The Effects of Climate Change on Natural Ecosystems of the Southeast USA

AbstractIndustrialization in the Northern Hemisphere has led to warming and pollution of natural ecosystems. We used paleolimnological methods to explore whether recent climate change and/or pollution had affected a very remote lake ecosystem, i.e. one without nearby direct human influence. We compared sediment samples that date from before and after the onset of industrialization in the mid-nineteenth century, from four short cores taken at water depths between 12.1 and 68.3 m in Lake Bolshoe Toko, eastern Siberia. We analyzed diatom assemblage changes, including diversity estimates, in all four cores and geochemical changes (mercury, nitrogen, organic carbon) from one core taken at an intermediate water depth. Chronologies for two cores were established using 210Pb and 137Cs. Sedimentation rates were 0.018 and 0.033 cm year−1 at the shallow- and deep-water sites, respectively. We discovered an increase in light planktonic diatoms (Cyclotella) and a decrease in heavily silicified euplanktonic Aulacoseira through time at deep-water sites, related to more recent warmer air temperatures and shorter periods of lake-ice cover, which led to pronounced thermal stratification. Diatom beta diversity in shallow-water communities changed significantly because of the development of new habitats associated with macrophyte growth. Mercury concentrations increased by a factor of 1.6 since the mid-nineteenth century as a result of atmospheric fallout. Recent increases in the chrysophyte Mallomonas in all cores suggested an acidification trend. We conclude that even remote boreal lakes are susceptible to the effects of climate change and human-induced pollution.

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Tending this Fragile Earth, Our Island Home: The Pope's Encyclical in Dialogue with Ecomimesis, a Design Model for Conservation Stewardship

Anglican Theological Review ◽

10.1177/000332861810000405 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 100 (4) ◽

pp. 745-766

Author(s):

Lillian C. Woo

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Water Pollution ◽

Anthropogenic Impact ◽

Natural World ◽

Design Solution ◽

World Population ◽

Natural Ecosystem ◽

Natural Ecosystems ◽

The Earth ◽

The World

In the last fifty years, empirical evidence has shown that climate change and environmental degradation are largely the results of increased world population, economic development, and changes in cultural and social norms. Thus far we have been unable to slow or reverse the practices that continue to produce more air and water pollution, soil and ocean degradation, and ecosystem decline. This paper analyzes the negative anthropogenic impact on the ecosystem and proposes a new design solution: ecomimesis, which uses the natural ecosystem as its template to conserve, restore, and improve existing ecosystems. Through its nonintrusive strategies and designs, and its goal of preserving natural ecosystems and the earth, ecomimesis can become an integral part of stabilizing and rehabilitating our natural world at the same time that it addresses the needs of growing economies and populations around the world.

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Reflections on a seminal paper in conservation biology: the legacy of Peters and Darling (1985)

Pacific Conservation Biology ◽

10.1071/pc18004 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 24 (3) ◽

pp. 267

Author(s):

Lesley Hughes

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Conservation Biology ◽

Extinction Risk ◽

Logical Framework ◽

Natural Ecosystems ◽

Seminal Paper ◽

Species Vulnerability ◽

Vulnerability To Climate Change ◽

Species Translocation ◽

Rapid Environmental Change

‘The Greenhouse Effect and Nature Reserves’ by Robert Peters and Joan Darling, published in the journal Bioscience more than 30 years ago, was a ground-breaking synthesis. Drawing on paleoecology, community ecology and biogeography, the review laid out many concepts about species vulnerability to climate change that have become central tenets of research on climate change adaptation in natural ecosystems. Remarkably, the paper also provided a clear and logical framework for flexible, forward-thinking and interventionist management action, including recommendations about the design of protected areas, and the need for species translocation to reduce extinction risk. Reflecting on the legacy of this paper, it is clear that the uptake of such approaches over the intervening decades has been extremely slow, representing many lost opportunities to reduce species vulnerability to rapid environmental change. This paper is a tribute to the prescience of Peters and Darling, and a call to revisit their farsighted advice to meet conservation challenges that continue to accelerate.

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Plant Phenology and Its Anthropogenic and Natural Influencing Factors in Densely Populated Areas During the Economic Transition Period of China

Frontiers in Environmental Science ◽

10.3389/fenvs.2021.792918 ◽

2022 ◽

Vol 9 ◽

Author(s):

Peijun Ju ◽

Wenchao Yan ◽

Jianliang Liu ◽

Xinwei Liu ◽

Liangfeng Liu ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Economic Transition ◽

Transition Period ◽

Growing Season ◽

Plant Phenology ◽

Future Research ◽

Urban Management ◽

Climate Factors ◽

Natural Ecosystems ◽

The Impact

As a sensitive, observable, and comprehensive indicator of climate change, plant phenology has become a vital topic of global change. Studies about plant phenology and its responses to climate change in natural ecosystems have drawn attention to the effects of human activities on phenology in/around urban regions. The key factors and mechanisms of phenological and human factors in the process of urbanization are still unclear. In this study, we analyzed variations in xylophyta phenology in densely populated cities during the fast urbanization period of China (from 1963 to 1988). We assessed the length of the growing season affected by the temperature and precipitation. Temperature increased the length of the growing season in most regions, while precipitation had the opposite effect. Moreover, the plant-growing season is more sensitive to preseason climate factors than to annual average climate factors. The increased population reduced the length of the growing season, while the growing GDP increased the length of the growing season in most regions (8 out of 13). By analyzing the impact of the industry ratio, we found that the correlation between the urban management of emerging cities (e.g., Chongqing, Zhejiang, and Guizhou) and the growing season is more significant, and the impact is substantial. In contrast, urban management in most areas with vigorously developed heavy industry (e.g., Heilongjiang, Liaoning, and Beijing) has a weak and insignificant effect on plant phenology. These results indicate that different urban development patterns can influence urban plant phenology. Our results provide some support and new thoughts for future research on urban plant phenology.

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Climate-Smart Forestry in Brazil

10.1007/978-3-030-80767-2_17 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 545-570

Author(s):

Marcos Giongo ◽

Micael Moreira Santos ◽

Damiana Beatriz da Silva ◽

Jader Nunes Cachoeira ◽

Giovanni Santopuoli

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Management Strategies ◽

Practical Implementation ◽

Natural Ecosystems ◽

Adaptation Measures ◽

Deforestation Rate ◽

Mitigation And Adaptation ◽

Forest Policies ◽

Forestry Sector ◽

High Level

AbstractBrazil is the second largest forested country in the world with a high level of naturalness and biodiversity richness, playing a significant role in the adoption of mitigation and adaptation strategies to climate change. Although the Brazilian federal government is mainly responsible for the protection of natural ecosystems, the decentralization process, which demands competences of the states and municipalities, allowed the establishment of several agencies and institutions dealing with monitoring, assessment, and management of forest ecosystems through a complex and interrelated number of forest policies. Nevertheless, the deforestation rate, with a consequent loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services, represents critical challenges, attracting worldwide attention. The variety of mitigation and adaptation measures adopted over the years represents viable tools to face climate change and to promote climate-smart forestry in Brazil. Notwithstanding the positive effects achieved in the last decade, a better coordination and practical implementation of climate-smart forestry strategies is required to reach nationally and internationally agreed objectives.This chapter aims to depict the Brazilian forestry sector, highlighting the management strategies adopted overtime to counteract climate change.

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Observed Changes of Rain-Season Precipitation in China from 1960 to 2018

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph181910031 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 18 (19) ◽

pp. 10031

Author(s):

Yanyu Zhang ◽

Shuying Zang ◽

Xiangjin Shen ◽

Gaohua Fan

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Global Climate ◽

Regional Climate ◽

Precipitation Amount ◽

Heavy Precipitation ◽

Central China ◽

The Tibetan Plateau ◽

Natural Ecosystems ◽

Daily Precipitation Data ◽

Rain Season

Precipitation during the main rain season is important for natural ecosystems and human activities. In this study, according to daily precipitation data from 515 weather stations in China, we analyzed the spatiotemporal variation of rain-season (May–September) precipitation in China from 1960 to 2018. The results showed that rain-season precipitation decreased over China from 1960 to 2018. Rain-season heavy (25 ≤ p < 50 mm/day) and very heavy (p ≥ 50 mm/day) precipitation showed increasing trends, while rain-season moderate (10 ≤ p < 25 mm/day) and light (0.1 ≤ p < 10 mm/day) precipitation showed decreasing trends from 1960 to 2018. The temporal changes of precipitation indicated that rain-season light and moderate precipitation displayed downward trends in China from 1980 to 2010 and rain-season heavy and very heavy precipitation showed fluctuant variation from 1960 to 2018. Changes of rain-season precipitation showed clear regional differences. Northwest China and the Tibetan Plateau showed the largest positive trends of precipitation amount and days. In contrast, negative trends were found for almost all precipitation grades in North China Plain, Northeast China, and North Central China. Changes toward drier conditions in these regions probably had a severe impact on agricultural production. In East China, Southeast China and Southwest China, heavy and very heavy precipitation had increased while light and moderate precipitation had decreased. This result implied an increasing risk of flood and mudslides in these regions. The advance in understanding of precipitation change in China will contribute to exactly predict the regional climate change under the background of global climate change.

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Climate Conditions and Biodiversity Decline

10.4018/978-1-6684-3686-8.ch036 ◽

2022 ◽

pp. 748-763

Author(s):

Ashok K. Rathoure ◽

Unnati Rajendrakumar Patel

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Climatic Change ◽

Biological Diversity ◽

Convention On Biological Diversity ◽

Natural Ecosystems ◽

Climate Conditions ◽

Impact Of Climate Change ◽

Fragile Environment ◽

Impact On Biodiversity ◽

The Impact

Many studies in recent years have investigated the effects of climate change on the future of biodiversity. In this chapter, the authors first examined the different possible effects of climate change that can operate at individual, population, species, community, ecosystem, notably showing that species can respond to climate challenges by shifting their climatic change. Climate change is one of the most important global environmental challenges that affect all the natural ecosystems of the world. Due to the fragile environment, mountain ecosystems are the most vulnerable to the impact of climate change. Climatic change will affect vegetation, humans, animals, and ecosystem that will impact on biodiversity. Mountains have been recognized as important ecosystems by the Convention on Biological Diversity. Climate change will not only threaten the biodiversity, but also affect the socio-economic condition of the indigenous people of the state. Various activities like habitat loss, deforestation, and exploitation amplify the impact of climate change on biodiversity.

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