Polar bears (Ursus maritimus) are the poster child for the impacts of climate change on species, and justifiably so. To date, global warming has been most pronounced in the Arctic, and this trend is projected to continue. There are suggestions that before mid-century we could have a nearly ice-free Arctic in the summer. This increases the urgency with which we must act to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions to delay or avoid some of the worst consequences of climate change.
One of the most important sectors of the economy, U.S. agriculture depends heavily on climate. Farms and ranches are also the largest group of owners and managers of land that impacts ecosystem services, such as greenhouse gas (GHG) mitigation, water quality and quantity regulation, and wildlife habitat and biodiversity conservation. In addition, agriculture is playing an increasingly important role in the energy sector through biofuels production.
The Eastern Shore is no stranger to the vagaries of climate and the inherent hazards associated with living in a dynamic coastal environment. However, our growing body of knowledge about global climate change strongly indicates that the rates of change and scale of impact will be greater in intensity and severity than ever before. Based on recent reports we can expect sea levels to rise at an accelerated rate of at least a meter or more by 2100 and cause increased coastal flooding, shoreline erosion and inundation mainland areas.
Predicting climate change impacts on biodiversity is a major scientific challenge, but doing so is important for assessing extinction risk, developing conservation action plans, providing guidance for laws and regulations, and identifying the mechanisms and patterns of impact to inform climate change adaptation. In the few decades since the threat of climate change has been recognised, the conservation community has begun assessing vulnerability to climate change.
The effects of climate change on marine ecosystems are accelerating. Identifying and protecting areas of the ocean where conditions are most stable may provide another tool for adaptation to climate change. To date, research on potential marine climate refugia has focused on tropical systems, particularly coral reefs. We examined a northeast Pacific temperate region – Canada’s Pacific – toidentify areas where physical conditions are stable or changing slowly.
New Zealand’s National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research is working to increase their ability to better predict climate change, as well as to create decision-making tools to reduce the vulnerability of New Zealand’s economy and environment to that change. For New Zealand, this means paying particular attention to regional atmosphere-ocean systems. One component is the New Zealand Ocean Acidification Observing Network (NZOA-ON).
The Range Extension Database and Mapping project (Redmap) is a citizen science effort to engage fishermen, divers, and other marine enthusiasts and professionals in monitoring for species range shifts through an online “spot, log, and map” tool. It is also being used as a climate change awareness and education tool with those same constituencies. Originally launched in 2009 for Tasmania, the goal was to harness the observation ability of the estimated 120,000 citizens who went fishing each year.
The Global Marine Hotspots Network was created because the oceans are not warming evenly and those areas that are warming the fastest – ocean warming ‘hotspots’ – can be considered as the world’s natural laboratories to provide the knowledge and tools to enable us to adapt wisely, efficiently, and effectively to meet the challenges of a warming environment. The Network was designed to better understand the impacts of climate change on commercial fisheries, which support coastal communities and global industries.