Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
states to the north that have been losing population. However, given the
range in climates between Alabama and Minnesota, and the range in
topography and elevation between the Okefenokee Swamp and the
Rocky Mountains, there is enough variation in ecological conditions that
abundant plant, animal, and human life will continue regardless of tem-
perature changes. It is all part of the overall nonlethal ebb and fl ow of
history. As has often been said, the only constant in our world is change.
Adaptation is required; change cannot be stopped.
The ethnic group most seriously affected by climatic change is the
indigenous peoples generally called Eskimos. The 155,000 Inuits, who
are spread widely from Russia to Alaska to northern Canada and Green-
land, have received the most publicity. The fi sh and wildlife they depend
on are following the retreating ice caps northward. Hunters are falling
through the thinning ice and drowning. One hunter hauled his fi shing
shack onto a previously stable area of ice and then had to watch three
days later as the ice broke up, sweeping away his shack and $6,000
worth of fi shing gear. Another hunter drove his snowmobile onto ocean
ice where he had hunted safely for twenty years. The ice fl exed, and the
machine started sinking. He said he was lucky to get off and grab his
rifl e as the expensive machine swiftly sank into the icy depths. In Russia's
northernmost territory, the Inuit have drilled holes for water because
there is so little snow to melt. One Inuit hunter commented that, this
world is slowly disintegrating. Inuit elders cannot pass on their tradi-
tional knowledge because it is no longer reliable.
Biodiversity
The IPCC forecasts that biodiversity will decrease in the future indepen-
dent of temperature change due to a multitude of pressures, particularly
land use intensity and accelerated destruction of natural habitats. Most
signifi cant will be habitat loss and fragmentation as the human popula-
tion increases; introduction of invasive exotic species; and direct effects
on reproduction, dominance, and survival.
Death from Heat and Cold
Environmentally concerned organizations and others worried about
global warming sometimes mention excess deaths from heat waves as
another reason to worry about a warming climate. There certainly are
deaths and illnesses due to heat waves, and they are always well
reported by the media, particularly now that global warming is on
everyone's mind. However, cold-related deaths are far more numerous
