"climate change affects the entire living world" -u.s. global change research program
Climate change affects the entire living world, through changes in ecosystems and biodiversity. Ecosystems provide a rich array of benefits to humanity, including fisheries, drinking water, fertile soils for growing crops, buffering from climatological impacts, and aesthetic and cultural values. These benefits are not always easy to quantify, but they translate into jobs, economic growth, health, and human well-being.
1. Changes in the global climate can be seen across the United States in a multitude of ways; these changes are primarily attributable to human activities. Since 1895 the average temperature in the U.S. has risen by 1.5ºF, with more than 80% of this increase happening after 1980.
gases already ensure a hotter tomorrow; how hot tomorrow will be solely depends on human involvement.
2. The prevalence of extreme weather events has increased in recent decades; excessively high temperatures, an increase in heavy downpours or severe droughts have become prevailing trends in the past 50 years.
4. Many sectors locally, nationally, and globally have already seen tangible effects of climate change – agriculture, infrastructure, human health, water resources, and others. The interplay between climate change and other environmental and societal factors is delicate and can either moderate or intensify the direction and pace that our climate is shifting.
3. Climate change attributable to human actions is projected to exponentially increase if emissions of heat trapping gases, such as carbon dioxide and methane, are not regulated. These
5. Planning efforts will help mitigate the impact humans will have on climate change but implementation is limited. If plans can be turned into actions, public health, economic
development, the protection of natural systems, and overall quality of life will be positively affected. 6. Ecosystems in many regions are suffering from fluctuations in the reliability of their water supply due to climate change. In the western United States melting snowpack is heavily relied upon for water storage; the eastern U.S., despite projections of increased precipitation, is experiencing water shortages. Competition for clean water among municipal, environmental, and agricultural interests further complicates the politics of a waning water supply. Compounding the issue is water quality. Challenges in this arena focus on sediment and contaminant concentrations after heavy downpours.
U.S. Global Change Research Program (USGCRP) 2013 DRAFT. “Global Climate Change Impacts in the United States.” Pages 5, 8, and10. http://ncadacglobalchange.gov/ 5