Effects of Global Warming on Population

Effects of Global Warming on Population

Global warming is the long-term heating of the Earth's surface observed since the pre-industrial period as a result of human activities, primarily the combustion of fossil fuels, which increases heat-trapping greenhouse gas levels in the Earth's atmosphere. ⁶

Some health outcomes have already been influenced by global warming. ² The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) regularly updates the GPS for various greenhouse gases. Species are expected to become extinct over the next 50 years as a result of changing temperatures, precipitation, and seasonality. ¹

Effects of Global Warming

Global warming have positive and negative impacts on the population

Positive impacts

Many people are also more vulnerable to cold weather, so a warming trend in colder latitudes could reduce winter mortality rates, especially in developing countries. Fewer deaths from cold,  larger crops, and a longer growing season. ⁵

Negative impacts of global warming:

Population extinction

Temperature variation may also be a significant proximate cause of extinction. ⁹ Both low and high temperatures have the potential to increase mortality rates and result in population extinction. ¹⁰

Older people are more vulnerable to heat stress

Older people are more physically vulnerable to extreme heat, aging may increase heat stress, and thus mortality rate increases.

Higher temperatures also worsen outdoor air pollution, such as ozone. Population aging implies a decrease in the number of working-age people and an increase in the number of retirees. ³

The increased wild extinction rate

Global warming is a significant threat to biodiversity. The risk of species extinction rises sharply as global temperatures rise, with invertebrates (particularly pollinators) and flowering plants among the most vulnerable. ⁴

As land and sea change rapidly, the animals that inhabit them are threatened with extinction if they do not adapt quickly enough, according to the Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.⁵

Alter the aquatic ecosystem's functioning

Climate-related warming of water bodies has caused changes in species composition, organism abundance, and productivity because temperature is an essential abiotic factor in determining seasonal variations in physical, chemical, and biological aspects of aquatic ecosystem functioning. ⁷

Temperature regulates basic traits of organisms such as development rate and survival by controlling the rate of fundamental biochemical processes. ⁸

Acidification of the oceans

The penetration of anthropogenic CO2 from the atmosphere is acidifying the world's oceans. ¹¹

Oceans are becoming more acidic as a result of absorbing emissions. This acidification is accelerating. As the rate of acidification increases, it poses a serious threat to underwater life, particularly those with calcium carbonate shells or skeletons, such as mollusks, crabs, and corals. This has the potential to have a significant impact on fish. Global warming causes change and decreases the pH of seawater. ¹²

Rising sea levels

The polar regions are particularly vulnerable to climate change. The Arctic's average temperature is rising twice as fast as the rest of the world's, and the world's ice sheets are melting quickly. This has serious consequences for the region's people, wildlife, and plants, but it may have the most serious impact on rising sea levels. ¹³

Increase incidence of cancer

The depletion of the ozone layer increases the penetration of ultraviolet (UV) rays, which may increase the incidence of skin cancer. ¹⁵

Increased disaster risk

Many types of disasters are becoming more severe as a result of global warming. The rising number of droughts, intense storms, and floods caused by global warming poses risks to public health and safety. A warmer climate creates an atmosphere that can collect, retain, and release more water, altering weather patterns so that wet areas become wetter and dry areas become drier.

Water scarcity is a leading cause of death and serious disease elsewhere in the world, and it is contributing to crop failure. ¹⁴

Conclusion

Global warming has some positive and negative impacts on the population. Evidence and predictions of negative health effects will strengthen the case for preventive policies, as well as guide priorities for planned global warming adaptation strategies. Proper mitigation and adaptation strategies are necessary to minimize the effects of global warming. ²

References

1De Schryver, A.M., Brakkee, K.W., Goedkoop, M.J. and Huijbregts, M.A., 2009. Characterization factors for global warming in life cycle assessment based on damages to humans and ecosystems.

2McMichael, A.J., Woodruff, R.E. and Hales, S., 2006. Climate change and human health: present and future risks. The Lancet, 367(9513), pp.859-869.

3 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Climate Change 2001: Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerability, a Report of Working Group II of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (Geneva: IPCC, February 2001), accessed online at www.ipcc.ch, on August 15, 2001.

4 Malcolm, J. R., Liu, C., Neilson, R. P., Hansen, L., & Hannah, L. E. E. (2006). Global warming and extinctions of endemic species from biodiversity hotspots. Conservation biology, 20(2), 538-548.

5 https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/wg2/

6 https://climate.nasa.gov/global-warming-vs-climate-change/

7 Woodward G, Perkins DM, Brown LE (2010) Climate change and freshwater ecosystems: impacts across multiple levels of the organization. Phil Trans R Soc B 365:2093–2106

8 O’Connor MI, Bruno JF, Gaines SD, Halpern BS, Lester SE, Kinlan BP, Weiss JM (2007) Temperature control of larval dispersal and the implications for marine ecology, evolution, and conservation. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 104:1266–1271

9  Beever E. A., Ray C., Wilkening J. L., Brussard P. F.& Mote P. W.. 2011Contemporary climate change alters the pace and drivers of extinction. Glob. Change Biol. 17, 2054–2070.doi:10.1111/j.1365-2486.2010.02389.x

10  Bradshaw W. E.& Holzapfel C. M.. 2010Light, time, and the physiology of biotic response to rapid climate change in animals. Annu. Rev. Physiol. 72, 147–166.doi:10.1146/annual-Physiol-021909-135837

11  Dore, J. E., Lukas, R., Sadler, D. W., Church, M. J. & Karl, D. M. Physical and biogeochemical modulation of ocean acidification in the central North Pacific. Proc. Natl Acad. Sci. USA 106, 12235–12240 (2009).

12 Six, K. D., Kloster, S., Ilyina, T., Archer, S. D., Zhang, K., & Maier-Reimer, E. (2013). Global warming is amplified by reduced sulfur fluxes as a result of ocean acidification. Nature Climate Change, 3(11), 975-978.

13 https://www.nrdc.org/experts/rob-moore/new-ipcc-report-sea-level-rise-challenges-are-growing

14 <a href="https://www.freepik.com/free-vector/gradient-climate-change-infographic-template_18039667.htm#query=global%20warming&position=2&from_view=search">Image by pikisuperstar</a> on Freepik

14 https://nca2018.globalchange.gov/

15 Boyes, E. and Stanisstreet, M., 1998. High school students' perceptions of how major global environmental effects might cause skin cancer. The Journal of Environmental Education, 29(2), pp.31-36.

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