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Global Climate Change Digest
A Guide to Information on Greenhouse Gases and Ozone Depletion
Published July 1988 through June 1999

FROM VOLUME 12, NUMBER 1, JANUARY 1999

JOURNAL ARTICLES...
ENVIRONMENTAL EFFECTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE

Item #d99jan19

“Modelling the Impact of Marine Biogenic Sulphate Aerosols on Regional Climate in the Subantarctic Southern Ocean,” A. J. Gabric et al.,World Resource Rev. 10 (3), 419-433 (1998).

Dimethylsulfide (DMS) is formed by plankton in the upper ocean and released to the atmosphere. It is generally regarded as a major nucleator for cloud water droplets. The Southern Ocean does not produce much of this trace gas, but global warming could change that. A general circulation model was used to investigate the effects of warming on DMS production by the Southern Ocean. It indicated that sea-surface temperature would increase 4° C, wind speed would decrease 3%, DMS flux from the ocean to the atmosphere would increase 2 to 8%, cloud-condensation nuclei concentration would increase 2 to 4%, and the resultant increased cloudiness would decrease radiative forcing 0.29 W/in.2 (a negative feedback of about 8%).

Item #d99jan20

“Climate Change in the XX Century and Cold Stress in Russia,” V. V. Vinogradova,World Resource Rev. 10 (4), 559-568 (1998).

Indexes of enthalpy, dry cooling, and wet cooling were calculated for Russia for 1951-1960, a general cooling period, and for 1981-1990, a general warming period. These values were mapped over the Russian territory to determine the extent and distribution of cold stress on the population. Cold stress was seen to increase because of strengthened wind speed in northern and eastern Russia from 1951 to 1960. Scenarios of future climate warming would lead to decreased cold stress in the western regions of Russia with a decrease in absolute discomfort of 20%.

Item #d99jan21

“Climate Warming and Sustainable Development of Food Production in China,” Wang Futang and Wang Shili, World Resource Rev. 10 (4), 577-583 (1998).

Climate-change scenarios predict temperature increases of 0.2 and 1.4° C, respectively, for 2000 and 2050, and an increase in precipitation of 4.2% by 2050. Such climate changes would increase the areas of multicropping and shift them northward, make conditions in northern China favorable for agriculture, and make conditions in major areas in eastern China unfavorable for agriculture. Three mitigative strategies are proposed: (1) control deforestation, reclamation, combustion of residual agricultural biomass, and unsuitable conversion of forests to agriculture; (2) select and breed new crop varieties with higher drought resistance, greater photosynthetic capacity, lower respiration rates, and less sensitivity to the photoperiod; and (3) convert areas now under cultivation to rangelands and forests.

Item #d99jan22

“Long-Term Cloud Droplet Measurements for Climate-Change Studies,” E. E. Hindman and R. D. Borys,World Resource Rev. 10 (4), 569-576 (1998).

Cloud-droplet spectra, cloud-droplet pH, and in-cloud aerosol concentrations were measured for 14 winters on a mountaintop in northern Colorado. The measurements revealed a decrease in the cloud-droplet number concentrations, an increase in pH, and no significant trend in in-cloud aerosol concentrations, which is counter to the aerosol-effect predictions for a warmer, moister climate.