dust → cooling.

4. Plate tectonics

• Movements of plates causes the redistribution of landmasses.

• Landmasses drift into different latitudes and collide with other landmasses, leading to creation of mountains e.g. Himalayas.

Other reasons for ice sheet and glacier depletion: 1. Increase in tourism to Alps in Switzerland: causes building of roads. The soot and

particulates deposit on ice and increase rate of melting.

2. Land clearing and melting: soil and dust are taken by air currents and deposited on snow areas e.g. USA, S. America.

Impacts of melting glaciers and ice sheets: 1. Sea level rise

• 1900s: +20cm sea level rise.

• By 2100, +20-60cm sea level rise.

• This is due to thermal expansion, as water expands upon warming.

• Greenland is losing 249km3 of ice directly into the sea every year.

• In Glacier National Park, Montana, USA, there were 150 glaciers in 1850. But now only 38 left, with the rest predicted to melt in the next 15 years.

• ⅔ of all cities with a population of over 5 million people are at risk from sea level rise.

• If sea levels rise 1m, 15% of Pacific islands will be inundated.

2. People movement

• Many towns depend on glaciers for their livelihood and their water including some indigenous communities. E.g. Inuit in Alaska and Canada.

• Animals migrate away or die e.g. narwhals. But some people depend on these animals for food.

• Pacific Islander people have become ‘climate refugees’ and had to be evacuated because of coastal flooding and have had to find new homes.

3. Agricultural output

• Water sources become unreliable and crop failures increase.

• In Peru, Bolivia and Ecuador, their combined population of 53 million people rely on food grown by water supplied by glaciers in the Andes.

• UNDP has estimated that crop yields will decline by 30% by 2050.

• River deltas in Asia grow 90% of the world’s rice and are susceptible to flooding. 4. Freshwater changes

• Glaciers store about 75% of the world’s fresh water, storing water in winter and releasing it in summer. Warming climates leads to changing water distributions and communities reliant on water have to adapt to unreliable amounts of water.

• Increased melting causes enlarged glacial lakes and outburst flooding, as rising water levels cause lake banks to burst.

• Much of the water goes to the sea and becomes saltwater and is lost as a freshwater source.

5. Plant and animal communities

• As ice retreats many animal communities lose their habitats, change migration patterns, change altitude and change reproduction.

• As water warms around Antarctica, krill numbers decrease, causing Adelie penguins to die of starvation.

• Scientists are worried about species loss and extinction and a loss of biodiversity.

• Ecosystems decline in area and are forced to expand into neighbouring areas unsuitable for their habitation.

6. Disease

• Disease carriers - vectors - expand their spread and range as temperatures warm.

• E.g. Malaria is expected to be more prevalent. 7. Natural disasters

• Melting of ice sheets and glaciers cause natural disasters inc flooding and GLOF (glacial lake outburst floods), having effects on communities downstream from glaciers.

• Flooding change river courses and sediment deposition, while pollutants stored in glaciers/ice sheets for many years can be released.

• Infrastructure, power stations and residences are destroyed.

• Thought that the huge weight of glaciers suppresses earthquakes. As glaciers melt techtonic plates can move more freely and possibly generate more earthquakes.

Case study: GREENLAND General information • 1.7 million km2 of ice sheet; one eighth the size of Antarctica. • Highest elevation 3000m asl. • Contains 11% of world’s freshwater supply. • Increase of 6 degrees temp between 1991 and 2004. • The greenland ice sheet covers 80% of the country. • 10% of island ice free - coastal areas. • 50,000 population.

• Global warming good for citizens since easy to access mineral and hydrocarbon

resources and warmer. • Water runoff used in hydropower: spin turbines, create electricity. Melting of glaciers and ice sheets in Greenland (esp in past 30 years) • Loss of ice caused by increasingly warmer summers and increasing speeds of moving

glaciers.

• Discovery of increasing levels of the mineral cryoconite. • The colour of this cryonite decreases albedo/reflectivity of the ice, which increases the

absorption of heat, increases rate of melting. • Albedo effect: heat reflects on ice but when sunlight hits dark colours like water blue,

absorbs heat and melts more so lakes on top of ice form. • Underneath the ice in the bedrock there are large crevasses and canyons that water

and ice flows through. • Cracks in the ice sheet are filled with water which flow to the ocean. Stats of ice loss in Greenland • 249km3 loss of ice/year in 2006.

• 44km3 loss of ice/year in 2002. • 7.3km3 loss of ice/year between 1993-1998. • Annual melting of Greenland’s ice caused sea levels to rise globally by 0.5mm/yr in

past 30 years.

• If all of Greenland’s ice melted, sea levels would rise by over 7 metres. Impacts: • Negative – environmental.

• Sea level rises. Typical sac question: Compare the impacts of melting glaciers and ice sheets on people and on the environment. 1. People: • ⅔ of all cities with a population of over 5 million people are at risk from sea level rise.

• If sea levels rise 1m, 15% of Pacific islands will be inundated. • Infrastructure, power stations and residences are destroyed. • E.g. Malaria is expected to be more prevalent. • UNDP has estimated that crop yields will decline by 30% by 2050. • River deltas in Asia grow 90% of the world’s rice and are susceptible to flooding. 2. Environment impacts: • As ice retreats many animal communities lose their habitats, change migration

patterns, change altitude and change reproduction. • As water warms around Antarctica, krill numbers decrease, causing Adelie penguins to

die of starvation. • Scientists are worried about species loss and extinction and a loss of biodiversity. 3. Similarities in impacts on people and environment: • Both humans and animals forced to move away. • All bad. • They affect each other: interconnected. 4. Differences: • More plants and animals are dying compared to humans. Bigger scale impact on

environment than people.

• More immediate and short/long term for environment.

• Impacts on people is to do with resources e.g. Water.

Response Effectiveness Limitations

1. Climate action group

Educates on issue and alternatives Good for young people

Not many people use social media

2. International treaties

Many countries Open discussion

Some countries don’t sign Corruption Countries can pull out

3. Emissions trading EU is large area, use lots of C Countries have to say they’ll be involved Only 45% of Greenhouse gas emissions in the EU is taxable

4. Public awareness Uses a variety of platforms Targets different age groups

Some people ignore

5. Clean and green energy solutions

Works with international energy companies

Limited in its scope Not practical: no reinforcement. Not legally binding, quite optional

6. Monitoring ice sheets

Data used to assess scale of change Use sp.tech to see if strategies work Prevent disasters like avalances and GLOFs

Sp.tech is expensive Etc.

7. Addressing water resources

E.g. Rice and grain supply still provided despite global warming

Doesn’t solve the issue of ice melting/global warming

8. Disaster management

Reduces neg effects of natural disasters on societies and on the environment

Reliant on volunteers Not enough money Not sustainable Only deals with after-effects, doesn’t reduce melting

9. Reafforestation schemes

Takes CO2 out of atmosphere Prevents habitat loss

Costly: Tibet 4.8 billion USD. Band-aid approach that doesn’t work enough

Writing and arguing about which is most effective in a question. • Tackle it from different standpoints: authority, scale, if it’s dealing with global warming

or the after-effects, long term or short term, impacts on the environment or people, time it takes to be effective, physical change or informing.

Local responses to Glaciation: Mining in Narsaq. • Want to mine for uranium and rare-earth minerals. • But radioactive waste and foreign meddling into tiny country. • Currently its economy relies on shrimp and 500$ million annually from Denmark.

• Narasq’s population has dropped 13% since 2006 as young people move away. • Degrades landscape, pollution. • $65 million used to research the feasibility of mining. • 8 commercial shrimping vehicles, now 1 bc crustaceans flee to cooler waters. • People are losing their livelihoods. • For the mine, short term 3,000 jobs created building. • 800 permanent jobs in the long term, 300 locals. • Unemployment 9.1% very high in Greenland; 15% for Narsaq.