Reducing Aerosol Emissions Contributes to Protecting Global Water Resources
In a landmark accord agreed upon at the United Nations 2015 Paris Climate Conference, policymakers worldwide pledged to combat climate change. However, an often overlooked aspect of this issue is the disruptive effects of aerosol emissions on natural evaporation processes at ground level.
According to a 2016 essay co-authored by Jessica Seddon and published in Foreign Affairs, aerosols, a type of pollution, can have significant and immediate impacts on climate change. These effects primarily involve interactions with sunlight and atmospheric chemistry near their sources.
Aerosols like black carbon (BC) absorb sunlight directly, warming the air locally and altering surface temperatures. They also affect cloud formation by serving as cloud condensation nuclei, which can reduce evaporation and disrupt precipitation patterns, notably weakening monsoon systems such as the Indian monsoon. This leads to localized drying effects and impacts on agriculture and water availability.
The essay, titled "The Next Front on Climate Change: How to Avoid a Dimmer, Drier World," highlights the need for policymakers to address these localized aerosol-driven climate impacts. By reducing pollutant aerosols, including diesel soot, black carbon, sulfates, and nitrates, nations can help secure the world’s water supply and bring about significant global health benefits.
To address these localized aerosol-driven climate impacts and avoid a drier world, nations can mitigate emissions of short-lived climate pollutants (SLCPs) like black carbon, implement comprehensive air quality and climate regulations, invest in monitoring and research, and promote sustainable land management and forest fire prevention.
By focusing on reducing emissions of aerosols—especially black carbon—and improving understanding of their complex atmospheric interactions, nations can limit the localized warming and drying effects of aerosols, thus helping to maintain more stable regional climates and avoid exacerbating drought conditions.
The region affected by this, which is home to over 1 billion people, may experience drastically drier conditions than normal in key regions such as sub-Saharan Africa, China, North America, and Asia. As such, it is crucial for countries to find ways to cut emissions that cause climate change and prepare to adapt to the changes that will occur.
References:
- Ramanathan, V., & Carmichael, G. R. (2008). The Asian brown cloud: A case study in the global atmospheric commons. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 105(37), 13273–13278.
- Seddon, J., Ramanathan, V., & Victor, D. G. (2016). The Next Front on Climate Change: How to Avoid a Dimmer, Drier World. Foreign Affairs, 95(3), 125–139.
- Collins, W. D., et al. (2013). Causes of the rapid decline in rainfall over the Sahel since the 1970s. Nature, 497(7451), 521–524.
- Gautam, R., et al. (2014). Climate change impacts on water resources in the Indian subcontinent. Current Science, 106(7), 1041–1050.
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