Climate Change Assignment: Impact On South & North Pacific Nations

Question

Task: Write a climate change assignment discussing the impact of climate change in south pacific island and North Pacific Ocean countries.

Answer

Executive summary
As discussed in this climate change assignment, climate change is the change in worldwide regional climate patterns, and attributed to largely to the elevated levels of CO2. Climate change is effecting different island nations negatively and causing elevated sea level, typhoons, tsunamis, and impacting agriculture sector. Climate change is occurred due both natural and human activities like increased sun energy and pollution. In the south pacific nations different measures are being taken such as developing programs to support individual, focusing on food and water resources. They should also focus n collaborating earth international organization. However the impacts in North islands nations are not very different they are as facing problems like tsunamis, increased sea level, and typhoons.

Introduction
Climate Change has accepted as the important issue of the current time and humans are at a crucial moment. It has been identified herein climate change assignment that from shifting weather forms that creep up food production, to growing sea levels that rise the risk of catastrophic flooding, the impacts of climate change problem are worldwide in scope and unparalleled in scale. Deprived of drastic action these days, adjusting to these impacts in the future can be more problematic and expensive (Kellogg, 2019). There is a broad- grounded contract within the specific scientific society that climate change is actual. Different organizations like The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, NASA, and the NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) be in accord that the climate change is certainly happening and is just about certainly because of human actions. The main cause of this problem identified in this climate change assignment is fossil fuels burning, for example, oil and firewood, which produces different greenhouse gases like CO2 and methane into the surrounding atmosphere (Pittock, 2017). Other different human activities, for example, agriculture and cutting down the trees, similarly subsidize to the propagation of harmful greenhouse gases that are responsible for causing climate change. Though some measures of these gases are a certainly happening and precarious portion of the temperature control system of Earth, the concentration of the CO₂ in the atmospheric did not increase above three hundred parts/million amongst the arrival of human evolution approximately 10,000 years before and 1900. Nowadays it is at around 400 ppm (Kellogg, 2019). This particular climate change assignment will discuss the how the climate is affecting different island nation of the south pacific, who is responsible, what type of measure can be taken to deal with this situation and comparison with north pacific ocean nations.

Impacts of climate change
Increasing typical temperatures do not only mean milder winters. Some areas will face more great heat though others might cool to some extent. Result of this problem can be flooding, drought and extreme summer heat. Powerful storms and other different dangerous weather occasions could similarly result from the augmented energy put away in the heating atmosphere. It has been identified in the climate change assignment that the way it will affect different water resources globally is one of the most severe impacts of climate change (Kundzewicz et al., 2018). Water is closely knotted to other different resources and societal problems, for example, food supply, public health, industry, transport and integrity of the ecosystem. The impacts of this global problem are previously being detected in different island countries of south and north pacific countries. Forests in Canada are predictable to be amongst the most affected in the world to the changes in climate. These specific forests support uncountable species and environments and are amongst the numerous instances of at-risk habitation. The worldwide meltdown of the ice sheets and mountainous glaciers signifies another, taking a huge toll on the Arctic ecosystems (Wang et al., 2016).

What is the impact of climate change on south pacific island countries mentioned in the climate change assignment?
South Pacific island countries are deliberated to be islands situated in the Pacific Sea that are the east of the both Australia and the Philippines. Occasionally this area is described to as the Oceania, which similarly comprises island region Australia. These particular islands are frequently divided into three dissimilar ethno-geographic areas: Micronesia, the Polynesia, and Melanesia (Taylor & Kumar, 2016). Different regions like New Zealand, Samoa, and Hawai’i are well recognized, but, there are numerous more nations in the area such as New Caledonia, Vanuatu, Samoa, Fiji, Tonga, and different southern Cook Islands that faced strong heating of 0.4 – 0.6° Celsius from 1900-1977 (Nunn et al., 2016). This has then decelerated to 0.1° C, with the regular rainfall decreasing by 15 % after the year of 1977. In the context of a probable marine level increase in the area, greatest sea level observing places in the South Pacific are reporting quicker upsurges of equal to 25 mm per year, above 10 times the tendency this period, results that have been authenticated by satellite information viewing 20-30 mm increases from the Papua New Guinea southeast to the Fiji Estimated establishment in greenhouse gas releases will expected increase temperature of the ocean and its surface water temperatures up to 26º C in the following century (Barnett & Waters, 2016). Different researchers reported in regards to the scenario of climate change assignment that this could lead to more exchange of the energy and supplement impetus to the perpendicular exchange courses important to tropical typhoons and cyclones development (Barnett, 2020).

Who/what is responsible?
As discussed in this climate change assignment, there are several reasons for climate change such as increasing greenhouse gas emission, increasing solar energy, and human activities. Some of the specific gases present or emitted in the atmosphere stop the escaping of heat. Long-lasting gases that continue semi-permanently in the air and avoid responding physically or chemically to alterations in the temperature are designated as "forcing" type of climate change. Gases, for example, water vapour, which reacts physically or chemically to alterations in temperature (Chang et al., 2016). Water vapour is recognized as the utmost abundant greenhouse gas, however prominently, it works as a response to the typical weather. Another harmful gas Carbon dioxide (CO₂) reported in this section of climate change assignment is recognized as a minor nonetheless very significant constituent of the atmosphere, CO₂ is unrestricted through regular processes, for example, breathing and volcano outbreaks and through different human activities for instance deforestation, alterations in land use, and burning different types of fossil fuels. Methane is another harmful constituent that is recognized as a hydrocarbon gas formed both through the regular causes and human doings, counting the decay of waste materials in landfills, agriculture, and principally rice cultivation, in addition to ruminant ingestion and manure controlling linked with domestic livestock. Other gases like Nitrous oxide and Nitrous oxide also responsible for climate change (Scavenius & Rayner, 2017).

Humans are similarly responsible for the changing climate. The manufacturing activities that current modern evolution is contingent upon have elevated levels of atmospheric CO₂ from two hundred parts/million to 412 parts/million in the previous 150 years. The climate change assignment also considers the study of different researchers who concluded there is a superior to 95 % chance that human-created greenhouse gases, for example, CO₂, methane and the nitrous oxide have produced most of the perceived upsurge in Earth's temperatures in previous 50 years (Kitoh, 2020).

It is realistic to accept that alterations in the Sun's energy creation would source the climate to change, as the Sun is the vital basis of energy that regulates the climate system. Certainly, different studies designate that solar changeability has played a significant role in earlier changes in the climate. For instance, a reduction in the activity of sun joined with an upsurge in volcanic movement is supposed to have facilitated activate the Little Ice Age between about 1650 and 1850. Since 1750, the regular amount of energy impending from the Sun either stayed constant or augmented slightly (Lewis, 2017).

Burning firewood, oil and gas generate CO₂, N₂O, and Cutting down the forests (deforestation) are the major cause of climate change outlined in the climate change assignment that is mostly affecting pacific island countries (PICs). Trees benefit to regulate the climate through absorbing the carbon dioxide from the air. Therefore when humans cut them down, that helpful effect is gone and the carbon kept in the plants is unconfined into the air, facilitating the greenhouse effect. Cumulative livestock farming is another reason for climate change. Methane produces by cows and sheep after digestion of food released in the atmosphere. Fertilisers comprising nitrogen creates nitrous oxide releases in the environment (Chang et al., 2016).

Measures are being taken/can be taken
As the islands situated in south pacific are more vulnerable to climate change, there are different measures are being taken and the governments should consider more measures that can be taken in future to tackle this problem. According to the reports contemplated in this climate change assignment, the effects of alteration in the climate and potential adaptation approaches are progressively being combined into policy agendas and guidelines. The assistances and proficiencies of the local population, nation-wide governmental establishments and regional groups are enhanced to cope with the influences of climate change and to address its causes (Charan et al., 2018). A pacific islands framework for climate change 2006-2015 were developed to tackle climate change issues in pacific islands nations. In 2005 the Front-runners permitted the Pacific Islands model for Action on issues of Climate Change. The goal of this Framework is to safeguard that Pacific Island individuals and societies build their capability to be strong to the threats and influences of climate alteration with the important objective to meet the probable results under some Principles. These principles are applying adaptation actions, Control and decision-making, refining the knowledge of climate change, teaching, training and consciousness, subsidizing to worldwide greenhouse gas decrease; and Partnerships and collaboration. This specific action plan presented within this climate change assignment is projected to subsidize to the application of the Framework with the help of actions considered in reaction to meeting the important results under each of these particular principles. This specific action plan is provincial, with nationwide activities accompanied by local programming in backing. It delivers a revealing list of choices for accomplishment on climate change (Blair & Momtaz, 2019).

PICs have dedicated to different global and regional contracts, for example, UNFCCC and associated Kyoto Procedure and the Pacific Strategy, for dealing with climate change effects within the background of their strategies for sustainable development. Different Pacific Islands Forum Front-runners’ meeting accepted the Framework for Pacific Islands to address Climate Alteration. In the context of accomplishment on the ground within this climate change assignment, around 24 projects concentrating mostly on climate change acceptance and basic humanoid capacity building are being used in the Pacific area (Barnett & Waters, 2016). Globally driven documents, for example, the NAPAs and regional models like PIFACC and essential Pacific Strategy are relevant to direct climate variation happenings. In reaction to the cumulative influence of climate change, nations in the Pacific area have applied different CCA events over the previous 2 decades. These range from actions that concentrate on mainstreaming change in the climate into nationwide and sectoral level guidelines, plans and approaches to real on-the-ground assignments. This particular range of work applied also comprises different climate and weather- associated DRM initiatives and assignments (Grecni & Keener, 2016).

Recommendations on the case of climate change assignment

1. Food security should also be the priority of each PICs as climate change also affect food resources. Pacific Island Nations need to evaluate their development policies for agriculture, forestry, fisheries and drinking water seriously.
2. The individuals are not yet adequately ready to address the present and future concerns of climate change as there is a lack of information, consistent data and adaptation approaches, for instance, endorsing alternative agricultural, fishing and forestry approaches. Thus increasing the awareness can also be added to the programmes. The mainstreaming of knowledge associated with climate variation at every level of preparation is imperious and must be monitored by suitable action at field or persons level.
3. Extreme occasions need to be prudently monitored seeing the destruction they can impose on ill- organized PICs (Chang et al., 2016). More importantly, this climate information must be analyzed.
4. Programs should be initiated that advises the administrations of different island states on developing policies and methods to make key areas associated with the economy for the anticipated climate- associated happenings.
5. As the climate change influences on nearly all sectors counting agriculture, travel, fisheries, water and public health, the associates are revising existing improvement plans and policy strategies for their climate elasticity, and regulating them consequently (McIver et al., 2017).

Different from North Pacific Ocean countries
It has been identified in the climate change assignment that the Pacific Ocean has heated during the previous sixty years or so. During 1955-1996, the higher 3 km heated by 30 per cent additional in the North Pacific (37 per cent) compared to the South Pacific (16%) (Bryant-Tokalau, 2018). Temperatures are estimated to rise from 1.4 to 3.7 per cent by 2100 than 2000, instead somewhat more in the areas of North Pacific compared to the South Pacific. Different Climate models expect that islands in the north of 17º S might experience upsurges in yearly rainfall, though islands of south of 17º might see Decline in the rainfall d. It has been reported that Normal rainfall reduces from more than 4 000 mm in the areas of north to below 1 500 mm in the south (Asch, Cheung & Reygondeau, 2018). The Marshall Islands experience the chief typhoon (cyclone) belt situated in the north Pacific, henceforth major storms are comparatively rare. Though, since the islands are atolls, the storm destruction can be serious, and storm flows can have considerable impacts. In different northernmost islands associated with RMI, the groundwater lens typically develops saline following drought phases. In different southern islands counting Majuro and Kwajalein, suitable rainfall stops this from happening excluding on the minor atoll islets. However, the effects of climate variation are not very different in north specific ocean countries (Gasalla, 2019). According to different researchers, climate variation in the pacific islands causing a continued upsurge in the surface and ocean surface temperature increased incidence of extreme weather happening and augmented rainfall throughout the summer months and a reduction in the rainfall throughout the winter month. It has been reported in the context of climate change assignment that similar to south pacific islands North Pacific Ocean countries also facing a shortage of water. As some of the nation's experiencing economic issues, it is difficult for them to overcome the impacts of climate change. Heating oceans, sea-level increase and additional intense weather happenings like storms and droughts are at present realities for nations in the area (Visbeck & Schneider, 2018).

Conclusion
Climate variation is discussed in the present climate change assignment as the rise in regular surface temperature on the earth. Climate variation is not limited to a particular country or state, it has been affecting people from all around the world including south and north pacific nations. Pacific island nations are the islands that are situated in the Pacific Ocean. The effects of climate variation on the south pacific island countries is serious. It has been reported in this climate change assignment that these areas experienced increased sea level, upsurge in the temperature, occurrence of typhoons and cyclones in the area. Both nature and humans are responsible for the altering climate. Some of the natural causes of climate change include increase sun energy/ human activities like the burning of fossil fuel, pollution, and increasing waste in the ocean is the main reason for climate change. There are a number of measures are being taken in these countries such as the implementation of pacific island framework for an action plan on climate variation (2006-2015), development of policies, educating people to address the effects of climate variation. However, they must also collaborate with international organizations, focus more on food security, increase awareness, and monitor extreme events. Similar to south pacific island nations, North Pacific Ocean nations are exaggerated by climate variation. It has been reported in this climate change assignment that the north area is 30 per cent more warmed than south pacific. The rainfall is also less in the north region. However similar to south, North Pacific Ocean country's fisheries, farming sectors are also affected.

References
Asch, R. G., Cheung, W. W., & Reygondeau, G. (2018). Future marine ecosystem drivers, biodiversity, and fisheries maximum catch potential in Pacific Island countries and territories under climate change. Climate change assignment Marine Policy, 88, 285-294.

Barnett, J. (2020). Climate Change and Food Security in the Pacific Islands. In Food Security in the Small Island States (pp. 25-38). Springer, Singapore.

Barnett, J., & Waters, E. (2016). Rethinking the vulnerability of small island states: climate change and development in the Pacific Islands. In The palgrave handbook of international development (pp. 731-748). Palgrave Macmillan, London.

Blair, A., & Momtaz, S. (2019). Climate variability and change in the caribbean and the south pacific learning from farmers perceptions and responses in antigua and efate. Current Trends in Oceanography and Marine Sciences.

Bryant-Tokalau, J. (2018). Indigenous pacific approaches to climate change: pacific island countries. Springer.

Chang, J. J., Kim, S. H., Shim, J. C., & Ma, D. H. (2016). Who is responsible for climate change? Attribution of responsibility, news media, and South Koreans’ perceived risk of climate change. Mass Communication and Society, 19(5), 566-584.

Charan, D., Raj, K., Chand, R., Joseph, L., & Singh, P. (2018). At the frontline of climate change: adaptation, limitations and way forward for the South Pacific island states. In Climate Change Impacts and Adaptation Strategies for Coastal Communities (pp. 69-85). Climate change assignment Springer, Cham.

Gasalla, M. A. (2019). Effects of climate change on the world’s oceans: footprints to adaptation in fisheries food production and security. COMING SOON, 17.

Grecni, Z. N., & Keener, V. W. (2016). Pacific Islands Regional Climate Assessment: Building a Framework to Track Physical and Social Indicators of Climate Change Across Pacific Islands. In AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts.

Kellogg, W. W. (2019). Climate change and society: consequences of increasing atmospheric carbon dioxide. Routledge.

Kitoh, A. (2020). Climate Change We Human Are Responsible for. In Human Geoscience (pp. 283-293). Springer, Singapore.

Kundzewicz, Z. W., Krysanova, V., Benestad, R. E., Hov, Ø., Piniewski, M., & Otto, I. M. (2018). Uncertainty in climate change impacts on water resources. Environmental Science & Policy, 79, 1-8.

Lewis, S. (2017). Extreme climate change: Damage and responsibility. AQ-Australian Quarterly, 88(1), 3.

McIver, L., Bowen, K., Hanna, E., & Iddings, S. (2017). A ‘Healthy Islands’ framework for climate change in the Pacific. Health promotion international, 32(3), 549-557.

Nunn, P. D., Mulgrew, K., Scott-Parker, B., Hine, D. W., Marks, A. D., Mahar, D., & Maebuta, J. (2016). Spirituality and attitudes towards Nature in the Pacific Islands: insights for enabling climate-change adaptation. Climatic Change, 136(3-4), 477-493.

Pittock, A. B. (2017). Climate change: turning up the heat. Routledge.

Scavenius, T. B. B., & Rayner, S. (Eds.). (2017). Institutional Capacity for Climate Change Response: A New Approach to Climate Politics. Routledge.

Taylor, S., & Kumar, L. (2016). Global climate change impacts on pacific islands terrestrial biodiversity: a review. Climate change assignment Tropical Conservation Science, 9(1), 203-223.

Visbeck, M., & Schneider, A. (2018). Future Earth, Climate Change, and Global Change: Future Earth’s Ocean. Global Change and Future Earth: The Geoscience Perspective, 3, 379.

Wang, X. J., Zhang, J. Y., Shahid, S., Guan, E. H., Wu, Y. X., Gao, J., & He, R. M. (2016). Adaptation to climate change impacts on water demand. Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change, 21(1), 81-99.