GeoSummit 2013Global Climate Change

Impacts on the Environment

GCC & Agriculture Crops

o Moderate warming and more carbon dioxide in the atmosphere may help plants to grow faster. However, more severe warming, floods, and drought may reduce yields.

GCC & Agriculture Livestock

o Livestock may be at risk, both directly from heat stress and indirectly from reduced quality of their food supply.

GCC & Agriculture Fisheries

o Fisheries will be affected by changes in water temperature that shift species ranges, make waters more hospitable to invasive species, and change lifecycle timing.

GCC & Coasts Sea Level

o Sea level rise could erode and inundate coastal ecosystems and eliminate wetlands.

GCC & Coasts Storm Surge

o Storm surges already flood low-lying areas, damage property, disrupt transportation, destroy habitat, and threaten human health and safety.

GCC & Coasts Coastal Water Temperature

o Warming coastal waters may cause suitable habitats of temperature-sensitive species to shift northward.

GCC & Coasts Ocean Acidification

o A more acidic ocean would adversely affect the health of many marine species, including plankton, mollusks, and other shellfish.

GCC & Ecosystems Seasonal Life-Cycle Events

o As the climate has warmed in recent decades, the timing of migration and mating events has changed.

GCC & Ecosystems Range Shifts

o Warmer temperatures have led to range expansion for some species and range reduction or a movement into less hospitable habitat for others.

GCC & Ecosystems Food Web Distribution

o Impacts on one species can ripple through the food web and affect many organisms in an ecosystem.

GCC & Ecosystems Extinction Risk

o Climate change is one of the important stressors that can contribute to species extinction, especially for species that are climate sensitive.

GCC & Forests Growth & Productivity

o The productivity of forests could be affected by changes in temperature, precipitation and the amount of carbon dioxide in the air.

GCC & Forests Disturbances

o Climate change will likely alter the frequency and intensity of forest disturbances, including wildfires, storms, insect outbreaks, and the occurrence of invasive species.

GCC & Water Resources

Water Cycleo Warmer temperatures increase the rate of evaporation

of water into the atmosphere, in effect increasing the atmosphere's capacity to "hold" water.

GCC & Water Resources

Water Supplyo Many areas of the United States, especially the West,

have limited access to water and demand will continue to rise as population grows.

GCC & Water Resources

Water Qualityo Heavy downpours can increase the amount of runoff into

rivers and lakes, washing sediment, nutrients, pollutants, trash, animal waste, and other materials into water supplies, making them unusable, unsafe, or in need of water treatment.