Climate Change Impacts on Queensland Fire and Emergency Services - Case Study Example

Running Head: Climate Change Impacts on Queensland Fire and Emergency Services Name Institution Course Professor Date Climate change and its impacts Introduction Climate transformation is the statistical circulation of weather patterns when that change lasts for an extended duration of time from years to centuries even to millions of years. In this report I am going to discuss different causes of climate change and the effects of climate transformation both negative and positive influences with regards to how they affect operations and day to day rescue services of The Queensland Fire and Emergency Services. QFES is a perfect organization to use as a case study since Queensland is one of the Australian towns that has been heat by disasters caused intensified by climate change that create punitive conditions in the state ranging from flooding rains to droughts. The state is the second most inhabited state in Australia hence the need for catastrophe preparedness to prevent losses of lives and property. It has approximately 36000 Rural Fire Service volunteers, 6000 State Emergency Service Volunteers, approximately 2,200 permanent fire fighters, more than 2000 auxiliary fire fighters. Causes of climate change The frequency at which earth receives energy from the sun and the frequency at which the same energy is lost to space regulates the symmetry temperature and earth climate, scientifically this phenomena is termed as radioactive forcing (Miles, 2004). This energy is circulated around the world by ocean currents, winds, and other means to affect the climates of diverse areas. Forcing mechanisms are grouped into two major groups; internal and external forcing mechanisms. Internal forcing mechanisms These are natural processes within the climate system itself and they result in internal climate variability. Life Floral and faunal records that have been compiled over time have proved that living creatures affect climate through release of carbon and water cycles such as transpiration (Schwartzman and David, 1989). Other processes caused by living things include cloud formation and weathering. Oxygenic photosynthesis is a biological process in plants that utilizes sunlight to create chemical energy. Although there are some differences between oxygenic photosynthesis in plants, algae, and cyanobacteria, the overall process is quite similar in these organisms (Kopp, Kirschvink & Hilburn, 2005). Photosynthesis is not only needed by photosynthetic organism for energy but also for carbon fixation .this process causes change in climate over a long period of time. The process is responsible for glaciation 2.3 billion years ago. The Azolla event. This was an occurrence of 49 million years ago where it is believed that a fresh water plant; the Azolla as it sunk into the stagnant sea bed it was incorporated into sediments which resulted in carbon dioxide reduction. This reversed global warming and is responsible for the extremely low temperatures of the Polar Regions. Ocean variability The ocean covers a large part of the world we live in thus has a major contribution to the climate though it takes longer than atmospheric processes due to thermal inertia. Although some are short term like El-Nino but such processes that take decades are not called climate change; they are called climate variations (Dutton & Barron, 1997).Thermohalane circulation is a perfect example of how the ocean causes climate change, it is defined as the circulation of water around the globe due to density of the water, the density of water is solely determined by temperature are salt concentration temperature change in ocean water is caused by wind and salt concentration reduces when there are large amounts of fresh water entering the sea (Haug & Keigwin, 2004). As water moves around the globe it carries with it energy in form of it and solids in solution and undissolved state. This cycle takes up to a thousand years and causes climate change. External forcing mechanisms External forcing mechanisms are factors that change climate and are either natural or anthropogenic. Orbital changes The earth is always at constant motion revolving around the sun and rotating on its axis (Zemp, Roer, & Paul, 2008). This motion causes climatic change depending on the position of the earth in relation to the sun. There are three types of orbital changes; 1. Earths eccentricity-this is a parameter that determines the amount by which the earth’s orbit around another body deviates from a perfect circle. 2. Changes in the axial tilt of the earth-this is the change in the angle between the earth’s rotational axis and its orbital axis. This is a 41,000 year cycle that causes climate change especially at the poles.it reaches a point where one pole is tilted towards the sun and the other away from the Sen. This affects temperatures and causes to melt leading to disastrous occurrences like avalanches, rise in sea level, floods, bushfires. 3.Precision of the earth’s axis-this is as low, gravity induced and progressive variation in the orientation of the earth’s rotational axis. These orbital changes are combined and presented graphically, the graph is called Milankovitch cycles and affect the climate significantly for their relation to glacial and interglacial periods, the change in size of the Sahara and their appearance in stratigraphic record(Haug&Keigwin, 2004). Themilankovitch cycle shows how after an ice age carbon dioxide levels increase over time hence the steep rise in temperature. Solar output The sun is the main source of energy for the earth, even minor discrepancies in the amount or circulation of energy coming from the sun might have a key impact on the climate of the earth when they persist (Haug & Keigwin, 2004). Nevertheless, satellite computations of solar production illustrates no net intensification in solar output force over the last thirty years, only small periodic changes that cannot make notable change in climate. The obtainable evidence propose that solar action has been jaggedly persistent (aside from the eleven year solar sequence) since the mid twentieth century but that it augmented to some extent during the late ninetieth and early twentieth centuries. The entire solar compelling since the 18th century is estimated to be less than 0.3 W/m2. Cosmic rays. These do not cause significant change to the climate but it has been proposed that cosmic rays might influence Earth’s climate by modifying cloud properties or through a variety of other mechanisms (Driese, 1996). Cosmic rays are determined by solar action, so it is problematic to examine the influence of cosmic rays separately. Nonetheless, direct examinations of cosmic ray changes do not demonstrate any net variation over the last thousands of decades, and a reasonable physical mechanism connecting changes in cosmic rays to variations in average temperature has not been revealed. Henceforth, cosmic rays are not viewed as a significant climate forcing. Plate Tectonics Over the course of many of years, the motion of tectonic plates reconfigures worldwide land and ocean areas and causes topography (Retallack, 2001). This can affect both local global patterns of climate and atmosphere-ocean flow. The location of the landmassesregulates the geometry of the oceans and thus influences outlines of ocean circulation. The positions of the seas are very significant in controlling the transmission of moisture and heat across the earth, and thus, in determining worldwide climate. The latest example of tectonic regulator on ocean rotation is the foundation of the Isthmus of Panama out five million years ago, which shut off direct collaborating between the pacific and Atlantic Oceans. This intensely affected the dynamics of what is currently referred to as the Gulf Stream and that might have led to Northern Hemisphere ice cover(Driese, 1996). Throughout the carboniferousperiod, over three hundred million years ago, plate tectonics might have activated large-scale storage of carbon and also amplifiedglaciation. Geologic indication points to a "extra-large monsoonal" circulation pattern throughout the time of the super-continent Pangea, and climate modeling recommends that the being of the super-continent was favorable to the formation of monsoons (Haug&Keigwin, 2004). The size of landmasses is also veryessential. This is because of the stabilizing outcome of the oceans on temperature, annually temperature disparities are usually lower in coastal regions than they are in other parts of the mainland. A larger super-continent will thus have more area in which climate is intensely seasonal than will several smaller islands or landmasses. Human influences In the context of climate difference, anthropogenic factors are human actions which influence the climate. The scientific harmony on climate change is that the climate is taking turns and such changes are largely caused by the activities of human beings, and these climate changes are irreversible (Paul, 2008). Of most anxiety in these anthropogenic influences is the increase in carbon dioxide levels due to releasesespecially from fossil fuelburning, then followed by aerosols (particulate substance in the atmosphere) and also the carbon dioxide released by factories manufacturing cement (Hilburn, 2005). Other influences, including the use of land, ozone exhaustion, animal agronomy and deforestation, are also of distress in the roles they play; both separately and in combination with other factors – in affecting microclimate, climate, and measures of climate variables. Effects of climate change Bushfires Bushfires are a common occurrence in Queensland since due to climate change there are long droughts that take years to end, with prolonged droughts come bushfires that threaten wildlife and human life and pose a threat of lengthening of the drought.(Kerry,2007) It is resource and man-power demanding to put off the fires. Examples of bushfires in the recent past handled by QFES-Millstream bushfire, 19th Sept. 2015, no loss of life, large vegetation cover burnt, emission of smoke that led to slowing down of traffic. Mt. Emerald bushfire (19th September 2015) residents of Springmount and Marnane road had to be evacuated. Heatwaves A heat wave is an extended duration of excessive heat resulting from a combination of certain humidity, temperature and air movement combination. Heat waves mostly go unnoticed because more concentration is paid to the bushfires that accompany them but in Australia, heat waves are the second largest cause of death after disease. Floods Floods are caused by heavy rainfalls or rise in the sea line. All this caused by climate change that has altered the rain patterns over time. The rise in sea level specifically is something that QFES deals with directly since Queensland has a large coastal line and when the levels of water in the ocean rise, major towns of Queensland are largely affected, this necessitates evacuation of people and property (Haug&Keigwin, 2004). Queensland and New South Wales floods of 1990-Over one million square kilometers square were flooded in April 1990.Nyngan and Cherleville were the most affected areas with approximately 2000 homes inundated,60 people injured and 6 deaths. Brisbane floods of 2010-2011 – series of floods began in December 2010, this led to evacuation of thousands of Queensland especially from the capital Brisbane. The damage caused by the floods was estimated at A$1 billion. After the floods it was the work of QFES to clean the city streets, mobilize volunteers to help people move back to their homes and businesses. Cyclones A Cyclone is an area of low pressure around which winds flow clock wise in the southern hemisphere and vice versa on the northern hemisphere. The tropical cyclone season in Australia is between November and April (Bureau of Meteorology, 2001) Cyclone Larry of 2006-this was a category five cyclone that hit speeds of up to 290km/h, although life was not lost the damages were estimated at $1.5 billion. Cyclone Yasi of 2011-this cyclone on the north of Queensland started as a level three cyclone but advanced to a level five with time, the QFES did a good job evacuating people from the coastal region prior to the disaster but damage to property could not be prevented, Insurance claims were estimated at $650 million. Drought Drought is low or total lack of rainfall. Australia is the driest of all inhabited continents. Australia as a whole has had two significant 100-year droughts in the past century; these droughts result in monetary losses, death and environmental degradation. The Millennium Drought of 2002-2007 –this was actually two separate droughts of 1 year each and was caused by two separate El-Nino events.(Margaret N., et al.,2011)this drought adversely affected agriculture all over the country. System Model of Climate Change Impacts The figure illustrates the effects of climate on Queensland’s Fire and Emergency Service Conclusion From the above discussions, it is obvious that climate change affects the day to day operations of Queensland Fire and Emergency Services, even with a large staff to assist in rescue procedures climate change presents a major threat to human life and the economy. This is a way opener for litigation on the conservation of the environment. Reference Christner, B., Morris, C., Foreman, C., Cai, R., Sands, D., (2008). Ubiquity of Biological Ice Nucleators in Snowfall Bureau of Meteorology (2001). A hundred years of science and service Dutton, F., Barron, J., (1997). 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