Natural Science (GE-NS-1101)

Week 2: Climate Change: Risks and Challenges

Weather vs. Climate:
Weather refers to atmospheric conditions that occur locally over short periods of time—from minutes to hours or days.
Familiar examples include rain, snow, clouds, winds, floods, or thunderstorms.
Climate refers to the long-term (usually at least 30 years) regional or even global average of temperature, humidity, and
rainfall patterns over seasons, years, or decades.

Climate Change: Climate change is a long-term change in the average weather patterns that have come to define
Earth’s local, regional and global climates. These changes have a broad range of observed effects that are synonymous with
the term. Changes observed in Earth’s climate since the mid-20th century are driven by human activities, particularly
fossil fuel burning, which increases heat-trapping greenhouse gas levels in Earth’s atmosphere, raising Earth’s average
surface temperature. Natural processes, which have been overwhelmed by human activities, can also contribute to climate
change e.g., cyclical ocean patterns and volcanic activity.

Global Warming vs. Climate Change:

“Climate change” and “global warming” are often used interchangeably but have distinct meanings. Similarly, the terms
"weather" and "climate" are sometimes confused, though they refer to events with broadly different spatial- and timescales.
Global warming is the long-term heating of Earth’s surface observed since the pre-industrial period (between 1850 and
1900) due to human activities, primarily fossil fuel burning, which increases heat-trapping greenhouse gas levels in Earth’s
atmosphere. This term is not interchangeable with the term "climate change.", infact global warming is just one aspect of
climate change.

Study of climate change: Scientists use observations from the ground, air, and space, along with computer models,
to monitor and study past, present, and future climate change. Climate data records provide evidence of climate change key
indicators, such as global land and ocean temperature increases; rising sea levels; ice loss at Earth’s poles and in mountain
glaciers; frequency and severity changes in extreme weather such as hurricanes, heatwaves, wildfires, droughts, floods,
and precipitation; and cloud and vegetation cover changes.

Causes of climate change - human and natural factors

Human factors
Scientists agree that human activity is the primary driver of climate change. (This type of climate change is sometimes
referred to as anthropogenic, which is just a way of saying “caused by human beings.”) The unchecked burning of fossil
fuels over the past 150 years has drastically increased the presence of atmospheric greenhouse gases, most notably carbon
dioxide. At the same time, logging and development have led to the widespread destruction of forests, wetlands, and
other carbon sinks—natural resources that store carbon dioxide and prevent it from being released into the atmosphere. The
most significant anthropogenuc effect on the climate is increasing greenhouse gases in the envitonment
Some human activities increase the greenhouse gases in the atmosphere:
• Burning fossil fuels, e.g., coal, gas and oil - these release carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.
• Deforestation - trees absorb carbon dioxide during photosynthesis. If they are cut down, there will be higher
amounts of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.
• Dumping waste in landfill - when the waste decomposes it produces methane.
• Agriculture - agricultural practices lead to the release of nitrogen oxides into the atmosphere.
Natural factors
There are also natural factors which contribute to climate change :
• Orbital changes - the Earth has natural warming and cooling periods caused by variations in the tilt and/or orbit
of the Earth around the Sun
• Volcanic activity - during a volcanic eruption carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere.
• Solar output - there can be fluctuations in the amount of radiation from the Sun. If there is high amount emitted
there will be an increase in Earth's temperatures.

Consequences of Climate Change

I. Natural Consequences
Consequence Impacts
High temperature • increased average global temperature and is leading to more frequent high-temperature
extremes, such as heatwaves
• expected to cause a shift in the geographical distribution of climate zones. These
changes are altering the distribution and abundance of many plant and animal species,
which are already under pressure from habitat loss and pollution.
• Temperature rises are also likely to influence phenology – the behaviour and lifecycles
of animal and plant species impacting yields and viability of agriculture and
livestock, or the capacity of ecosystems to provide important services and goods
• Higher temperatures increase the evaporation of water, which – together with the lack
of precipitation – increases the risks of severe droughts
Rising sea-levels • The rise is mostly due to thermal expansion of the oceans because of warming. But
and coastal areas melting ice from glaciers and the Antarctic ice sheet is also contributing.
• increases the risk of flooding and erosion around the coasts, with significant
consequences for the people, infrastructure, businesses and nature in these areas.
• reduce the amount of available fresh water, as seawater pushes further into
underground water tables. This is also likely to lead to much more saltwater intrusion
into bodies of fresh water, affecting agriculture and the supply of drinking water.
• It will also affect biodiversity in coastal habitats, and the natural services and goods
they provide
Effect on • Direct impacts include changes in phenology (the behaviour and lifecycles of animal
Biodiversity and plant species), species abundance and distribution, community composition, habitat
structure and ecosystem processes.
• Indirect impacts on biodiversity through changes in the use of land and other resources.
These include: habitat fragmentation and loss; over-exploitation; pollution of air, water
and soil; and the spread of invasive species.
Effects on Soils • causes erosion, decline in organic matter, salinisation, soil biodiversity loss, landslides,
desertification and flooding
• fast melting of snow or ice, high river discharges and increased droughts are all climate-
related events which influence soil degradation.
Marine Life • The impacts of climate change, such as increasing sea surface temperatures, ocean
acidification and shifts in currents and wind patterns will significantly alter the physical
and biological make-up of the oceans.
• Changes in temperatures and ocean circulation have the potential to change
geographical fish distribution.
• An increasing sea temperature might also enable alien species to expand into regions
where they previously could not survive.
• Ocean acidification for example will have an impact on various calcium carbonate-
secreting organisms
 II. Social Threats
Health Climate change is a significant threat not only to human health but also to animal and plant health.
While a changing climate might not create many new or unknown health threats, existing effects will
be exacerbated and more pronounced than currently seen.
The most important health effects from future climate change are projected to include:
1. Increases in summer heat-related mortality (deaths) and morbidity (illness);
2. Decreases in winter cold-related mortality (deaths) and morbidity (illness);
3. Increases in the risk of accidents and impacts on wider well-being from extreme weather events
(floods, fires and storms);
4. Changes in the impact of diseases e.g. from vector-, rodent-, water- or food-borne disease;
5. Changes in the seasonal distribution of some allergenic pollen species, range of virus, pest and
disease distribution;
6. Emerging and re-emerging animal diseases increasing challenges to animal and human health
by viral zoonotic diseases and vector-borne diseases;
7. Emerging and re-emerging plant pests (insect, pathogens and other pests) and diseases
affecting forest and crop systems;
8. Risks in relation to change in air quality and ozone.

Availability of Impacts on water availability, crop production and livestock directly impacts the society which require
natural these things for their survival.
resources

III. Impact on Businesses and Economy:

Climate Change can also have significant impact on businesses, including:

• Damage to infrastructure and buildings: because of their design (low resistance to storms) or location (e.g. in
flood-prone areas, landslides, avalanches). Indeed they can be damaged or rendered unfit for use by any changing
climatic condition or extreme weather event: rising sea level, extreme precipitation and floods, occurrences of
extreme low or high temperatures , heavy snowfalls, strong winds etc.
• Climate threats for energy systems of businesses already exist and are projected to increase especially in Europe.
Climate change also brings increased uncertainty in weather patterns. This has a direct negative impact in the long
term on the production of renewable energy. Some immediate examples would be less sun or wind in areas
where there is usually more, or heat and droughts affecting the crops intended for the production of energy from
biomass.
• Agriculture and forestry: Climate change and climate variability are projected to have a substantial effect on
agricultural production, both regarding crop yields and the locations where different crops can be grown. The crop
season has lengthened and is projected to increase further due to an earlier onset of growth in spring, and a longer
growing season in autumn. High temperatures, water shortage and extreme weather events may cause lower yields
and, in the long term, a reduction in suitable areas for cultivation. The impacts will depend on precipitation
patterns and the crops considered.
• Tourism: The economic consequences of climate change for regions where tourism is important can be substantial.
Example:
1. the suitability of southern Europe for tourism is projected to decline markedly during the key summer
months but improve in other seasons
2. Projected reductions in snow cover will negatively affect the winter sports industry in many regions.

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)

CSR is the voluntary commitment of businesses to act ethically and responsibly towards their stakeholders, such as
customers, employees, investors, communities and the environment. CSR can take various forms, such as reducing
emissions, improving working conditions, supporting social causes, enhancing transparency and accountability, and
fostering innovation. CSR is not only a moral duty, but also a strategic tool that can help businesses gain competitive
advantage, enhance reputation, attract talent, increase customer loyalty, and improve performance. CSR can help businesses
mitigate various risks from climate change, including operational risks, regulatory risks, and reputational risks. For
operational risks, CSR can help by implementing measures to improve resilience, such as diversifying suppliers, adopting
renewable energy sources, and optimizing water and waste management.

Example: NESTLE’s CSR actions for CLIMATE CHANGE

References/Sources:
https://climate.nasa.gov/what-is-climate-change/
https://www.nrdc.org/stories/global-warming-101#warming
https://climate.ec.europa.eu/climate-change/consequences-
https://www.nrdc.org/stories/what-are-causes-climate-change#human
https://www.nestle.com/sustainability