Responses to climate change

Explain the responses to climate change at a local scaleExplain the responses to climate change at a global scale

Solving global warming

Key questions:

• What makes finding global solutions to climate change a challenge?

• What solutions are there?• How effective have they been so far?

Attitudes against solving climate change

Describe the pattern shown on the graph (4)

Extension: Why may this pattern have occurred? (4)

Describe the pattern shown on the graph (4)

There is a small relationship between the lower population density and higher energy consumers. The highest energy consumption comes from US cities, Houston being the highest consumer shown with 75,000 million joules per capita. European and Asian cities tends to have a lower energy consumption and population density with the most sustainable city shown being Hong Kong with a population density of 300 inhabitants per ha and a energy consumption of 9000 million joules per capita.

Write a paragraph to explain why Houston could be seen as an unsustainable city

International responses to climate change

What is the Kyoto protocol?

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vz-pE7b57h4&feature=player_embedded#

Summary of the Kyoto protocol:• Treaty was signed in 1997 and came into force in February 2005.• Countries that signed and ratified the treaty agreed to cut emissions by

5.2% compared with 1990 levels• National limits were set on emissions (EU 8%, 7% USA, 6% Japan, 0%

Russia).• Iceland and Australia could increase emissions• By 2008 181 had signed the Kyoto protocol• At a climate change conference in Doha (December 2012) a new period

of emission reductions stretching until 2020 has been agreed. However, Russia, Japan, USA, New Zealand and Canada have not committed to targets.

• Therefore only countries that produce 14% of global emissions are part of the protocol (mostly EU and Australia).

Developing countries and the Kyoto Protocol

• Developing countries do not have binding targets under the Kyoto Protocol, but are still committed under the treaty to reduce their emission. Actions taken by developed and developing countries to reduce emissions include support for renewable energy, improving energy efficiency, and reducing deforestation. Under the Protocol, emissions of developing countries are allowed to grow in accordance with their development needs.

• The treaty recognises that developed countries have contributed the most to the build-up of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere (around 77% of emissions between 1750 and 2004), and that carbon dioxide emissions per person in developing countries (2.9 tonnes in 2010) are, on average, lower than emissions per person in developed countries (10.4 tonnes in 2010).

Global Solutions: The Kyoto ProtocolThe Kyoto Protocol is a global agreement which aims to reduce carbon emissions worldwide. The

agreement involves countries that have had historically high carbon emissions (i.e. HICs such as the countries of Europe and North America) being asked to reduce their emissions below 1990 levels. The treaty was established in 1997 and asked countries to commit to reduce emissions by an average of 5.2% by the end of 2012.

Advantages:• The first round of the protocol ended in 2012 and the 37 industrial countries who stuck with the

agreement reduced their emissions by an average of 16%. This figure is much better than the original target of 5.2%.

• Some countries have taken very positive steps towards sustainable futures. Many LICs, who do not have binding targets under the protocol, are leading the way to carbon neutrality (this is when a country achieves a net zero carbon footprint). Costa Rica is aiming to be the first country to achieve this status within the next decade.

Disadvantages• Some of the world’s biggest carbon emitters e.g. the USA have refused to ratify (make legally

binding) the agreement. If heavily emitting industrialised countries refuse to take part the policy is obviously less effective.

• Countries, such as the USA, think it is unfair that the protocol does not apply equally to all countries e.g. developing countries such as China.

• World carbon emissions grew by 50% during the period covered by the Kyoto Protocol – mainly due to the increased contributions of developing countries such as China.

The Kyoto Protocol

1. What is the Kyoto Protocol? (p 19 of the green book for extra information)

2. How does it aim to reduce the possible impacts of climate change?

3. How successful has it been?Your opinion: Do you think there should be an

international treaty for climate change?

Carbon credits

• Countries can buy carbon credits• Countries could trade credits with another

country (e.g. Iceland traded 2% with the EU)

COP21

At the Paris climate conference (COP21) in December 2015, 195 countries adopted the first-ever universal, legally binding global climate deal.The agreement sets out a global action plan to put the world on track to avoid dangerous climate change by limiting global warming to well below 2°C.The agreement is due to enter into force in 2020. The Paris Agreement is a bridge between today's policies and climate-neutrality before the end of the century.

COP21

What do these terms mean?

MitigationAdaptationResilience

COP21

What do these terms mean?

Mitigation: Stopping the issue before it starts (i.e. reducing emissions) Adaptation: Dealing with the issues once it has happened Resilience: Improving the ability to deal with something

COP21

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CJH2eUQVYwIhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oo5ca1dMbEchttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jRlGfdO6WIYhttp://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-34572157http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-34953626

What is COP21?What are they trying to agree on?How are HICs trying to help LICS?Opinion: will it work?

Useful articles

• http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2013/jan/13/climate-laws-un

• http://www.livescience.com/3880-space-ring-shade-earth-stop-global-warming.html

• http://www.alternate-energy-sources.com/kyoto-treaty.html