Adaptation & Mitigation to Climate Change

Italy has a National plan for irrigation to support the agricultural sector and has a some money to alleviate the effects for extreme events including droughts.  The Italian regional governments have included the Climate change in there Rural Developments Plans (RDPs).  The purpose of the RDPs is for energy saving and green energy reducing Green House Gases emissions. Carbon sequestration in agricultural soils and for the new forests. investments in renewable energy and adapting to the climate change. ( http://unfccc.int/resource/docs/natc/ita_nc5.pdf).  A  couple regions are focusing on adaptation measures in practices that are compatible with changing climate.   The RDPs is aiming at protecting the soil and restoring is stability as improving soil quality and reducing the organic content loss, water resources like water saving technologies. 

This graph is from (http://metrostate.blackboard.com/webct/urw/lc5116011.tp0/cobaltMainFrame.dowebct)

 The top graph shows that the extremely hot weather in 2003. It was recorded the hottest it has ever been that year. there were a lot of deaths that year due to the heat wave estimated of 35,000 elderly people were effected in June to August from the heat.  The red part of the graph shows the areas where is it was the hottest. The temperatures has risen 3- 5  degree's Celsius in the Southern and Eastern  parts of Europe. 

Italy has ratified the Kyoto Protocol they signed April 28, 1998, Ratification Acceptance was May 5, 2002 and Entry into force was February 16, 2005 and the % of emissions is 3.1%

This graph is from (http://climatepolicyinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/Tracking-Emissions-and-Mitigation-Actions.pdf)

Some of the alternative energy sources that Italy is taking in consideration is renewable energy that comes from resources that replenished sunlight, wind, rain, and geothermal heat.   

 after taking this class, it makes you  think more about the feature and how the green house gases have affect on our country, I think Italy should try to adapt and reduce the problem. having the sea leaving rise you can't stop that from happening but trying to reduce the green house gases, looking at other opportunities  for 

growing crop and using renewable energy.  

Impacts of Climate Change

 Climate changes in 2007: working Group 1
 I became more aware of  Europe's annual temperatures will likely increase then the global mean and also as well as the precipitation will increase in the winter and decease in the summer which means the drought conditions are going to increase  and with less snow fall in the winter.

This graph is from http://www.ipcc.ch/publications_and_data/ar4/wg1/en/ch3s3-8-3-6.html#box-3-6


The top graph shows the mean temperature in Europe between 1961 and 1990 also it was the warmest winter. The bottom graph show that in 2003 it was the hottest year meaning that Europe went through a heat wave. "The 2003 heat wave was associated with a very robust and persistent blocking high-pressure system that may be a manifestation of an exceptional northward extension of the Hadley Cell" (http://www.ipcc.ch/publications_and_data/ar4/wg1/en/ch3s3-8-3-6.html#box-3-6)
"Some models say that increased of greenhouse gas concentration may weakening the MOC and reduce the warming"(http://www.ipcc.ch/publications_and_data/ar4/wg1/en/ch11s11-3-1.html). 
With the decrease of snow cover will cause a positive feedback cause a warming in the Mediterranean region, the feedbacks causing drying of the soil in the summer.

Working Groups II
Europe will experience some negative impacts like flash flooding, coastal flooding due to storms and sea level rising. The mountains will have less glaciers and less snow fall  means less tourism during the winters. Also with the heat waves Europe will experience more wild fires. health risks with elders less crop growing.

Climate projections for Europe will experience a heat wave, warming winters in Northern Europe, hotter summers in South Western Europe.  The precipitation will increase in Northern and decrease in southern parts of Europe. There will be an increase of flooding in the Northern, Central, and Eastern parts. The southern will go through a drought. The mountains will experience less snow fall and " Mountain regions may additionally experience a loss of endemism due to invasive species, similar extreme impacts are expected for habitat and animal diversity as well, making mountains ecosystem among the most threatened in Europe" (http://metrostate.blackboard.com/webct/urw/lc5116011.tp0/cobaltMainFrame.dowebct)


Some of the interesting treats is the sea level rising, causing flooding lost of land this is projected to happen in 2050. With the water risking it will cause some of the people to migrate  Also with the heat wave and the years go on parts of Europe will be getting warmer, heat waves will cause more deaths with the citizens in Europe.  The impact of rapid change the thermohaline circulation(THC),temperatures slowing in a circulation is an offset by the immediate effects of positive radiative forcing under increasing green house gases, the western part will most effected with rises in the sea level on the coast.
 Here are some bullet point that is a threat

• Reductions in runoff and water availability in southern Europe; major increase in snowmelt flooding in western Europe.
• Increased sea-level rise on western European and Mediterranean coasts.
• Reductions in crop production with consequent impacts on food prices.
• Changes in temperature affecting ecosystems in western Europe and the Mediterranean (e.g., affecting biodiversity, forest products and food production).
• Disruption to winter travel opportunities and increased icing of northern ports and seas.
• Changes in regional patterns of increases versus decreases in cold- and heat-related deaths and ill-health.
• Movement of populations to southern Europe and a shift in the centre of economic gravity.
• Requirement to refurbish infrastructure towards Scandinavian standards.

 This information is found

12.6.2 Thermohaline circulation changes in the North Atlantic: possible impacts for Europe

(http://metrostate.blackboard.com/webct/urw/lc5116011.tp0/cobaltMainFrame.dowebct)

Italy's contribution to climate change



The slope is increasing  every year 1.4612 of carbon dioxide and the blue line represents the fossil fuel from photosynthesis.


  

This data is from http://cdiac.ornl.gov/trends/emis/tre_coun.html.
This graph shows that Italy has the least amount of Carbon released in the air from all the other counties, and Chile carbon has risen from 2002 to 2010. The United States has increased but not as much as Chile , were Kenya has started to increase in 2002


Using the CO2 emissions from Italy graph the CO2 emissions source started to increase in the late 1990's the gases and liquids increased from 32,500 to 130,000 thousand metric ton carbon.  Since the 1990s, the country has been steadily reducing its demand for oil – though it still remains the most important source – as it increases its use of natural gas. It supplements oil and gas supplies with electricity imports and some coal use but no nuclear power. More than 80% of production is provided by thermoelectric power plants, with the rest coming from renewables, such as wind and solar power. found this information (http://www.zeroco2.no/projects/countries/italy)

After comparing the most recent per capita CO2 emissions graph for Italy and figuring out the percentage of emissions to the United States, Italy's value is lower at .41632. United States is higher because fossil-fuel emissions come from the consumption of petroleum products.  Italy's per capita CO2 emissions rank is 53 at 2.04 and the United States rank is 12 at 4.9, I feel glad that Italy is ranked some what in the middle it lets off the least CO2.


Looking at the Total Fossil Fuel graph Italy has maintained it levels of CO2 and started to increase in 2000. Were Chile has increase dramatically in 2002, the reason why Chile's Carbon has increased is much of the growth in emissions is attributed to developing, non-OECD nations that continue to rely heavily on fossil fuels to meet fast-paced growth in energy demand(.http://www.eia.gov/forecasts/ieo/emissions.cfm), and also has the biggest emitter in 2008 of CO2.  I would say Chines citizen is more at fault for releasing CO2 per capita because of there economy growing rapidly. 

The country that is most responsible for releasing most CO2 is United States it releases 91,229,888 thousand metric ton of carbon. China's Co2 emissions divided with the United States is .3484 and India's CO2 emissions divided with the United States is .10031, is means that India's releases less CO2 emission compared to China. Also China is a bigger country than India.

Comparing the global emissions of carbon to the keeling curve there are both increasing. Carbon dioxide is released in the air by burning fossil fuels as gas and oil and resorbed by plants and trees then goes through a  carbon cycle (the natural circulation of carbon among the atmosphere, oceans, soil, plants, and animals.  While carbon emissions come from a variety of natural sources, human-related.