9 Effects of Climate Change on the Environment

climate change effect

9 Effects of Climate Change on the Environment

As the propensity in temperature rises, so its effects. This is caused by climate change. A long-term distortion in temperature and weather patterns in either a particular place or the whole planet.
Climate change could cause the weather patterns to be less predictable and cause hardship in agriculture in regions where farming is a livelihood.

Climate change brings unexpected rainfall and temperature, floods, downpours, storms and drought. Human activities contribute largely to climate change, burning of fossil fuels like diesel, natural gas, oil and coal; these materials will release what is known as the greenhouse gas ( GHG) into the atmosphere.

Humans and wildlife face a lot of challenges to survive as it were, coupled with the challenges of climate change, the more there is frequent drought, storms, forest degradation, heat waves, rising sea levels, floods, erosions and ocean warming, the more challenges the earth faces, both human and wildlife alike. The effects of climate change are numerous.

Health risk caused by Heatwaves
Human health is at risk with climate change, air quality will reduce therefore leading to health issues like asthma attack, coughing, tightness of the chest or chest pain, it will further decrease lung function causing chronic lung disease.
When there are heatwaves, diseases that come with mosquitos like malaria, affects the human, pregnant women and children are likely to suffer more from this.

Flood
Flood has become the most occurring disaster especially in rural Africa, particularly North Africa, flood has done a lot of damage to homes and property, displacing people who cannot afford new homes, economic losses and shortage of food. In 2001, North Africa suffered a disastrous flood that recorded 800 deaths and 400 million dollars in economic loss.

Water
A lot of complications come with drought, from food shortage to lack of clean water for drinking or none at all, poor hygiene, sanitation and lack of food and nutrition. It also poses a lot of health issues either long-term or short-term health implications.
Drought caused by climate change can cause the death of fishes.

Agriculture
The aftermath of drought and flood is the inability to farm, low crop yields and insects, food shortage and increase in food prices. Also, livestock becomes malnourished and they could die, when this gets worse, it could lead to famine and death.

Lack of shelter
Many Africans are displaced as a result of severe flood and drought which destroyed many homes, shelters and villages. Many of these people can’t rebuild due to lack of resources and funds.

Population Vulnerability
Climate change can force some people to migrate, most men, leaving the women and children, the children become labored to survive and the women are left with more responsibility. Old people and young infants are susceptible to infections, diseases and malnutrition. Children often die from malnutrition and starvation.

National Security
Climate change can lead to insecurity, displaced people are not safe from both wildlife that need survival and humans looking for means to survive. Also, this could lead to international conflicts as there is a fight over limited resources for neighboring countries.

Ecosystem
The ecosystem is not left out as climate change has led to a change in freshwater, most wildlife has migrated because of this in search of survival and there is little or no interaction among species.

Heavy rainfall
Report says that new diseases are emerging in places they never occurred before, an estimated 93% of malaria deaths occurred in Africa due to unusual rainfall caused by climate change. This rainfall allowed malaria-carrying mosquitoes to survive more.

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