The Arctic Case Study
- Created by: EMAW11
- Created on: 10-05-14 13:10
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- The Arctic
- Environmental Impacts
- melting of ice sheets like the Greenland ice sheets will mean an injection of fresh water into the sea. this will cause changes in the density of the water and could disrupt ocean currents like the north atlantic drift.
- thawing of permafrost releases more CO2 and methane- permafrost is a natural sink.
- Ecological Impacts
- Changing climatic regions means habitats of come species are being reduced or lost. e.g. polar bears
- knock on effect as some species rely on others. e.g. for food
- decrease in e.g. fish due to increasing or decreasing waters
- Socio-economic Impacts
- shrinking sea ice could open up new shipping routes
- new natural resources may be exploited e.g. less sea ice increases the area available for fishing
- it's thought there are undiscovered oil gas reserves in the Arctic. Unfrozen ground would make it easier to find and extract
- Access to new resources may lead to conflict
- warmer soils and climate may increase the opportunity for agriculture or forestry
- thawing of permafrost can result in collapsed buildings and broken pipelines where ground has become less stable
- Environmental Impacts
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