Human Activity & Climate Change Flashcards

All 5 cards in this deck

Which human activities increase the amounts of carbon dioxide and methane in the atmosphere?

Burning fossil fuels increases carbon dioxide; livestock farming increases methane.

What is the overall trend in the amount of carbon dioxide in the Earth's atmosphere over recent decades?

It increases over time (a positive trend), although it rises and falls within each year.

True or false? The correlation between rising carbon dioxide levels and rising global temperature proves that human activity is causing climate change.

False. A correlation does not prove cause, and there are uncertainties from where measurements are taken and from the accuracy of historical data.

State two possible effects of the increasing amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.

Global warming (increased global temperatures) and melting of ice caps/glaciers. Other effects include rising sea levels, changing habitats and more extreme weather.

Give two ways the effects of increasing greenhouse gases may be mitigated.

Using renewable energy instead of fossil fuels, and capturing and storing carbon dioxide (or planting more trees).