Effects of Climate Change on People
Geography: Edexcel IGCSE, topic 3.1.3
Effects of Climate Change on People
Current policies are expected to lead to 2.8-3.2°C of warming by 2100.
More deaths due to heat
- More people are likely to die from heat exhaustion (but some people could be saved from freezing too).
Problems with water availability
- Between 2018 and 2019, Cape Town suffered from a drought.
- Hotter temperatures may mean droughts are more common and also happen in new areas. Changing precipitation patterns may lead to more droughts.
- There could be wars between countries trying to secure access to water sources and fertile farmland.
Lower crop yields
- Climate change may increase temperatures making it harder to grow crops in many countries. Producing less crops per square metre would be the 'crop yield' decreasing.
- People may die of starvation or malnutrition because of this.
More extreme weather events
- More extreme weather events not only directly threaten human lives, but also has financial consequences. Hurricane Katrina cost the USA roughly $125bn.
- Cyclones or tropical storms would become more serious and would be more common.
- The cost of predicting extreme weather events and preventing them from doing damage will likely be large.
Loss of coastal areas
- Rising sea levels could lead to low-lying coastal areas becoming uninhabitable.
- In a world with temperatures 4 °C higher, London, New York, Rio de Janeiro, and Shanghai would be underwater.
- This will force migration, overcrowded living conditions, poverty and potentially, wars.
Test yourself on Effects of Climate Change on People
Under current policies, how much are temperatures expected to rise by 2100?
What are the potential effects of climate change on people?