Biggest Climate Change Impacts

The first step to carbon reduction (see the other three here) is recognising that carbon reduction is necessary.

In order to recognise this, it can be helpful to understand a bit more about climate change and our impact on it. This can also help us take the first steps towards adapting to a changing world so that our business, and the people which depend on it, are well equipped to withstand any negative effects of the changes and can thrive in a low carbon future.

Climate Change

The world is warming up as a direct result of human activity. This is no longer a theory, but proven. Evidence to support climate change caused by human activity can be found in hundreds of places, from Universities to Governments around the world. Climate change (in particular global warming) is causing and has caused a variety of changes to our planet and all of these will directly or indirectly change the way we obtain goods and services in Scotland.

Impact on Scotland

It is true that many of the effects of climate change will impact more directly on areas of the world that are currently marginal (tropical or equatorial countries), as they are less able to adapt their lifestyles to the immediate impacts of climate change, such as periods of drought. However, a significant change that will impact directly on Scotland is increased rainfall, particularly intense rainfall (likely to cause flooding). Statistics show that the "maximum 5 day rainfall amount" has already increased by 21.3% since 1961 with, on average, 8 more days of heavy rain every year (source: Online handbook of climate trends across Scotland).

In addition to an increased flood risk, Scotland will also face warmer summers, longer growing seasons and more warm days on average each year. Some of this might not sound too bad (some of it might seem quite appealing) but there are hidden costs. For example, Stirling Council already faces big increases in the cost of grass and verge cutting from the extended growing season.

It is also important to remember that people in Scotland consume products (food, clothing, appliances etc.) made all over the world, so our quality of life will be directly affected by what happens in other countries. For example, some of the countries we rely on to produce food face severe weather changes which may impact on both food availability and price. We can adapt to these changes by buying local produce and generating our own energy.

Major Effects

The list below shows 10 major effects of climate change. The impact of these depends on how much temperatures rise, which depends on how many more greenhouse emissions we allow. We have already emitted huge amounts of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, which means we are already guaranteed to see temperatures rise for the next 20 years. We need to stop emitting more greenhouse gases now to avoid global warming getting out of hand and the effects shown below becoming even more serious.

1. 1. Rising Sea Levels – leading to habitat loss
2. 2. Shrinking Glaciers – reducing fresh/drinkable water over the longer term.
3. 3. Heat Waves – even in Scotland.
4. 4. Storms and Floods – a big impact on Scotland.
5. 5. Drought – leading to food availability and price issues
6. 6. Disease – some tropical diseases will spread to UK.
7. 7. Economic Consequences – all countries across the world will face additional costs to the impacts and effects of climate change
8. 8. Conflict and War – we may be fortunate but others will face turmoil, and we may see more immigration.
9. 9. Loss of Biodiversity & Destruction of Ecosystems – whole species could be lost, which may impact on the food chain and will ultimately affect how much food we have to eat.
10. 10. Energy and food security – we currently rely on a finely balanced system of production and distribution for our energy and food, which is genuinely under threat from the changes to our global climate.