Consequences of Global Warming

Posted by David on October 22nd, 2019

Consequences of Global Warming

Global warming is seriously affecting us. Large-scale climate changes that could have taken us thousands of years to happen are now happening within decades. As global warming continues to affect us, the temperatures are expected to keep going up. Heatwaves from the sun are being trapped in the atmosphere by greenhouse gases as a result of human activities.

Below are some consequences of global warming that can result in the mass extinction of human, plants and animals. Most of these consequences are already occurring, and others are expected to happen if the situation continues of global warming continue.

1. High temperatures

Human activities increase greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide and methane in the atmosphere. The gases trap the solar energy and retain the heat in the atmosphere, which results in heat waves on the surface of the earth. The temperatures become extreme even in the dry regions where temperatures could rise to 71° Celsius. Global warming increases the temperatures and more than 1.5 billion people to heatwaves.

2. Droughts

Increased heat has ended to the reduction in moisture which may persist over a long time. This increases the chances of droughts. Scientists have predicted that if the high temperatures prevail, the intensity of droughts will increase by 66%.

3. Desertification

The increased and prolonged heat periods are turning greener areas to deserts. Some areas are experiencing a shortage in rainfall where the evapotranspiration is making semi-arid areas to become more barren.

4. Forest fires

The high temperatures are resulting in increased wildfires. Large forests such as Amazon forest are experiencing wildfires which are fueled by high temperatures both at land and in the woods.

5. Decreased biodiversity

Due to global warming, natural habitats are becoming unfriendly to different animals such as birds and insects. For instance, due to high temperature animals that depend entirely on the cold season are migrating to the more frozen ecosystem in the Northern region. The competition of ecosystems is leading to elimination and displacement.

6. Flooding

Global warming is the cause of different flooding cases happening in different parts of the world. Due to the phenomenon, high latitude regions are experiencing more rainfall, creating floods. These floods destroy crops, infrastructures and may lead to loss of life.