“The causes of global climatic change are essentially human “The causes of global climatic change are essentially human.” Discuss this statement. [15]

Water vapour, albedo, methane Positive feedback

USA 19.78 20 Japan 9.78 4.3 UK 9.66 1.8 Germany 10.4 2.7 China 4.58 22 Country Emissions per person (million metric tonnes) Population size % of global emissions USA 19.78 20 Japan 9.78 4.3 UK 9.66 1.8 Germany 10.4 2.7 China 4.58 22 India 1.16 5.5 Ethiopia 0.07 0.02 Kenya 0.16 0.04 Norway 9.79 0.2 Luxembourg 26.28 Kuwait 10.6 0.3 Using examples compare population size, emissions per person and % of global emissions

USA High car ownership 770 cars per 1000 population China – 600 per 1000 population Also high consumption of energy for air conditioning, manufacturing, air travel.

China Population size: 1.4 billion (largest in world) Life expectancy: 72 Main exports: Textiles, electronics, 50% still live in rural areas. Fastest growing economy in the world growing at 9% per year

China is the world’s largest polluter In 2007 China produced 6,200m tonnes of CO2 USA 5,800m tonnes Britain produced about 600m tonnes Per head of population emissions are low As countries become industrialised their citizens become consumers of energy and goods and producers of air pollution. Producing goods and services to Europe and North America

e.g. Uganda 2.4 billion people rely on biomass for cooking and heating 1.6 billion people – 25% of world population have no access to electricity In rural sub Saharan Africa many women carry 20kg fuel wood an average of 5km every day 80% live in rural areas

Alternative views some sceptics believe those who blame the warming of the planet on human activity are alarmists They believe environmentalists use catastrophic climate change to place nature over the needs of people and force the switch from fossil fuels to alternative energy sources, and tends toward "big-government intervention." most climate-change sceptics do concede the planet is warming Instead, they debate the cause, its potential impact, and whether human intervention can affect it. Most debate centres around: Are people responsible for the warming trend? What impact will more warming will have on the planet? Can anything be done about it?

Some of the scepticism comes from suggestions that there may be flaws in the IPCC data such as projecting Himalayan glaciers could melt by 2035 They have also questioned the accuracy of some of the climate models.

Positive impacts? What do you predict?

Improved Arctic Navigation: Global warming will mean that the amount of Arctic ice steadily decreases. As the ice melts navigation across the North Pole will become safer and quicker. Trade between Scandinavia, Russia, Canada and US will all be a lot easier. Increased Agricultural Land: As permafrost melts and temperatures start to rise it will be possible to grow more crops on more land. With a rising global population this might be vital in the fight to reduce global famine.

Reduction in Cold Deaths: Old, young and sick people are very vulnerable to the cold. If global temperatures start to rise then latitudes further north and south will become more hospitable and less people will die from the cold. Release of Freshwater: Currently a lot the world's freshwater is held in glaciers or as permafrost. As global temperatures rise, we might be able to capture and use some of this freshwater to reduce the effects of drought.

Accessibility of Resources: It is believed that places like Greenland, Alaska, Siberia and Antarctica contain a lot of resources (oil, gas, etc.). As global warming causes large areas of ice to melt they will become more accessible for human exploitation.

On a post it write down one question that you have about atmospheric change