Climate change is caused by global warming which in turn is precipitated by the build-up of certain greenhouse gases emitted by human activity. The question that most of us ponder about is this one, “climate had undergone a drastic change in the course of earth’s history so why should this time be any different”. Such questions are often the focal point of many a debate but there is a certain fact which further complicates the situation – that climate change can bring some positive changes as well, such as lower energy costs as the earth warms up and winter blizzards would no longer occur with increasing frequency. Given this, it is important to examine both the positive and negative impacts of climate change.
The positive impact of climate change:
- Increase in food crop production: It is the comm9on knowledge that most of the food crops grow in and around temperate zones with high humidity. Any climate change and the resulting jump in global temperatures should make it possible for various nations to grow their own food crop rather than depend on Asia to feed the world. Well, that’s an exaggeration but it also happens to be factual, to an extent. With increases in daytime temperatures by 2 Celsius, you should be able to grow the food crops you need and save a bundle in the process
- Increased productivity: Productivity often falls down in the northern hemisphere especially around nations where winter is brutal. As a result of blizzards and various storms, productivity falls all the way down. However, with climate change and increase in day temperatures, blizzards should be a thing of the past and you should become more productive and be able to accomplish much more than it would have been possible for you to do for the same time period.
- Fewer droughts: Chances are that there will always be drought but as a result of climate change and the increase in global temperatures, you should see an increase in moisture content at certain places across the world. This should help facilitate faster crop production and even enable the farmer to grow diverse crops at the same time.
The negative impact of climate change:
- Health impact: one of the first ones to be impacted by any warming trend happen to be the young and the elderly; recently over 35000 died as a result of a prolonged heat wave across Europe and most of those were the elderly. Any permanent climate change and the resulting increase in global temperatures is bound to have an impact on your health, from sun strokes to cardiac arrests. This is why it is important that we take adequate protection in the face of the current rising trend in global temperatures.
- Logistics and supplies: The other impact would be on logistics and shipping; as global temperatures increase, both the severity and frequency of hurricanes and tornadoes is bound to increase. This will affect logistics and may even cause a disruption in both essential services and supplies of essential goods such as food, water etc. The Louisiana flooding in 2016, the handiwork of a localized storm which caused widespread destruction and the resulting lack of essential food supplies, potable drinking water, lead to a near complete breakdown.
- Ecosystem: The current ecosystem, along riverbanks and streams, including the sea is a natural balance and a well-poised one. A sharp increase in water temperatures as a result of a spike in global temperatures is bound to affect the local ecosystem, both flora and fauna that depend on the same. There are several instances of global extinction in earth’s history including the Permian extinction which was a result of runaway greenhouse effect, caused due to increased volcanic activity. That particular extinction resulted in the death of nearly 96% of all living organisms on earth.
These are some of the positive and negative impacts of climate change; from the outset, it is obvious that the negatives far outweigh the positives and that we must all do our bit to preserve our environment and prevent climate change. It is equally important that we keep ourselves well informed so that we may be able to mitigate the effects of any such climate change.
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