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ClimateChangeEffects-rev.doc

Running Head: CLIMATE CHANGE EFFECTS 1

CLIMATE CHANGE EFFECTS 3

Climate Change Effects

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Climate Change Effects

The world’s health, climate, and societies are having major and costly impacts as a result of climate change. Not only are the sea levels going up and oceans becoming warmer, more severe and lengthier famines are also turning into a threat to wildlife, crops, supplies of freshwater. Climate change is not only threatening the diversity of life on our planet such as the polar bears found in the Arctic, marine turtles found along the coast of Africa to mention a few; it is also becoming a significant risk to world’s civilizations, other species, and livelihoods of people. Manmade climate change has caused sea levels to rise, aggravated hurricanes, and intensified heat waves and famine worldwide and will continue to do so.

The Effects

First, global sea levels has gone up and will continue to do so in the next century. For

example, NASA indicates that they have risen by an average of approximately 8 inches and by

2100, they expect them to go up by another 1 to 4 feet. The expansion of seawater contributes to

this rise as it warms due to high temperatures and the extra water from land ice that is melting is

also a contributing factor. Another example, New York and New Jersey could experience

sea-level rise that's 8 inches higher than the global average this century.

Second, hurricanes have become and are expected to become more severe and stronger. Despite hurricanes being a natural part of our climate system, since the 1970s, the power to destroy has been escalating especially in the North Atlantic areas. Since the early 1980s, the force, recurrence, and length of North Atlantic hurricanes, plus the recurrence of the fiercest hurricanes have all escalated. For example, the ongoing 2018 Atlantic hurricane season has seen Hurricanes Michael and Florence be among the strongest to hit the Atlantic coasts. As the climate carries on getting warmer, it is expected that the rates of storms linked to hurricanes and rainfall will intensify (National Geographic, 2018).

Finally, heat waves and intensified famines will be experienced. For example, in the Southwest, famines and heat waves, which are phases of unusually hot weather enduring for days to weeks, are expected to escalate, and cold waves will be less extreme everywhere. Another example, a vast part of western and central U.S. is expected to experience continuously intensifying summer temperatures and a decline in soil moisture, which makes heat waves worse. By the culmination of this century, extreme heat days that have been encountered maybe once in 20 years are anticipated to occur every two or three years in many regions of the country (World Wildlife Fund, 2018).

Conclusion

Manmade climate change is affecting sea level rises positively, strengthening hurricanes and storms, and exasperating heat waves and famines globally. These effects will persist, become more expensive and detrimental, and progressively impact our entire world unless we instantly start figuring out ways in which to decrease emissions that accelerate global warming. We are currently experiencing the most extensive environmental challenge ever seen in this century. Climate change is affecting almost everything people appreciate. To sufficiently deal with this calamity we need to immediately decrease carbon pollution and be ready for the impacts of global warming, which we are already facing.

References

Jackson, R. (2018). Global Climate Change: Effects. Retrieved from https://climate.nasa.gov/effects/

National Geographic. (2018). Effects of Global Warming. Retrieved from https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/global-warming/global-warming- effects/

World Wildlife Fund. (2018). The Effects Of Climate Change. Retrieved from https://www.wwf.org.uk/effectsofclimatechange