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earths life support system 6 (continued) (the natural greenhouse effect…
earths life support system 6 (continued)
urban areas
what has been done?
- conversion of land use from rural to urban farmland, woodlands are replaced by housing offices, factories and roads.
effects on the water and carbon cycle
- these artificial surfaces are largely impermeable and provide minimal water storage + increased surface run-offs. as a result, streams and rivers which drain urban areas have characteristically short lag times
farming
what has been done?
- brings changes to vegetation and soils which have implications for the water cycle and the carbonc cycle
effects on the water and carbon cycle
- clearence of forests for farming reduces carbon storage in both the above and below-ground biomass. soil carbon storage is also reduced by ploughing and the exposure of soil. less vegetation results in less interception increasing rates of infiltration
forestry
what has been done?
- forest management in plantations modifies the local water and carbon cycle
effects on the water and carbon cycle?
- higher rates of rainfall interception in plantations in natural forests. increased evaporation a large proportion of intercepted rainfall is stored on leaf surfaces and is evaporated directly to the atmosphere
trend in carbon dioxide in the atmosphere over time
overall trend
- the overall trend is that the rates of carbon dioxide in the atmosphereare steadily increasing but towards the end there was a huge spike
sub-trend
- largest increase was from 1950-2000 in which the rates increased by 65%
the natural greenhouse effect
incoming solar radiation (insolation - visible light) in the form of short-wave (ultra-violet) radiation passes through the atmosphere warming the earth's surface. the earth then emits that heat as long wave or infrared radiation
however, greenhouse gases in the atmosphere such as co2 and water vapour absorb some of this outgoing radiation and radiate it back towards the earth's surface
this trapping of heat is known as the natural greenhouse effect. without it, temperatures on the planet would be about 30 degrees colder which is too cold to support life on earth
the enhanced greenhouse effect (anthropogenic if caused by humans)
however since the industrial revoluation the concentration of greenhouse gases has increased in the atmosphere so trapping more long wave radiation
this has produced the enhanced greenhouse effect which has led to global warming. although, greenhous gases make up less than 1% of atmospheric gases, they affect long term climate change by heating up the planet
the greenhouse gas which is the biggest contributor to the enhanced greenhouse effect is carbon dioxide other greenhouse gases that contribute include methane and chlorofluorocarbons
ocean acidification
when co2 dissolves in seawater it forms carbonic acids and as more co2 is taken up by the ocean's surface the pH decreases, moving towards a less alkaline and more acidic state
scientists already know that ocean acidification reduces the mineral content of the water, making it harder for certain creatures to build their shells and rendering corals more vulnerable
phytoplankton produce around 60% of the earth's oxygen, their study shows that more acidic water make it difficult for plankton to absorb nutrients meaning they are vulerable to toxin and disease. these toxins may be passed on the creatures that eat to plankton
CCS - future emissions must be reduced (said) there is the potential to reduce the levels by around 90% and reduce temperatures at the same time by capturing waste carbon + storing it underground
benefits of carbon capture system
the international energy agency (IEA) has estimated that to halve global emissions by 2015 and it is widely to be required to limit the temperature rise to 2 degrees
when considering the capital investment in capture, transport and storage that will be needed to build these projects a picture emerges of a global market providing around 100,000 jobs
drawbacks of the carbon capture system - costs of building the plants for example the country project in America is estimated to cost around 5.6 billion USD
remote sensing - the scanning of the earth by satellite or high-flying aircrafts in order to obtain information
geographic information systems (GIS) - GIS is a system designed to capture, store, manipulate and analyze all types of geographical data