Download Chapter 20 Climate Change and Ozone Depletion Core Case Study

Chapter 20
Climate Change and Ozone Depletion
Core Case Study: Volcano
1. How many degrees did the Earth cool after the eruption of Mount Pinatubo in the Philippines?
2. How did the eruption of this volcano help scientists study global climate?
20-1 PAST CLIMATE CHANGE AND THE GREENHOUSE EFFECT
3. List 4 occurrences that have altered the climate of the Earth in the past 4.7 billion years.
4. What was Antarctica like in the past compared to what is looks like today?
5. What are glacial and interglacial periods?
6. Are we currently in a glacial period or an interglacial period?
7. List four factors that can change the levels of key greenhouse gases in the troposphere and may
have caused major climate changes during the past.
8. List 6 techniques that scientists use and have used to estimate past temperatures.
9. What are the 3 major factors that shape the earth’s climate.
10. List the 4 natural greenhouse gases.
11. What 3 gases have humans contributed to the troposphere since the Industrial Revolution?
12. Name the 3 human activities that have resulted in the increase in these 3 gases.
13. List the top 5 countries in terms of emitters of greenhouse gases.
14. Each American, on average, releases about _____ times more CO2 than the average Chinese.
20-2 CLIMATE CHANGE AND HUMAN ACTIVITIES
15. What does marine geologist William Ruddiman estimate the global climate would be like
currently if deforestation had never begun?
16. List the 7 findings of the 2001 report by the IPCC.
17. According to the IPCC report, what will be the most probably increase in the earth’s mean
surface temperature between 2000-2100?
18. Why will higher than average temperatures occur at the earth’s poles over land, rather over
oceans?
19. Why can’t we predict how fast the earth will warm and the consequences of the warming?
20. Describe the 2 groups of climate skeptics.
21. Have you seen Al Gore’s documentary, An Inconvenient Truth? If yes, what did you think of the
information presented?
22. In the past, how long did it take for global temperatures to change?
23. List 7 possible outcomes if we pass the planet’s tipping point.
20-3 FACTORS AFFECTING THE EARTH’S TEMPERATURE
24. What is a positive feedback in terms of the troposphere and the earth’s climate?
25. How could the oceans contribute to a positive feedback loop?
26. How can clouds contribute to a positive feedback loop?
27. Larger amounts of CO2 would increase the rate of photosynthesis, and remove CO2 from the
troposphere. List 4 reasons why this would be short lived.
28. What are two sources of methane that have to potential to be released into the troposphere?
20-4 EFFECTS OF GLOBAL WARMING
29. What are areas that will benefit from global warming? Which areas will suffer the most harm?
30. Why are temperature increases greater in Polar Regions?
31. Why should we care if there is less ice in the Arctic?
32. Describe the positive feedback loop caused by melting polar ice.
33. How does melting sea ice affect shipping and fishing in the polar regions?
34. Will melting sea ice affect sea levels?
35. How do mountain glaciers affect drinking water supplies?
36. Will melting land-based ice affect sea levels?
37. List 5 ecological harms caused by warmer temperatures in Alaska.
38. Describe the positive feedback loop that will lead to rising sea levels.
39. List the 7 dire effects of rising sea levels.
40. Which areas of the globe would experience global cooling as a result of changing ocean
currents?
41. Describe the positive feedback that would halt the mixing of surface and bottom waters in the
oceans.
42. Which organisms would be affected by a lower pH in the oceans?
43. How will climate change affect the hydrologic cycle?
44. Which type of organisms would benefit from global warming?
45. Which organisms would be affected first?
46. Which ecosystems would be most likely to suffer disruption and species loss?
47. How will global warming affect biodiversity?
48. Where would an increase in crop production be possible with warmer global temperatures?
49. Conversely, grain yields in the tropics may fall as much as _____ % , where many of the world’s
______________ people live.
50. How will the following rivers be affected: Yellow, Indus, Mekong, Yangtze, and Ganges?
51. List one positive effect of global warming on people and 2 negative effects.
20-5 DEALING WITH GLOBAL WARMING
52. List the 5 characteristics of global warming making is a difficult problem to deal with.
53. List the 6 difficult questions that these 5 characteristics confront us with.
54. What are the 2 basic ways to deal with global warming?
55. “If scientists are right about global warming, then…
, and if they are wrong about global warming, then…
56. List the 3 major mitigation solutions.
57. What are 4 things are suggested by Lester Brown that would enable us to cut the world carbon
emissions in half by 2015.
58. Name 4 places to sequester CO2.
59. What are 3 major methods that governments can use to reducing the threat of climate change?
20-6 WHAT IS BEING DONE TO REDUCE GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS
60. What is the Kyoto Protocol?
61. Why did the US withdraw from the Kyoto agreement in 2001?
62. Should the US participate in the Kyoto Protocol and any phases that follow?
63. Which 3 countries need to be part of the Protocol for it to work?
20-7 OZONE DEPLETION IN THE STRATOSPHERE
64. A layer of ozone in the lower stratosphere keeps about _____ % of the sun’s harmful UV
radiation from reaching the earth’s surface.
65. List the 4 conclusions offered by Rowland and Molina regarding CFCs.
66. Name 3 other ozone-depleting compounds in addition to CFCs.
67. Where is most of the ozone thinning occurring?
68. Why is the thinning occurring there?
69. Name the two types of skin cells that account for 95% of all skin cancers.
20-8 PROTECTING THE OZONE LAYER
70. If we take immediate action, how long will it take for the ozone layer to return to 1980 levels?
71. What is the current relationship between ozone depletion and global warming?
CRITICAL THINKING
72. Some media outlets and at least one member of the US Congress have claimed that global
warming and ozone depletion are false and are being used by scientists and environmentalists to
raise funds. What is your response to such claims?
73. Should the US and other developed countries pay poorer countries to stop cutting their forests to
help slow the rate of CO2 emissions?
74. Which one of the 2 schools of thought do you favor: “wait-and-see strategy” or “act now to
reduce the risks from climate change”?
75. What feature of your lifestyle or consumption would you be willing to give up to slow global
warming? What feature would you be unwilling to give up?