Laserfiche WebLink
<br />December 21, 2009 Section 1: Introduction <br />amplified by climate change in most regions. Declines in mountain snowpack are <br /> <br />important in the West and Alaska, where snowpack provides vital natural water storage. <br />5. Crop and livestock production will be increasingly challenged. <br />- Agriculture is <br />considered one of the sectors most adaptable to changes in climate. However, <br />increased heat, pests, water stress, diseases, and weather extremes will pose <br /> <br />adaptation challenges for crop and livestock production. <br />6. Coastal areas are at increasing risk from sea-level rise and storm surge. - <br />Sea- <br />level rise and storm surge place many U.S. coastal areas at increasing risk of erosion <br />and flooding, especially along the Atlantic and Gulf Coasts, Pacific Islands, and parts of <br />Alaska. Energy and transportation infrastructure and other property in coastal areas are <br /> <br />very likely to be adversely affected. <br />7. Threats to human health will increase. - <br />Health impacts of climate change are related <br />to heat stress, waterborne diseases, poor air quality, extreme weather events, and <br />diseases transmitted by insects and rodents. Robust public health infrastructure can <br /> <br />reduce the potential for negative impacts. <br />8. Climate change will interact with many social and environmental stresses. - <br />Climate change will combine with pollution, population growth, overuse of resources, <br />urbanization, and other social, economic, and environmental stresses to create larger <br /> <br />impacts than from any of these factors alone. <br />9. Thresholds will be crossed, leading to large changes in climate and ecosystems. - <br />There are a variety of thresholds in the climate system and ecosystems. These <br />thresholds determine, for example, the presence of sea ice and permafrost, and the <br /> <br />survival of species, from fish to insect pests, with implications for society. <br /> Future climate change and its impacts depend on choices made today. - <br />10. The <br />amount and rate of future climate change depend primarily on current and future human- <br />caused emissions of heat-trapping gases and airborne particles. Responses involve <br />reducing emissions to limit future warming, and adapting to the changes that are <br />unavoidable. <br /> <br /> <br />Page 2 <br /> <br /> <br />