Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
RISK OF IMPACTS INCREASES WITH TEMPERATURE
PRIMARY
CLIMATE DRIVER
CONFOUNDING
FACTORS
IMPACT AREA
Extreme cold temperature,
precipitation
Agricultural practices;
herbicides & pesticides
AGRICULTURE
Crop pests, weeds, and disease: shifts in geographic range and frequency
Individual species: shifts in timing of flowering & breeding cycles, in geographic
ranges, and in populations
Temperature: averages,
extremes, degree-days
Landscape fragmentation
TERRESTRIAL
ECOSYSTEMS
Temperature, precipitation,
drought stress
Disturbances: changes in the frequency and timing of fire, pests, and disease
Land management practices
Temperature, precipitation,
carbon dioxide levels
?
Forests: shifts in primary processes including nutrient cycling,transpiration,
and respiration
SLR, saline and freshwater
inputs, water temperature
Local coastal practices, such
as subsidence
Individual species: shifts in geographic ranges and die-off
Maximum temperature,
ocean acidification
?
Corals and mollusks: declining calcification rates, more frequent bleaching events
COASTAL AND
MARINE
ECOSYSTEMS
Shifts in surface winds &
ocean circulation
Ocean temperature,
circulation, and nutrient
availability
?
Coastal upwelling zones: shifts in nutrient availability
Oxygen minimum (dead) zones: expanding geographic area and duration
Water pollution (nitrates?)
Accumulated and extreme
temperatures
Penetration & efficiency of
air conditioning technology
ENERGY
Increasing demand for air conditioning and decreasing demand forwinter heating
Permafrost melt, sea ice
duration & extent
?
In the Arctic: shortening of land, lengthening of marine transportation season
INFRASTRUCTURE
Temperature and
precipitation extremes
Risk of impacts from extreme temperature, precipitation, and storms
Shoreline development and
protection
Frequency, intensity &
duration of heat waves
Average and extreme
temperature &
precipitation
Precipitation, temperature,
snowpack and melt timing
Extreme cold temperature,
precipitation
Increased risk of heat-related illness and death
HEALTH
Human spread, cultivation
practices
Shifts in timing and geographic range of allergens and vector-borne diseases
Water management and
demand
WATER
Earlier peak streamflow, longer summer dry periods across much of the U.S.
FIGURE S.6 Our understanding of the impacts of climate change is still evolving, and quantitative information is currently too limited to
provide numerical estimates of the scale, scope, and timing of some impacts. This figure illustrates a number of such possible impacts along
with their primary drivers, as well as available information on confounding factors. {2.4, 5.1-5.8}
