Climate Change and its Effects
- “Climate change refers to any significant change in the measures of climate lasting for an extended period of time… climate change includes major changes in temperature, precipitation, or wind patterns, among other effects, that occur over several decades or longer” (Basics 2014). Climate change is a pattern, but its current effects have been amplified due to various human impacts. Climate change is a global problem and it is affecting areas all across the world.
- Both anthropogenic and natural factors attribute to climate change. Most greenhouse gases, one of the largest contributing factors to climate change, are released during the burning of fossil fuels, and are one of the largest anthropogenic factors that contribute to climate change. Natural factors are not as severe as human induced factors, especially with the current pollution emissions, however natural factors still contribute to climate change. All of these factors are causing problems throughout the environment. One area that has been hit hard by climate change is the Great Barrier Reef.
- Climate change is a huge danger to the Great Barrier Reef and “is widely regarded as the single greatest threat to coral reef ecosystems” (Osborne 2011). The Great Barrier Reef has experienced climate change before, but the change has never been this intense. The Great Barrier Reef is in danger and, “unless actions are taken to reverse it, climate change will lead to decreases in biodiversity and a loss of coral reefs” (Coffroth 2010). Even the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority released a statement in August of 2014 that the future of the Great Barrier Reef is poor and is expected to worsen (Cressey 2014).
- In recent years weather patterns all around the world have been changing. Temperatures are drastically increasing or decreasing and extreme weather has become more common. This is true for the Great Barrier Reef as storms and cyclones have hit the area with a higher intensity and frequency. The cause of the sudden change in weather patterns is climate change, “cyclone intensity is also predicted to increase in a warming climate” (Osborne 2011).
- Coral in the Great Barrier Reef can be destroyed in a storm, as the power of a storm can break coral into fragments. (GBRclimatechange 2009). Storms also cause coral cover loss, “disturbances, especially from tropical storms, are a major driver of coral cover, and more acute disturbances affect reefs today compared with 50-100 y ago” (Death 2012). There have been multiple experiments conducted in the Great Barrier Reef to determine which elements are responsible for the most coral cover loss. In one experiment, “tropical cyclones… accounted for 48%... of the respective estimated losses” (De’ath 2012). Storms were ranked as the number one cause of coral cover loss in the Great Barrier Reef in this experiment which analyzed data from 1985 to 2012. In another experiment it was found that storms were responsible for 33.8% of the coral cover loss in the Great Barrier Reef from 1995 to 2009 (Osborne 2011).
- Flooding causes an excess amount of fresh water to run into the ocean. After a cyclone, fresh water flows into the ocean which damages coral (GBRclimatechange 2009). After a storm passes, there is also a large amount of run-off water. Like fresh water, coral is damaged by the sediment from run-off water that occurs after a cyclone (GBRclimatechange 2009).
- Coral bleaching is one of the many factors of climate change that influence the Great Barrier Reef. “[Coral bleaching] is characterized by the loss of microscopic algae called zooxanthellae that live within the tissues of most corals” (Mass Bleaching). Zooxanthellae are one of the most vital elements of coral. “Zooxanthellae not only provide corals with a food supply, they are also responsible for giving corals their distinctive green and brown coloration” (Mass Bleaching).
- Coral bleaching is primarily caused by ocean acidification and rising ocean temperatures. Ocean acidification is caused by absorbing CO2, which is being released in higher levels due to pollution. Warmer ocean temperatures have also been linked to coral bleaching, “elevated ocean temperature has been established as the primary cause of mass coral bleaching events” (Spillman 2011). Because of its links to ocean acidification and rising ocean temperatures, overall, coral bleaching is caused by climate change.
- Coral bleaching mainly harms the Great Barrier Reef because of coral cover loss. In an experiment that found the influences which caused the most coral cover loss in the Great Barrier Reef from 1985 to 2012, “coral bleaching accounted for… 10% of the respective estimated losses.” (De’ath 2012). In another experiment that monitored coral cover loss in the Great Barrier Reef from 1995 to 2009, coral bleaching was responsible for 13.9% of the coral cover loss (Osborne 2011). Coral bleaching also makes coral lose its color; all of the coral turns to a dull white. Species of coral respond to coral bleaching in different ways, meaning that some coral are able to recover from coral while others are not.
Photos:
http://www.lovethesepics.com/2011/10/beyond-gorgeous-great-barrier-reef-46-pics/
http://www.123rf.com/stock-photo/weather_map.html
http://multimedia.quotidiano.net/?tipo=photo&medi
http://aquaa3.com.br/2014/06/alerta-o-aquecimento-global-danifica-corais-vitais-diz-onu.html
http://www.lovethesepics.com/2011/10/beyond-gorgeous-great-barrier-reef-46-pics/
http://www.123rf.com/stock-photo/weather_map.html
http://multimedia.quotidiano.net/?tipo=photo&medi
http://aquaa3.com.br/2014/06/alerta-o-aquecimento-global-danifica-corais-vitais-diz-onu.html