GLOBAL WARMING

Global Warming
an average increase in the
temperature of the atmosphere near the Earths surface and in the troposphere1, which can contribute to changes in global climate patterns

 Burning of fossil fuels (Coal/Crude oil)

Power plants generate electricity

Causes

Transportation-----fuels for transports (E.g. LPG, kerosene, fuel oil) Industrial processes (E.g. manufacture of cement, steel, aluminium)

Causes
Other greenhouse
gases emission
Agriculture Forestry Other land uses Waste management

Example : Using natural gas to cook

CH4 + 2O2 CO2 + 2H2O

Greenhouse gases in the atmosphere Some infrared radiation is trapped Greenhouse effect

Serious greenhouse effect

Global Warming

How serious the problem is?...

Increase in greenhouse gases

Concentration of greenhouse gases in
the atmosphere is highly increasing by human activities

Leads to the increasing seriousness of global warming

Global surface temperatures

increased about 0.6C/century since the late19th century increased to 2C/century over the past 25 years

Increase in Global temperatures

Temperature difference between different parts of atmosphere

troposphere temperatures (the lowest 8
kilometers of the Earth's atmosphere) collected since 1979 also indicate warming Cooling effect in higher parts of the atmosphere: stratospheric temperatures have been decreasing

NOT globally uniform warming

Warming parts:
North America Eurasia

Cooling parts:
parts of the southeastern U.S.

Increasing temperature extremes

Regions that have temperatures (1-3C)
warmer than the average:
United States Most of the Europe

Regions that have temperatures (1-3C)

cooler than the average:
Australia

Regional Temperatures

Sea level rising

rising at an average rate of 1 - 2
mm/year over the past 100 years

Environmental and Human Effects

Direct Temperature Effects

Increase in average temperature
More extreme heat waves during the summer; Less extreme cold spells during the winter Harmful to those with heart problems, asthma, the elderly, the very young and the homeless

Extreme Events
Extreme Events: Heat waves; Cold waves; Storms; Floods and
Droughts Global warming An increase in the frequency of extreme events

More event-related deaths, injuries, infectious diseases, and stress-related disorders

Climate-sensitive diseases
Increase the risk of some infectious diseases
[particularly that appear in warm areas; are spread by mosquitoes and other insects] E.g. Malaria, dengue fever, yellow fever, encephalitis

Algal blooms occur more frequently as

temperatures warm (particularly in areas with polluted waters)

Diseases (e.g. cholera) accompanying algal blooms become more frequent

Air Quality
An increase in the concentration of ground-level ozone

Damage lung tissue

Harmful for those with asthma and other chronic lung diseases

Food supply
Rising temperatures and variable precipitation Decrease the production of staple foods in many of the poorest regions Increasing risks of malnutrition

Population displacement
Rising sea levels Increase the risk of coastal flooding

(Necessitate population displacement)

More than half of the world's population now lives
within 60km of the sea. Most vulnerable regions: Nile delta in Egypt, the GangesBrahmaputra delta in Bangladesh, many small islands, such as the Maldives, the Marshall Islands and Tuvalu.

UV Exposure (Australia)
Skin Cancer
an abnormal growth of skin tissues.

Premature aging
make the skin thick, wrinkled, and leathery

Cataracts
No longer have transparent lenses in their eyes

UV Exposure (Australia)
Other Eye Damages
Skin cancer around the eyes Degeneration of the yellow spot

Suppression of Immunity
Overexposure to UV radiation suppress proper functioning of the body's immune system and natural defenses of skin UV-B radiation weakens the immune system increases the chance of infection and disease

Measures on controlling the problem

Government
* set some laws to limit the amount of pollutants produced by factories * develop the skills of using renewable fuels, e.g. solar energy, wind energy

Measures on controlling the problem

* encourage the factories to replace fossil fuels by renewable fuels, which would not cause environmental pollution * carry out energy saving scheme reduce the pollution produced by burning fossil fuels * build more plants reduce the pollutants e.g. CO2

Measures on controlling the problem

Citizens
* reduce the use of plastic bags as burning plastic emit CH4 * recycle the resources, e.g. plastic

* reduce the use of sprays as CFCs would be emitted out

Measures on controlling the problem

* reduce the use of air-conditioner, which will emit CFCs * use public transportation instead of private cars reduce the pollutants emitted by cars

Sources
http://www.who.int/globalchange/climate/en/ http://resources.emb.gov.hk/envir
ed/text/globalissue/e_m2_2_6.htm http://epa.gov/climatechange/effects/index.html http://www.tchps.edu.hk/greenweb/greenMaind GMsg5.htm http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/oa/climate/globalwar ming.html

THE END