The Fourth IPCC Assessment Report shows high confidence that the world is warming. Small island countries, developing countries and Least Developed countries remain most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. For countries like the Marshall Island, with atoll islands situated just a few meters high from sea level, any uncontrolled sea-level rise has the potential to submerge land areas. Furthermore, climate change impacts could include increased tropical cyclone activities and coastal erosion. Coral bleaching and ocean acidification due to warming also have the potential to affect tourism, fisheries and agriculture, and the ability of the corals to regenerate. Sovereignty claims over natural resources and territory could increase, as maritime zones shrink due to the ambulatory nature of baselines.
The problem of climate change refugees and resettlement also pose challenges. Competition for scarce marine and natural resources could intensify, leaving countries like RMI - in dire straits. Loss of maritime zones, domestic, regional and international security, population migration and resettlement are issues closely tied to the impacts from a changing climate.
Ambulatory nature of baselines/ Loss of Maritime Zones
Though not indicated in UNCLOS, scholars such as Rayfuse, Caron and Soon have concluded that baselines are ambulatory. Thus, when baselines move, the outer boundary of the maritime zones (territorial sea, contiguous zone and exclusive economic zone) also move. Applying this theory, all coastlines and conversely maritime zones of states affected by sea level rise would move. That change would be most acute for low-lying states facing inundation.
Complete submergence of base points from which the Marshall Isl...
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... Climate Dangers and Atoll Countries, pg. 325 (2003), http://www.uea.ac.uk/env/people/adgerwn/ClimChange2003Barnett.pdf. They note that without coral bleaching, reefs would possibly be able to grow apace with rising sea-levels, but they are not expected to be able to sustain themselves with the combined impact of projected sea level rise, projected increases in bleaching episodes, and with the additional stressors such as increased land-based sources of pollution and increased atmospheric concentration of CO2.
These rights are limited in some zones and clearly defined.
ACP Fisheries II, Description of the Marshall islands Fisheries Sector, http://acpfish2-eu.org/index.php?page=marshall-islands&hl=en.
Id. Data suggests that total catch of Tuna in 2007 was around 68,000 tons.
Pacific Island Forum Fisheries Agency, http://www.ffa.int/node/567. See also, Anouk
Climate change has been affecting coral reefs in a negative way. If the climate continues to get warmer more of our coral reef become bleached, the structure of the reefs will become weak, and algae that keeps coral healthy will die. In the essay, “A framework for understanding Climate change impacts on Coral Reefs” by Joshua Clinner (2016), he emphasizes our climate change has become one of the long-term threats to coral reef. The article “Climate change and human impacts are damaging the world’s coral reefs”, which didn’t include an author (2001), states that the sea temperatures throughout the tropics has increased dramatically leaving much of the coral unhealthy. Spencer Hall (2008), discussed in his article “Coral Reefs and Climate Change”, how the increase in climate change puts a lot of stress on coral reefs because they are very sensitive to the change of temperature. Rigel B (2003) states in his essay, “Climate Change and Coral Reefs”, that coral reef has already been negatively impacted by
Climate change is on the international policy agenda primarily because of warnings from scientists. Their forecasts of a potentially dangerous increase in the average global temperature, fortuitously assisted by unusual weather events, have prompted governments to enter into perhaps the most complicated and most significant set of negotiations ever attempted. Key questions - the rapidity of global climate change, its effects on the natural systems on which humans depend, and the options available to lessen or adapt to such change - have energized the scientific and related communities in analyses that are deeply dependent on scientific evidence and research.
Leading scientists advise climate change will cause increases to the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events. Rising sea levels pose a significant risk to coastal communities, while the world’s oceans could become too acidic to support coral reefs and other calcifying marine organisms. Coral reefs contain only six per cent of the area of the Great Barrier Reef, yet they provide critical habitat and food for numerous species in the ecosystem. However, climate change has already impacted coral reefs in the Great Barrier Reef as corals are very helpless against its potential impacts. Eight mass coral bleaching events has occurred since 1979, triggered by unusually high water temperatures. And because of this, zooxanthellae (photosynthetic algae) leave their tissues and corals will have no more colours hence ‘bleaching’. Without the zooxanthellae, the corals that remain gradually starve to death. Once the coral dies, fish and a multitude of other marine species are soon affected. Rising sea levels and more frequent and intense storm surges will see more erosion of Australia’s coastline, causing community and residential
With the rising sea level it has already submerged a northwest island in the Hawaii region. This island goes by the name of whale skate. This island has disappeared and the rest of the islands up in that region are at steak for being under water. The islands are housing wildlife that are found nowhere in the world except these islands and most of these animals are endangered.
Climate scientists project that the detrimental effects of climate change will be most profoundly felt in low-income and tropical regions like Puerto Rico, making the island highly susceptible to climate change effects such as ocean acidification, rising temperatures and sea levels, and increased frequency and intensity of extreme weather events. Puerto Rico’s Climate Change Council (PRCCC) expects that the rising sea levels in Puerto Rico will affect our infrastructure, freshwater resources, agriculture, ecosystems and economic growth. The government needs to decide whether Puerto Rico requires more elaborate strategies for combatting rising sea levels, while taking into consideration what measures are
We need coral reefs, and not just to make the ocean look pretty and colourful, they are more than just that…
Coral reefs around the world are in danger. One of the causes is global warming, which has been increasing the temperature of the ocean water resulting in coral bleaching. This essay will focus on damage occurring to the Great Barrier Reef.
Coral Reefs are said to be the “tropical rainforest” of the sea. They are home to over 25% of all marine life (http://coralreefalliance.org.stories/storyReader$77). Over the past few decades they have been subjected to destructive anthropogenic practices. Some of the major threats to coral reefs include sedimentation, water pollution, harmful recreational activities, and global warming. All of these things cause stress on corals and can potentially cause mortality. Corals are made up of two parts, a polyp and zooxanthellae. A polyp is a calcerous body that grows from a hard part of the ocean floor. Zooxanthellae is a photosynthetic algae which lives in the polyp and provide energy for themselves and the coral. In many cases, corals undergo “bleaching,” which is a process where corals lose the zooxantheallae or chlorophyll pigment, and turn white (Wilkinson et all). After bleaching corals can survive for several months. It is possible for corals to recover by hosting more zooxantheallae, but it can take between 5 and 50 years for them to recover completely (Wilkinson et all, 1999).
No matter how great or how small the amount of carbon dioxide a country gives out it will affect everyone. Climate change is an issue that needs to be tackled soon before the damage it does cannot be repaired. One way we can fix it Kathryn Conlon who works for the National Exposure Research Laboratory said,” Extreme heat events in the United States are projected to become more frequent and intense as a result of climate change” (Conlon). With more frequent extreme heat, events occurring populations of people are going to be affected. Conlon also stated that” The combination of extreme heat creates dangerous conditions for urban populations [13]. For example, between 35,000 and 70,000 and over 700 excess deaths have been attributed to heat during the 2003 European and 1995 Chicago heat waves, respectively”(Conlon). With 74 percent of the population living in urban environments, these heat waves would be devastating on the health and well-being of individuals. The world health organization states that between 2030 and 2050, climate change is expected to cause approximately 250 000 additional deaths per year, from malnutrition, malaria, diarrhea and heat stress. Another effect that is occurring is called ocean acidification, what is happening is the oceans pH levels are decreasing which is caused by the uptake of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Lower pH levels in the ocean effects coral reefs and shellfish like clams and oysters. Ove Hoegh-Guldberg a university of Australia graduate said, “The result will be less diverse reef communities and carbonate reef structures that fail to be maintained. Climate change also exacerbates local stresses from declining water quality and overexploitation of key species, driving reefs increasingly toward the tipping point for functional collapse”(Guldberg). If coral reefs collapse, it will be catastrophic for marine life
The temperatures rise and the amount of rainfall decreases which disturbs the natural system of the Earth, causing ice caps to melt, sea levels to rise, plants and animal food sources to deplete which in turn affects humans food sources and agriculture, and natural disasters to occur more often. Similarly, climate change seems to have the greatest impact on the oceans and ecosystems along the coast. Many countries center themselves on their water supply; for instance, throughout history, population has always been the densest along rivers and lakes, but mostly along the coasts. People need water to survive, not only for drinking and their homes, but they also use water to import and export goods, and for transportation. “Many areas of the United States, especially the West, currently face water supply issues. The amount of water available in these areas is already limited, and demand will continue to rise as population grows. The West has experienced less rain over the past 50 years, as well as increases in the severity and length of droughts; this has been especially of concern in the Southwest” (“Climate Change Impacts”). Another concern of climate change is the rising of sea levels, which is caused by ice melting or the shifting of the land and the plates. When the sea level rises, it affects not only all of the human activities, but the quality of their water, as well as the plants
Hoffman, J. (2007, May). The maldives & rising sea levels [Fact sheet]. Retrieved March 16, 2014, from Ice Case Studies website: http://www1.american.edu/ted/ice/maldives.htm
According to the World Bank Development Report 2013 there has been an increase in global surface temperature of 0.4 to 0.9 Celsius (C) in the past 100 years. This change in temperature largely caused, according to the IPCC, by the release of GHGs through human activities. There are several effects associated to the change in global temperature, mainly affecting ecosystems and populations worldwide. Among these effects or consequences are sea-level rise, drought, floods, loss of mangroves, and the intensification of storms and climate processes such as El Nino and La Nina. Recent studies have focused on sea-level rise and the global effects. Over the past 100 years, sea levels have increased by 10 to 20 centimeters (World Bank, 2003). Moreover, arctic sea-ice has continued to shrink up to 10 percent or more of its total mass and by 40 percent of its thickness. Glaciers and small ice caps are rapidly melting, causing several changes in the flows of rivers and ecosystems, as well as adding to the increase of sea levels. Sea level rise will most likely severely affect unprepared, developing countries and their populations. Concomitantly, developed industrial countries with higher levels of GDP are likely to cope more efficiently with the effects of sea level rise. This paper will focus on the prognosticated socio-economic costs of s...
Climate change is an inevitable phenomenon that is being experienced globally in various forms, such as temperature rise. Sea level rise, droughts, floods, hurricanes, landslides, etc. According to the fourth assessment report of the IPCC project, even with immediate implementation of mitigation strategies, global climate change will continue for decades. Climate change is inflicting serious consequences on human wellbeing and will continue to inflict damage in the future. It is estimated that global temperature will rise by 1.8 oC - 4.0 oC by the end of the 21st century (Izaurraade, 2009).
One of the major effects of global warming is the rise of sea level due to thermal expansion of the ocean, in addition to the melting of land ice. Now there are dozens of land areas that sit well below sea level and the majority of those land areas are very well populated. At least 40 percent of the world 's population lives within 62 miles of the ocean, putting millions of lives and billions of dollars ' worth of property and infrastructure at risk. (Juliet Christian-Smith, 2011) This means if the sea level rises to the projected level of 25 meters (82 feet) half of the world will retreat back to the ocean. (Rohrer, 2007) Also rising sea levels means higher tides and storm surges riding on ever-higher seas which are more dangerous to people and coastal inf...
Coral Reefs need to be preserved for many reasons. In this paper I will discuss a