HSC Geography · Human–Environment Interactions

# 13.3 Environmental & Human Impacts of Climate Change

Chapter 13 · Climate Change · NESA Stage 6 (2022) · Revision deck
By the end you can…

## Learning goals

- Split impacts into environmental and human.
- Explain ocean acidification.
- Link climate change to worse disasters.
- Describe human impacts (health, food, economy).
- Detail the GBR and ski-industry case studies.

Section 1

# Environment & people

## Two linked groups of impact

Environmental

Acidification, coral bleaching, worse storms/floods/fire, rising seas.

Human

Health, falling crop yields, damaged industries, displacement.

They interconnect — a bleached reef hits tourism; failed crops hit health.

Section 2

# Ocean acidification

## The “other CO₂ problem”

Separate from warming — the sea is ~30% more acidic than pre-industrial. Hits food webs from the bottom up.

Section 3

# More intense disasters

## Case study: Black Summer (2019–20)

Among Australia's most severe bushfires on record

Record drought + extreme heat → huge habitat & biodiversity loss and serious smoke-health impacts. Climate change worsened a natural hazard (full detail in Chapter 14).

Environment Change Interconnection
Section 4

# Impacts on people

## Health, food & livelihoods

Health

Heat illness; disease spread; smoke.

Food

Lower yields; food insecurity.

Economy

Damaged industries; displacement.

The equity problem: the poorest are often hit hardest, yet emit least.

Section 5 · Case study

# The Great Barrier Reef

## Coral bleaching

Rising SST → coral expels its algae → bleaching → biodiversity loss. Monitored by AIMS; repeated mass events.

Section 6 · Case study

# The ski industry

## Warming winters

- Less, less-reliable snow → shorter seasons, fewer visitors, lost revenue.
- Adaptations: artificial snowmaking, higher altitudes, year-round tourism.
- An economic impact (USA & Europe) — contrast with the GBR (environmental).

Two contrasting systems — use both to show range.

Recap

# 13.3 in one screen

## Pull it together

- Impacts = environmental + human, interconnected.
- Ocean acidification: chemical, separate from warming.
- Worse disasters (Black Summer bushfires).
- Human cost: health, food, economy; an equity issue.
- Cases: coral bleaching (GBR) & the ski industry.

Next: 13.4 — Challenges, opportunities & responses (Costa Rica).

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