GLOBAL

WARMING
Global Warming
• an average increase in
the temperature of the
atmosphere near the
Earth’s surface and in the
troposphere1, which can
contribute to changes in
global climate
patterns
 Causes
• Burning of fossil fuels (Coal/Crude oil)
– Power plants generate electricity

– Transportation-----fuels for transports (E.g.

LPG,
kerosene, fuel oil)

– Industrial processes (E.g. manufacture of

cement, steel, aluminium)
Causes
• Other greenhouse
gases emission

– Agriculture
– Forestry
– Other land uses
– Waste management
Example : Using natural gas to cook
CH4 + 2O2  CO2 + 2H2O

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effect.
 Greenhouse gases in the atmosphere
↓
Some infrared radiation is trapped
↓
Greenhouse effect

Serious greenhouse effect

Global Warming
How serious the problem
is?...
Increase in greenhouse
gases
• Concentration of greenhouse gases
in the atmosphere is highly
increasing by human activities

→ Leads to the increasing seriousness of

global warming
Global surface
temperatures
– increased about 0.6°C/century
since the late19th century
– increased to 2°C/century over the
past 25 years
Increase in Global
temperatures
Temperature
difference between
different parts of
atmosphere
• troposphere temperatures (the
lowest 8 kilometers of the Earth's
atmosphere) collected since 1979
also indicate warming
• Cooling effect in higher parts of the
atmosphere: stratospheric
temperatures have been decreasing
NOT globally uniform
warming
• Warming parts:
– North America
– Eurasia

• Cooling parts:
– parts of the southeastern U.S.
Increasing temperature
extremes
• Regions that have temperatures (1-
3°C) warmer than the average:
– United States
– Most of the Europe
• Regions that have temperatures (1-
3°C) cooler than the average:
– Australia
Regional
Temperatures
Sea level rising
• rising at an average rate of 1 - 2
mm/year over the past 100 years
Environmental
and Human
Effects
Direct Temperature
Effects
Increase in average temperature

More extreme heat waves during the

summer; Less extreme cold spells
during the winter

Harmful to those with heart problems,

asthma, the elderly, the very young
and the homeless
Extreme Events
• Extreme Events:
• Heat waves; Cold waves; Storms; Floods
and Droughts
Global warming

An increase in the frequency of extreme

events

More event-related deaths, injuries,

infectious diseases, and stress-related
Climate-sensitive
diseases
• Increase the risk of some infectious
diseases
– [particularly that appear in warm areas;
are spread by mosquitoes and other
insects]
– E.g. Malaria, dengue fever, yellow fever,
encephalitis

• Algal blooms occur more frequently as

temperatures warm (particularly in areas
with polluted waters)

Diseases (e.g. cholera) accompanying algal

Air Quality
An increase in the
concentration of ground-level
ozone

Damage lung tissue

Harmful for those with asthma

and other chronic lung
diseases
Food supply

Rising temperatures and variable

precipitation

Decrease the production of staple

foods in many of the poorest
regions

Increasing risks of malnutrition

Population
displacement
Rising sea levels

Increase the risk of coastal flooding

(Necessitate population displacement)

• More than half of the world's population now

lives within 60km of the sea.
• Most vulnerable regions: Nile delta in Egypt, the
Ganges-Brahmaputra delta in Bangladesh, many
small islands, such as the Maldives, the Marshall
UV Exposure
(Australia)
• Skin Cancer  
– an abnormal growth of skin tissues.

• Premature aging
– make the skin thick, wrinkled, and leathery  

• Cataracts 
– No longer have transparent lenses in their
eyes
UV Exposure
(Australia)
• Other Eye Damages
– Skin cancer around the eyes
– Degeneration of the yellow spot

• Suppression of Immunity  
– Overexposure to UV radiation  suppress
proper functioning of the body's immune
system and natural defenses of skin
– UV-B radiation weakens the immune system 
increases the chance of infection and disease
Measures on controlling
the problem
• Government

* set some laws to limit the

amount of pollutants produced by
factories

* develop the skills of using

renewable fuels, e.g. solar
energy, wind energy
Measures on controlling
the problem
* encourage the factories to replace fossil
fuels by renewable fuels, which would not
cause environmental pollution

* carry out energy saving scheme →

reduce the pollution produced by burning
fossil fuels

* build more plants → reduce the

pollutants e.g. CO2
Measures on controlling
the problem
• Citizens
* reduce the use of plastic bags → as
burning plastic emit CH4

* recycle the resources, e.g. plastic

* reduce the use of sprays → as CFCs

would be emitted out
Measures on controlling
the problem

* reduce the use of air-conditioner, which

will emit CFCs

* use public transportation instead of

private cars → reduce the pollutants
emitted by cars
Sources
• http://www.who.int/globalchange/climate/en/
• http://resources.emb.gov.hk/envir-ed/text/glob
• http://epa.gov/climatechange/effects/index.htm
• http://www.tchps.edu.hk/greenweb/greenMain
• http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/oa/climate/globalwa
THE
END