Climate change: Causes
and consequences
What Is Climate Change?
Climate change refers to long-term shifts in temperatures and weather patterns.
Such shifts can be natural, due to changes in the sun’s activity or large volcanic
eruptions.
But since the 1800s, human activities have been the main driver of climate
change, primarily due to the burning of fossil fuels like coal, oil and gas.
Burning fossil fuels generates greenhouse gas emissions that act like a blanket
wrapped around the Earth, trapping the sun’s heat and raising temperatures.
The main greenhouse gases that are causing climate change include carbon
dioxide and methane.
Energy, industry, transport, buildings, agriculture and land use are among the
main sectors causing greenhouse gases.
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What Is Climate Change?
Many people think climate change mainly means warmer
temperatures.
But temperature rise is only the beginning of the story.
Because the Earth is a system, where everything is connected,
changes in one area can influence changes in all others.
The consequences of climate change now include, among others,
intense droughts, water scarcity, severe fires, rising sea levels,
flooding, melting polar ice, catastrophic storms and declining
biodiversity.
Humans are responsible for global warming
Climate scientists have shown that humans are responsible for
virtually all global heating over the last 200 years.
Human activities are causing the increased emission of greenhouse
gases that are warming the world faster than at any time in at least
the last two thousand years.
Human-induced global warming is presently increasing at a rate of
0.2°C per decade.
The average temperature of the Earth’s surface is now about 1.1°C
warmer than it was in the late 1800s (before the Industrial Revolution)
and warmer than at any time in the last 100,000 years.
The last decade (2011-2020) was the warmest on record, and each of
the last four decades has been warmer than any previous decade
since 1850.
Humans are responsible for global warming
An increase of 2°C compared to the temperature in pre-industrial
times is associated with serious negative impacts on the natural
environment and human health and well-being.
For this reason, the international community has recognized the need
to keep warming well below 2°C and pursue efforts to limit it to 1.5°C.
Limiting global temperature rise to no more than 1.5°C would help us
avoid the worst climate impacts and maintain a livable climate.
Yet policies currently in place point to a 2.8°C temperature rise by the
end of the century.
Humans are responsible for global warming
The emissions that cause climate change come from every part of the
world and affect everyone, but some countries produce much more
than others.
The seven biggest emitters alone (China, the United States of
America, India, the European Union, Indonesia, the Russian
Federation, and Brazil) accounted for about half of all global
greenhouse gas emissions in 2020.
Everyone must take climate action, but people and countries creating
more of the problem have a greater responsibility to act first.
A schematic of the greenhouse effect
Figure 9.3: A schematic of the greenhouse effect.
Credit: Will Elder, National Park Service (Public Domain)
Greenhouse gases-The main driver of climate change is the greenhouse effect.
Some gases in the Earth's atmosphere act a bit like the glass in a greenhouse, trapping the sun's
heat and stopping it from leaking back into space and causing global warming.
Many of these greenhouse gases occur naturally, but human activities are increasing the
concentrations of some of them in the atmosphere, in particular:
• carbon dioxide (CO2), methane, nitrous oxide, fluorinated gases
CO2 produced by human activities is the largest contributor to global warming.
By 2020, its concentration in the atmosphere had risen to 48% above its pre-industrial level
(before 1750). Other greenhouse gases are emitted by human activities in smaller quantities.
Methane is a more powerful greenhouse gas than CO2, but has a shorter atmospheric lifetime.
Nitrous oxide, like CO2, is a long-lived greenhouse gas that accumulates in the atmosphere over
decades to centuries.
Non-greenhouse gas pollutants, including aerosols like soot, have different warming and cooling
effects and are also associated with other issues such as poor air quality.
Natural causes, such as changes in solar radiation or volcanic activity are estimated to have
contributed less than plus or minus 0.1°C to total warming between 1890 and 2010.
Causes for rising emissions:
• Burning coal, oil and gas produces carbon dioxide and nitrous oxide. Fossil
fuels – coal, oil and gas – are by far the largest contributor to global climate
change, accounting for over 75 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions
and nearly 90 per cent of all carbon dioxide emissions.
• Cutting down forests (deforestation). Trees help to regulate the climate by
absorbing CO2 from the atmosphere. When they are cut down, that beneficial
effect is lost and the carbon stored in the trees is released into the
atmosphere, adding to the greenhouse effect.
• Increasing livestock farming. Cows and sheep produce large amounts of
methane when they digest their food.
• Fertilisers containing nitrogen produce nitrous oxide emissions.
• Fluorinated gases are emitted from equipment and products that use these
gases. Such emissions have a very strong warming effect, up to 23,000 times
greater than CO2.
Causes for climate change:
Generating power:
Generating electricity and heat by burning fossil fuels causes a large chunk of global emissions.
Most electricity is still generated by burning coal, oil, or gas, which produces carbon dioxide and
nitrous oxide – powerful greenhouse gases that blanket the Earth and trap the sun’s heat.
Globally, a bit more than a quarter of electricity comes from wind, solar and other renewable
sources which, as opposed to fossil fuels, emit little to no greenhouse gases or pollutants into
the air.
Manufacturing goods:
Manufacturing and industry produce emissions, mostly from burning fossil fuels to produce
energy for making things like cement, iron, steel, electronics, plastics, clothes, and other goods.
Machines used in the manufacturing process often run on coal, oil, or gas; and some materials,
like plastics, are made from chemicals sourced from fossil fuels.
The manufacturing industry is one of the largest contributors to greenhouse gas emissions
worldwide.
Mining and other industrial processes, as does the construction industry, also release gases.
Causes for climate change:
Powering buildings:
Globally, residential and commercial buildings consume over half of all electricity.
As they continue to draw on coal, oil, and natural gas for heating and cooling, they emit
significant quantities of greenhouse gas emissions.
Growing energy demand for heating and cooling, with rising air-conditioner ownership, as well as
increased electricity consumption for lighting, appliances, and connected devices, has
contributed to a rise in energy-related carbon-dioxide emissions from buildings in recent years.
Using transportation:
Most cars, trucks, ships, and planes run on fossil fuels. That makes transportation a major
contributor of greenhouse gases, especially carbon-dioxide emissions.
Road vehicles account for the largest part, due to the combustion of petroleum-based products,
like gasoline, in internal combustion engines. But emissions from ships and planes continue to
grow.
Transport accounts for nearly one quarter of global energy-related carbon-dioxide emissions.
And trends point to a significant increase in energy use for transport over the coming years.
Causes for climate change:
Cutting down forests:
Cutting down forests to create farms or pastures, or for other reasons, causes emissions, since
trees, when they are cut, release the carbon they have been storing.
Each year approximately 12 million hectares of forest are destroyed.
Since forests absorb carbon dioxide, destroying them also limits nature’s ability to keep
emissions out of the atmosphere.
Deforestation, together with agriculture and other land use changes, is responsible for roughly a
quarter of global greenhouse gas emissions.
Producing food:
Producing food causes emissions of carbon dioxide, methane, and other greenhouse gases in
various ways, including through deforestation and clearing of land for agriculture and grazing,
digestion by cows and sheep, the production and use of fertilizers and manure for growing crops,
and the use of energy to run farm equipment or fishing boats, usually with fossil fuels.
All this makes food production a major contributor to climate change. And greenhouse gas
emissions also come from packaging and distributing food.
Causes for climate change:
Consuming too much:
Your home and use of power, how you move around, what you eat and how much
you throw away all contribute to greenhouse gas emissions.
So does the consumption of goods such as clothing, electronics, and plastics.
A large chunk of global greenhouse gas emissions are linked to private
households.
Our lifestyles have a profound impact on our planet.
The wealthiest bear the greatest responsibility: the richest 1 percent of the global
population combined account for more greenhouse gas emissions than the
poorest 50 percent.
Effect of climate change
Hotter temperatures
As greenhouse gas concentrations rise, so does the global surface temperature.
The last decade, 2011-2020, is the warmest on record. Since the 1980s, each
decade has been warmer than the previous one.
Nearly all land areas are seeing more hot days and heat waves.
Higher temperatures increase heat-related illnesses and make working outdoors
more difficult.
Wildfires start more easily and spread more rapidly when conditions are hotter.
Temperatures in the Arctic have warmed at least twice as fast as the global
average.
Effect of climate change
More severe storms
Destructive storms have become more intense and more frequent in many
regions.
As temperatures rise, more moisture evaporates, which exacerbates extreme
rainfall and flooding, causing more destructive storms.
The warming ocean also affects the frequency and extent of tropical storms.
Cyclones, hurricanes, and typhoons feed on warm waters at the ocean surface.
Such storms often destroy homes and communities, causing deaths and huge
economic losses.
Effect of climate change
A warming, rising ocean
The ocean soaks up most of the heat from global warming.
The rate at which the ocean is warming strongly increased over the past two
decades, across all depths of the ocean.
As the ocean warms, its volume increases since water expands as it gets warmer.
Melting ice sheets also cause sea levels to rise, threatening coastal and island
communities.
In addition, the ocean absorbs carbon dioxide, keeping it from the atmosphere.
But more carbon dioxide makes the ocean more acidic, which endangers marine
life and coral reefs.
Effect of climate change
Increased drought
Climate change is changing water availability, making it scarcer in more regions.
Global warming exacerbates water shortages in already water-stressed regions
and is leading to an increased risk of agricultural droughts affecting crops, and
ecological droughts increasing the vulnerability of ecosystems.
Droughts can also stir destructive sand and dust storms that can move billions of
tons of sand across continents. Deserts are expanding, reducing land for
growing food.
Many people now face the threat of not having enough water on a regular basis.
Effect of climate change
Loss of species
Climate change poses risks to the survival of species on land and in the ocean.
These risks increase as temperatures climb.
Exacerbated by climate change, the world is losing species at a rate 1,000 times
greater than at any other time in recorded human history.
One million species are at risk of becoming extinct within the next few decades.
Forest fires, extreme weather, and invasive pests and diseases are among many
threats related to climate change.
Some species will be able to relocate and survive, but others will not.
Effect of climate change
Not enough food
Climate changes and extreme weather events are among the reasons behind a
global rise in hunger and poor nutrition.
Fisheries, crops, and livestock may be destroyed or become less productive.
With the ocean becoming more acidic, marine resources that feed billions of
people are at risk.
Snow and ice cover changes in many Arctic regions have disrupted food supplies
from herding, hunting, and fishing.
Heat stress can diminish water and grasslands for grazing, causing declining
crop yields and affecting livestock.
Effect of climate change
More health risks
Climate change is the single biggest health threat facing humanity.
Climate impacts are already harming health, through air pollution, disease,
extreme weather events, forced displacement, pressures on mental health, and
increased hunger and poor nutrition in places where people cannot grow or find
sufficient food.
Every year, environmental factors take the lives of around 13 million people.
Changing weather patterns are expanding diseases, and extreme weather events
increase deaths and make it difficult for healthcare systems to keep up.
Effect of climate change
Poverty and displacement
Climate change increases the factors that put and keep people in poverty.
Floods may sweep away urban slums, destroying homes and livelihoods.
Heat can make it difficult to work in outdoor jobs.
Water scarcity may affect crops.
Over the past decade (2010–2019), weather-related events displaced an estimated
23.1 million people on average each year, leaving many more vulnerable to
poverty.
Most refugees come from countries that are most vulnerable and least ready to
adapt to the impacts of climate change.
Challenge and Solutions
We face a huge challenge but already know many solutions
Many climate change solutions can deliver economic benefits while improving
our lives and protecting the environment.
We also have global frameworks and agreements to guide progress, such as
• the Sustainable Development Goals,
• the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and
• the Paris Agreement.
Three broad categories of action are:
• cutting emissions,
• adapting to climate impacts and
• financing required adjustments.
Challenge and Solutions
Cutting Emissions: Switching energy systems from fossil fuels to renewables
like solar or wind will reduce the emissions driving climate change.
But we have to act now.
While a growing number of countries is committing to net zero emissions by
2050, emissions must be cut in half by 2030 to keep warming below 1.5°C.
Achieving this means huge declines in the use of coal, oil and gas: over two-
thirds of today’s proven reserves of fossil fuels need to be kept in the ground by
2050 in order to prevent catastrophic levels of climate change.
Challenge and Solutions
Adapting to climate impacts: Adapting to climate consequences protects people,
homes, businesses, livelihoods, infrastructure and natural ecosystems.
It covers current impacts and those likely in the future.
Adaptation will be required everywhere, but must be prioritized now for the most
vulnerable people with the fewest resources to cope with climate hazards.
The rate of return can be high.
Early warning systems for disasters, for instance, save lives and property, and
can deliver benefits up to 10 times the initial cost.
