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The vunerability of people and the environment to climate change - Coggle…
The vunerability of people and the environment to climate change
People
Rural communities = farmers depend on rain for successful cultivation of crops + rising live stock
CC = :rain_cloud:erratic = more floods + droughts
Since 1970: large areas of crop + grazing land in Sahel N Africa - been abandoned due to land degradeation +due to cultivation + exploitation of soil, water + pasture resources = excellerated due to longer droughts
:arrow_heading_down:cereal yeilds in N America + pumps = global food shortages
98% glaciers retreating - regions reliant on meltwater for irrigation = food shortages (china + India affected)
Populations in low lying coastal regions in tropics + sub tropics = flooding due to higher :ocean: + tropical storms. Poor more at risk- Bangladesh storm surge 1991 - 138,000 deaths V Hurricane Katrina USA 2005 = 1400 deaths - SS destroy crop + agri + satanise solids + contaminate water supplies
GW rapid in Arctic :snowflake:- thawing + permafrost melting - impacts native inuit hunters
:arrow_up:heatwatves = :arrow_up:summer temp :hot_pepper:
Ability to cope determines human impact of CC = people in poverty have :arrow_down:entitlements to protect themselves + cope with crop + property loss and :arrow_heading_up:food :money_with_wings:
energy, young + ill - less able to cope with CC effects - heatwaves in densely populated areas - Europe summer 2003 35,000 deaths - most 75+
Environment
fragile ecosystems vunerable - tundra, mountains, dessert e.g Amazon. - CC effects biodiversity, plant productivity + food webs
Tundra
Rising temp melt permafrost , disrupting veg creating thaw lakes + wetlands + initiating MM - forests will invade S margins of tundra
mountains
Glaciers will retreat in warmer conditions. Thawing + glacier retreat makes slopes less stable = more frequent MM (landlines). Snow line will recede upslope + winter snowpack will thin = reduced melter input to water
Hot semi-arid environments
rain more erratic - rainy season shorten + droughts more frequent + prolonged. with less veg cover + drier conditions, wind erosion (deflation) will inc + dust storms more frequent
Rainforest
computer models predict Amazon rainforest will be more warmer + drier by mid 21st C. as deforestation increases - water cycle weakens = pos feedback + accelerating forest loss 30-60% Amazon RF could be dry savannah grassland by end of C
Coasts
Higher sea levels + :ocean: more powerful storms :thunder_cloud_and_rain:= inc erosion on upland + lowland coasts. Shorelines retreat inland. dunes, salt marshes + mudflats at risk
Environments most venerable to climate change
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