Consequences of the Ice Caps Melting
By: Rohit Shetty
With the ongoing increase in climate change and global warming, the future of the polar ice caps is not looking too bright. The ice caps are melting at an exponential rate, and according to analysts, the the ice caps are melting six times faster they were in the 1990s. The ice caps are a vital part of this world, and if they were to melt completely, there would be significant consequences. Such consequences range from rising sea-levels and habitat loss to the possibility of the next disease outbreak.
Before we explore the impact of the ice caps melting, let us first take a look at the causes for the ice caps are melting, and why they are melting at such a rapid rate. First of all, human-induced global warming acted as a catalyst for the ice caps melting, however, it is not the primary reason for the exponential melting rate. A process known as the ice-albedo feedback loop is the primary cause of the rapid melting rate. When the ice initially melts, the dark surface of the ground is uncovered, which results in more heat being absorbed, ultimately leading to more ice melting. This phenomenon is the reason scientists are so worried about the future of the ice caps; the ice-albedo feedback loop has caused the ice to melt at such an uncontrollable rate that humans are not able to react in time.
Now that you have a basic understanding of what exactly is happening to the polar ice caps, let us dive into the consequences of the ice caps melting. I would say that the most significant consequence of the ice-caps melting is a rise in sea levels. Scientists predict that when the Antarctic ice melts, the rise in the global sea level will be around 200 feet; this would result in the entire Eastern seaboard, as well as major west coast cities like San Fransisco and Los Angeles drowning underwater. Such a drastic rise in sea-levels may corrupt global economies; the loss of land will require citizens to evacuate and relocate, leaving behind major shipping ports and businesses. In addition, this type of geographical change will cause extreme habitat loss.
Finally, the melting of ice caps could result in the next disease outbreak. Now I know what you must be thinking, "How could ice melting cause a disease outbreak?" Well, let me tell you! The arctic permafrost is extremely old (thousand, or maybe even millions of years old), and the frozen permafrost soil is an excellent place for bacteria to linger for a very long time. This means that diseases from centuries ago, like the bubonic plague, could be preserved in the ice. Now, with global warming being at an all-time high, if the frozen permafrost were to melt away, diseases, such as those discussed above, could be released back into the world.
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Questions:
- How do you think that you, personally, can contribute to slowing down the rate at which the ice-caps are melting?
- Do you think that you will be significantly impacted by the ice-caps melting in your lifetime?
- What are some other consequences of the ice-caps melting?
29 comments:
I think changing my lifestyle in a way that can decrease the amount of greenhouse gas and melting that occurs is probably the only way that I can really contribute. The first steps I would need to take would be reducing the amount of time I use vehicular transport and maybe move to a more renewable form of travel. I don't think I will be physically affected as much by the melting, but mentally I believe I would feel guilty for contributing to it. The melting of the ice-caps would raise sea level,
People help by reducing the amount greenhouse gas by either riding a bicycle or walk and recycling paper, so we don’t have to cut down anymore trees. I do think I will be affected by the ice-caps melting because that can lead to climate change. One of the problems with the ice-caps melting will release frozen viruses.
I think that the way to contribute to slow down the rate at which ice caps are melting is to try and cut down on carbon emissions so that less heat is trapped. I can personally work towards this by carpooling more often and driving less, and by walking or riding my bike more. However, in the grand scheme of things, there is not much I can do to slow down the melting of the ice caps. I’m not sure what effect this will have in my lifetime since, but I do know that if we don’t find a way to slow down the rate, there will definitely be consequences in the future. The ice caps melting also results in the release of methane that has been trapped which contributes to the positive feedback loop since it is a greenhouse gas.
One way I could slow down the melt of the ice caps is if I consume goods/services that are ethically produced. Personally, I do not think I will be affected by the ice caps melting until it gets to a major issue, like the ones you mentioned in the blog (sea level rise, disease outbreak, etc.) Just because we aren't personally affected, though, doesn't mean we shouldn't care. I think other consequences of ice caps melting is the loss of polar bears, and this affects the entire food change, and could have unknown and severe consequences for the entire planet.
I honestly do not think that I can do anything to stop or reduce th smelting of ice caps because it is a global matter. The entire world would have to make some serious changes in order to reduce and slow the melting of ice caps. If it is even possible at this point. I was planning on doing my blog post over this because a year ago an article about deseases being trapped in melting ice caps popped up on my twitter feed, and it really spiked my interest. I think that those deseases that are going to be let out from the melting ice caps could definitely affect me and the whole world in the not so distant future because a desease that has been trapped in these ice caps for years and years could easily wreak as much or even more havoc as the corona virus is now.
One person cannot cause change, however, one person can spark change in another person who then sparks it to another, and so on. In similar terms, in order to personally slow down ice-caps melting, we would need to work together. I feel like I will be significantly impacted by the ice-caps melting since this would increase global temperatures. Furthermore, like what Jonathan said, prehistoric diseases have been found in the ice caps and could potentially resurrect and corona-fy the world once more. Overall, more consequences include the loss of landmass and an overall decrease in biodiversity as a result of no ice caps.
One way I would slow down the melting of the ice cpas is by reducing my environmental footprint. However, I don't think anything I do is going to affect the rate at all; it has to be a global effort. I do not feel like I will be personally affected in my lifetime, but you never know. If prehistoric diseases turn up I hope we have better management by then :). Another consequence of ice caps melting would be the affect on the thermohaline current which would change climates everywhere.
Personally, I can contribute to decreasing the rate of ice-caps by saving gas when I'm driving or cooking. I do believe that if ice-caps melt to a drastic extent, there will be inconvenient accommodations made in my life. Some detrimental consequences of ice-cap melting are that it would change temperatures and affect climate everywhere. Also, another harm is the loss of habitat of animals who depend on these ice caps such as polar bears and seals.
I can personally help slow the rate at which the ice caps are melting by simply lowering the amount of carbon emissions I produce by trying to travel by car less when I can help it. Some scientists estimate that the polar ice caps could melt in the next 50 years which would most likely have a pretty significant impact on my life, assuming I’m still alive then. One consequence of the ice caps melting is that the ocean currents would be altered and could lead to climate change in various parts of the Earth.
Personally, I can slow down the rate of ice-caps melting by relying less on cars and more on walking and biking. The biggest consequence I am worried about is the potential of the sea level rising about 200 feet. The drowning of west coast cities such as LA would have such a huge geographic and economic impact on the US and the world.
Although I do not believe that the melting icecaps will have a direct and major impact on my own life, I do believe that there will be an impact to a certain degree. Already, it can be seen how the icecaps melting is causing minor fluctuations in water temperatures, so I can force a future where that has larger implications.
I think that I can do my part to stop the ice caps from melting by not using cars as much and maybe carpool or walk to more places. The biggest consequence that concerns me is the sea levels rising, which will affect not only many animals and their habitats, but also cities that are near the coast. The rising sea levels would devastate many coastal cities. I do not think that I will be directly affected by the melting of the polar ice caps because I do not live near a coast, but I think that if major coastal cities shut down, we may be affected because in this day in age, everything is connected and if businesses shut down, then it will have an effect on everyone it goes out to. I doubt that I would be affected right away, but over time I think that he polar ice cap melting would affect me and everyone around the world.
I think that I can help stop global warming and ice caps melting by using my car less. One of my favorite after school activities with my friends is driving around and listening to music. However, this is extremely harmful for the environment. Unfortunately, I did not recognize the true danger of my actions until taking this class. Now that I know, I can carpool with my friends and make sure to pick the destination before getting in the car instead of driving around aimlessly. I do not think that the ice caps melting will necessary affect me during my lifetime, but it could potentially harm my grandkids and even my great grandkids. So, I think I should still be taking this matter seriously. Another consequence of the ice caps melting is that we would use a large freshwater reserve. As we have learned in this past unit, the ice caps hold most of our fresh water in the world, so when they melt and become part of the ocean, we will lose the fresh water as it mixes with the salty ocean water.
I personally don't think I can slow down the rate at which the ice-caps are melting, but with groups of other people, we could probably do something about the ice caps melting the affects it might have on our society. Some other consequence of the ice-caps melting is of course increase in water levels around the level. I think that I will not be significantly impacted by the ice-caps melting in my lifetime due to the fact that the Earth has over millions of miles of ice. The ice-caps have been melting faster than a few decades ago, but I still don't think the affects will harm my lifetime and other people.
I think that personally I can work to limit my use of things that produce greenhouse gases. This would not change anything unless a large quantity of people do it. I think that the only way the ice caps will significantly impact me is if there is a new virus cast out into the world. One consequence of the ice caps are the loss of habitats in the arctic. If the ice caps are melting, this could lead to the extinction of animals that only thrive in drastically cold climates such as the poles.
Personally in order to slow down the rate of the ice caps melting I could reduce my use of greenhouse gases and spread the message of how severe the consequences could be if this continues. I honestly do not know if I will be affected in my lifetime but I definitely think it is possible especially at the rate it is melting now. Another consequence of the melting will be the release of greenhouse gases because carbon is trapped in the ice.
As individuals I do not believe society can make an impact on slowing down the rate of which the ice-caps are melting, however, a combined, organized effort may prove helpful. I believe if governments theorize a way to reduce the albedo effect, we can start to see the ice-caps start healing. I was also thinking about if it would be possible to create large white “blankets” to cover the exposed ground to help stop the albedo cycle. I believe we are already starting to see huge impacts from the melting of ice-caps such as many tropical islands are starting to loose coastline due to rising sea level. This was made evident by a tour guide when I was on a cruise to the Caribbean. Some other consequences of the ice-caps melting is a massive decrease in the amount of available freshwater reserves as the glaciers are comprised of 100% freshwater.
One way I can reduce the slowing down of the ice caps is to reduce my ecological footprint and decrease the spread of greenhouse gases. I could be impacted because of what you said about the ability for the ice caps to release harmful diseases back into the atmosphere. Some other consequences of ice caps melting is that there will be a rise in sea levels. This may lead to wetland flooding and lost habitats for fish and other marine life.
We can reduce the ecological footprint by stopping the spread of greenhouse gasses. We need to be aware of this because we are losing the ice caps. We need to pollute less, so we can save the ice caps. The ice caps release dangerous gasses in the air. This could lead to our planet suffering.
The best I can do my part in slowing down the rate at which ice-caps melt is by decreasing the amount of greenhouse gases I release. I can do this by mainly spending money for services that do not emit much greenhouse gases. In my lifetime I do not think that I will be significantly affected though I have heard that the Maldives will be underwater in our lifetime. I saw in a documentary that there is some frozen ice in Canada that has methane trapped in it. The documentary showed them literally lighting ice on fire because it had such a high concentration of methane in it. If there are many more areas of such gases, then the melting of the ice-caps can lead to further global warming.
I don’t think there is much I can do personally to contribute to slowing down the rate at which the ice-caps are melting besides reducing my carbon footprint. I think that government regulations on carbon emissions should be controlled. I believe that I will definitely be significantly impacted by the ice-caps melting in my lifetime. I saw on the news that scientists predict that all beaches will be gone by 2050. However, by reducing our carbon emission rate by 40% or more, we can slow this down greatly. Ot is devastating for future generations if sea levels rise because they don’t know what they are missing out on. They won’t get to experience the same things that we did in our childhood, which is really upsetting.
I don't think that there is a lot that I can really do to affect the ice caps melting. realistically I just don't think that there is enough people who are going to change their lifestyle to accommodate, at least not right now. When it becomes a bigger threat I think people will change, but by then it'll be too late. However, I do definitely think that I will be affected by ice caps melting in my lifetime. There are so many people who live along coast lines and if they don't have homes it'll be a problem for the whole globe. where are the people going to live? we simply have to start making the changes now, but they're not happening fast or effective enough.
I think the best thing I can do to decrease the ice caps melting is to limit driving on the road as much as I can. Fortunately right now a lot of driving is being limited, but I honestly don’t think any true difference would be made unless we all stopped driving for an ample amount of time. I don’t really see this becoming a huge thereat in my lifetime, but rising sea levels is a huge threat and will definitely be a major problem at some point for those living on the coast.
I can slow down the rate of the ice caps by using less resources of transportation, such as cars. Instead of using cars I can walk or ride my bike. So in other words I can reduce my ecological footprint and also reduce my use of greenhouse. In a way I can be affected because the ice caps are melting so fast. A consequence of the ice caps melting is that when the ice caps melt it will go into the salty ocean and our fresh water will be all gone.
Although I don't believe that I will be significantly impacted by the melting of icecaps in my life, I believe that a few generations from now, their answer may be different. Personally though, I can try to carpool when possible as well as ride a bike rather than take a carbon-emitting vehicle. Also, I can try to limit my family's and my own use of certain utilities that would endanger the future environment for the upcoming generations.
Small changes in my daily lifestyle can help contribute to the largescale movement of slowing down the melting. For example, electing to carpool with friends to school or ride a bike to a friend's house. I certainly think that, at the current rate, the melting ice caps will have a significant effect on my life. In fact, property values in many water-front areas such as Florida and California are already dropping in anticipation of the rising water levels. If the ice caps melt completely, lots of lands used for business and living will be destroyed forcing people to move further inland. This would lead to higher population densities and economic pressure.
I think I can contribute to slowing down the rate at which ice-caps are melting by limiting my carbon emissions. This can include driving less and recycling more. If I am more aware of how each of my actions impacts the environment I can reduce my carbon emissions. I do believe that I will be impacted by the ice-caps melting in my lifetime. We are the earlier stages of the issue and over the next 50 years, I believe that the situation will continue to worsen if we do make changes.
I think I can contribute to slowing down the rate at which the ice caps are melting by being super aware of my own carbon production. I think unless major changes are made very soon, then yes I will probably be significantly impacted. Another consequence of the ice caps melting is gonna be loss of biodiversity.
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