20091117 Sw Group11 Newsletter2
- 1. Group 11 Newsletter 2
- 2. Droughts and spreading deserts Because of the global warming the climate is getting hotter and that leads to droughts. The droughts will be more intense than before and countries that never had droughts will in time have them. And the existing deserts will expand. All this will lead to the deserts spreading causing humans to move from their homes in lack of fresh water. Here follows the geographical, economic, political & social views of the problem.
- 3. Droughts and spreading deserts Geographical view: The areas that have been affected are getting drier and their will be less growth. It will slowly become a desert with no vegetation. When that happens it will be harder to find water and you won’t be able to grow crops if you don’t have irrigation systems which is very expensive. If we don’t succeed with this the living space on earth will decrease which causes political problems. Economic view: It’s going to be very expensive to make it possible to keep on living in the deserts. Irrigation systems, pumps and recycling is expensive. But that is what we have to do to make sure that the deserts won’t be uninhabitable
- 4. Droughts and spreading deserts Political view:
- 5. The leaders of the countries with deserts and droughts have to work together to find a way of sharing the nearby rivers and the ground water. Otherwise there will be wars and even more misery. If we can’t make the deserts more habitable, the people in the deserts will move to another area or even another country. Causing a mass movement of refugees, which causes problems for the other countries. How should they help them, where should they live and is it enough living space on this planet?
- 6. Droughts and spreading deserts Social view: It is possible to live in a desert but not very practical for cities. Because of the spreading deserts we have to improve the cities that are at risk of becoming surrounded by deserts. To do that we have to improve the irrigation systems, to build better pumps to reach the ground water and find a better way to recycle water. In the future we might have to build cities in the desert, to do that you have to put a large amount of money on irrigation systems, on pumps to find the ground water and on finding a better way to recycle the used water. If we don’t do this, people who are living in existing deserts and people who soon will live in a very dry area will become refugees. This makes it a geographical and political problem.
- 7. Floodings When the snow in the mountains melt it will create a torrent running down the mountain causing floods and damage in the lower areas. Because of global warming the climate will shift towards a more tropical character. This leads to more rain causing floodings . Here follows some consequences of the problem:
- 8. Floodings When flooding hits a city the consequences will be fatal, people would have to be evacuated which would cost a lot of money. To rebuild the damage caused by the flooding and to ensure that those who need help, or medical treatment shall receive it in time. This will also cost a lot of money. People will also lose their belongings, homes and food shortages. This might even lead to starvation. Repeated flooding over large areas results in landscapes getting destroyed and makes it hard to live there.
- 9. Sea levels rising When the glaciers melt it will cause sea levels to rise. This affects the coastal areas in many countries. When the sea level raises the coastlines will decrease. Causing governments to drastically react to prevent the sea from destroying nations. Here follows the geographical, economic, political & social views of the problem.
- 10. Sea levels rising Geographical: It will cause flooding in different countries witch destroy buildings that have cultural value. It will also change the surface waters quality and it will change the groundwater’s characteristic. It will make an impact on agriculture and aquaculture because there will be a decline in soil and water quality there. Economical: If the sea level rises to much it can destroy buildings and things that have cultural value. This will be a big loss for counties economically. This will also cause the tourism to decrease and the tourism is a big economical source for many countries. Transportation will decrease so the export and import to the country will become limited, and the export and import is also a big income for countries.
- 11. Sea levels rising Political If countries get flooded it will force the politicians to come up with solutions that will prevent the cities from flooding. For example build more dams. It will also affect the elections people will choose the president that is determined to fix the problems with global warming. This will cause the politicians to change their focus to the global warming issues that is the most important to fix. Social: If the sea level rises too much, it will cause the population to move to another place. And when that happens it will be hard to find places for these people to live, as populated our earth is. It will also cause loss of peoples lives. This can tear many families and friends apart.
- 12. Changing salintiy levels Glaciers are made up of freshwater. So when the glaciers melt large amounts of freshwater will go into the ocean. Since the oceans are mostly saltwater. This is causing a inbalance in salinity levels in the oceans. This affects all the creatures living in the water, they are created to live in salt water so when it’s too much freshwater in the oceans, they will die. The changes of salinity levels in the world’s oceans affect everything living in it, because salt water plants and fish will not be able to recondition them selves to survive in fresh water. The same goes the other way around. This leads to the following effects on;
- 13. Changing salintiy levels Social: If the fish in some areas die or migrate to other areas with more salinity in them. So then it will have a tremendous effect on the people who live on fishing, which can be whole villages sometimes. This will result in people loosing their way of income, which in turn causes starvation because of all the fish which can’t be delivered to markets. Political: The lack of fishing areas and the increased competition will increase rivalry between countries as many areas depend on fishing. Economical: Areas which rely on fishing for its economical income will be affected when the fish moves away to find better water. Geographically: There are not many geographical effects of changing salinity levels in the water.
- 14. Rising sea temperature One of the effects of global warming; rising sea temperature. When it rises the currents change which can lead to changes in the climate. Both on land and in the sea. Another effect of the rising sea temperature is that the ice will melt, causing cold water spreading in the oceans affecting currents as well . Here follows the geographical, economic, political & social views of the problem.