The Climate Change Crisis: Solutions and Adaption for a Planet in Peril

303 Pages·2018·2.15 MB·English

by  Ross Michael Pink

T H E
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C H A N G E
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Ross Michael Pink
The Climate Change Crisis
Ross Michael Pink
The Climate Change
Crisis
Solutions and Adaption for a Planet
in Peril
Ross Michael Pink
Kwantlen Polytechnic University (Surrey)
Burnaby, BC, Canada
ISBN 978-3-319-71032-7 ISBN 978-3-319-71033-4 (eBook)
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-71033-4
Library of Congress Control Number: 2018937450
© The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s) 2018
This work is subject to copyright. All rights are solely and exclusively licensed by the Publisher, whether
the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of
illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and trans-
mission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or
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The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication
does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant
protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use.
The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book
are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the authors or
the editors give a warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein or for any
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claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Cover illustration: Getty/Jose A. Bernat Bacete
Printed on acid-free paper
This Palgrave Macmillan imprint is published by Springer Nature
The registered company is Springer International Publishing AG
The registered company address is: Gewerbestrasse 11, 6330 Cham, Switzerland
This book is dedicated to my parents, Thomas and Dorothy Pink,
with love and gratitude
Acknowledgments
The research and writing of this book on climate change has been a fasci-
nating and rewarding journey of learning. Many people have contributed
to its completion. I should like to express my sincere appreciation to the
following generous and knowledgeable people: Rachael Ballard and the
editorial team at Palgrave Macmillan, Premier Peter Taptuna, Dr. Alan
Davis, The Honorable Thomas Mulcair, Isabel Alvarez, Dr. Apichart,
Niall O’Connor, Dr. Shew-Jiuan SJ Su, Dr. Jiun-Chuan Lin, Zamlha
Tempa Gyaltsen, Dr. Tingju Zhu, Dr. Anne Nyatichi Omambia, Dr.
Moctar Dembele, Dr. Jean Rasasolofoniaina, Dr. Allen Swagoto Baroi,
Dr. Mizanur Rahman, Dr. Khaled Hassen, Dr. Mehmood Ul-Hassan,
Dr. Heiko Balzter, Mayor Eva Pinnerod, Dr. Greg Millard, Dr. Diane
Purvey, Dr. Shinder Purewal, Dr. Francis Abiew, Dr. Noemi Gal-Or and
my wonderful family.
vii
Contents
1 Introduction 1
2 N orth America: Canada and the USA 15
3 S outh America: Brazil, Ecuador, Argentina 51
4 S outheast Asia: Thailand, Myanmar, Japan 75
5 China 109
6 A frica: Kenya, South Africa, Botswana 125
7 India 163
8 T he Middle East: Egypt, Israel, Jordan 185
9 E urope: UK, Italy, Greece 217
ix
x Contents
Conclusion: Climate Change Projections to 2100 257
Appendix A: The Paris Agreement 261
Appendix B: Climate Change Glossary 293
Index 295
1
Introduction
“Necessity … the mother of invention.”
Plato
Climate change is a worldwide phenomenon with profound impacts on
human development and the global environment. These effects are deci-
sively demonstrated by rising sea level, increased flooding, saltwater
intrusion, drought, extreme weather patterns, increasing health emergen-
cies particularly in developing countries, crop destruction, skyrocketing
food prices and severe water scarcity projected to affect 2 billion people
by 2050.
According to the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate
Change (UNIPCC) 4th Assessment Report, from 2020 to 2050 the
global average temperature will rise by 2.6 °C, sea level rise will be at least
1 m (10% of global population live in coastal areas), and crop yields will
decline significantly and by 50% in some African countries by 2020.1
The report warned of sea level rise of 18–59 cm by 2100, which is
regarded as a conservative estimate. Climate scientists also warn of no
Arctic ice by 2070. Combined, these effects will be profound and have
alarming consequences for the natural world, including human life.
© The Author(s) 2018 1
R. M. Pink, The Climate Change Crisis,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-71033-4_1
2 R. M. Pink
Every year the deaths of more than 300,000 people can be attributed to
climate change. It seriously affects a further 325 million people and causes
annual economic losses of USD 125 billion.1 Four billion people are vul-
nerable to the effects of climate change and 500–600 million people—
around 10% of the planet’s human population—are at extreme risk. As
such, climate change has been recognized as a fundamental threat to human
rights.2
Another sobering reality is the emergence of climate change refugees
numbering hundreds of millions. The respected IPCC has adopted the
research findings of Prof. Norman Myers, which state a figure of at least
200 million climate change refugees by 2050. Although controversial,
this figure and its daunting implications are by no means the final word.
Other scholars and climate scientists have calculated numbers as high as
500 million, including Dr. Mehmood Ul Hassan, Director of Capacity
Development at the World Agroforestry Center. Europe is struggling to
accept and absorb fewer than 1 million Syrian refugees, in stark contrast
to the humanitarian openness of Turkey and Jordan. One wonders how
the world community will respond to the coming global climate change
refugee crisis. Moreover, the Conference of Parties (COP21) that took
place in Paris in December 2015, although notable for adopting a new
and stringent global approach to carbon emissions, alarmingly omitted
any reference to climate refugees in its final communiqué, thus com-
pletely ignoring an issue that demands urgent and substantive action.
According to Marine Franck, coordinator of the Advisory Group on
Climate Change and Human Mobility, “Climate-related displacement is
not a future phenomenon. It is a reality; it is already a global concern.”3
Anthropogenic (man-made) greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions have
increased dramatically since the Industrial Revolution. These gases
include carbon dioxide (CO ), methane and nitrous oxide, and are the
2
main cause of global warming. “About 40% stays in the atmosphere,
60% goes into the oceans, soil, trees and plants. Scientists note that an
alarming 50% of CO emissions since 1750 occurred in the period
2
1975–2015.”4 After a decade of very high annual growth rates of global
CO emissions of 4% on average, the growth in emissions almost stalled
2