Global Warming-Food Security and Agriculture

You are to prepare a major report on one of the topics listed below. In order to prepare for the report, read the material specified in the preceding sections and discuss issues related to your topic with people involved in that sector in your community. The report should be two to three pages in length (700 to 800 words). This report is a major report with a value twice that of normal reports in this course. The report must be written in your own words but mnay include quotations from refences which must be noted Select one of the topics listed below and write your report considering the following: What are the major issues? What should citizens, politicians and industries/businesses leaders in your community do to prepare for and adapt to climate change? * Topic 1 – Health Care * Topic #2 – Food security / agriculture * Topic 3 – Infrastructure * Topic 4 – Air quality * Topic 5 – Tourism It is important we understand how climate change will affect us on a global level in order to mitigate global warming. However, it is as important that we understand regional climate change in order to adapt to predicted changes in climate at a local level. Our economic, social, and general well being are all linked, both directly and indirectly to climate. It influences the crops we grow, the productivity of our forests, the spread of disease, the availability of water, the health of ecosystems, and the stability of our infrastructure. Adaptation to climate is not new to Canadians. We have successfully adapted to seasonal and annual weather fluctuations for hundreds of years. Highway snow removal, management of water levels along the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Seaway, and the construction of floodways, breakwaters, and irrigation systems are all examples of modern adaptations to Canada's naturally variable climate. Adaptation to climate change poses particular challenges beyond those related to coping with normal climate variability. Global climate change is happening much more rapidly than we have ever had to deal with in the past. The IPCC Working Group II Report Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability, tells us that North Americans will need to prepare for increasing average temperatures, rising sea-level, changes in precipitation patterns, and, for some areas, an increase in the frequency and severity of extreme weather events, and that the projected impacts of change are likely to occur over a relatively short time span. The pace of the projected changes and the timeframes for implementing responses combine to make it critical to be as well prepared as possible. The IPCC Report also states that “Although North America has considerable adaptive capacity, actual practices have not always protected people and property from adverse impacts of climate variability and extreme weather events.” Adaptation involves making adjustments in our social and economic activities to enhance their viability and reduce their vulnerability to climate change. This includes measures to reduce or avoid negative impacts, and also the steps we take to maximize new opportunities. Investing in scientific research, developing industries focusing on new sustainble energy technologies and developing management and investment plans that incorporate responses to climate change are also part of adaptation. Log onto the Natural Resources Canada website: www(dot)nrcan(dot)gc(dot)ca. (This site will open in a new window.) Click the English button and then select Earth Sciences on the left side of the page. Select Climate Change on the left side of the page. Now, from the list in the center of the page, select From Impacts to Adaptation: Canada in a changing climate 2007. Now select Adaptation 101 on the left side of the page. Read the material listed under each of the following headings in the Adaptation 101 Index on the right side of the page: · Introduction · Impacts: physical / biological · Impacts: extreme weather · What is adaptation? · Adaptive capacity in Canada · Adaptation initiatives in Canada · Moving forward on adaptation to climate change Impacts and Adaptation Program Go back to the previous page (or click on the following): From Impacts to Adaptation: Canada in a Changing Climate 2007 (This site will open in a new window.) Scroll down to your province, i.e., Chapter 6: Ontario. Read the Key Findings noting the potential impacts of climate change in infrastructure, water shortages, human health, remote and resource based communities and ecosystems. Then using the Next Page button at the top of this section, scroll forward and read each of the sections on Introduction, Regional Context, Climate Sensitivities, Impacts and Vulnerability: Subregional Perspectives, and Synthesis. Refer to this section when researching to complete your journal for this lesson.