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What changes are likely to happen to the sea level as the greenhouse effect gets worse?
There are three key impacts of sea level rise.
1) INUNDATION (flooding):
Many low lying countries will be under water, including large parts of the USA, UK, Holland, Bangladesh, and many Pacific Island countries.
Note that it is likely that these effects will be delayed, giving the false impression that they are not as serious as might have been feared.
This is because, before the sea level begins to visibly rise, the water level has to equalise globally, that is, the sea water must penetrate and fill every void, hollow and porous body of soil/rock it encounters. Caverns, cave systems, lava tubes, 'cenotes', underground lakes and rivers etc., all must be filled before the waters can rise.
Once this process is complete, however, sea level rise will suddenly gain momentum, as there will be nowhere else for the water to go. that is when we shall see coastal waters rise at vertiginous speed, especially, on a fairly localised scale, during full moon and high tide.
2) UNDERMINING (weakening by fluid penetration of porous rocks and soils):
As water infiltrates soils and minerals it will begin to dissolve some of the matrices that hold together particles in soils and sedimentary rocks, like aggregates, breccias, mudstones, siltstones, sandstones, limestone etc.
As a result of these unevenly distributed weakening of the rock and soils, whole areas of the surface will become unstable, though not necessarily visibly so, as these infiltrations may begin at great depths and progress upwards and outwards, as the sea penetrates deeper inland.
The heavier the construction burden on the rock/soil the more likely the sudden, catastrophic collapse of roads, bridges, cliffs, monuments and any other structure built on undermined land/rock.
2) ECOTOXICOLOGICAL IMPACTS (toxicity in the environment):
There are other hazards likely to stem from the infiltration of sea water into areas that had not been accessible to sea waters for millennia, or even millions of years.
A key one is the dispersion and bio-concentration of pollutants in the ecosystem.
Humanity has been using the land as a waste repository for dead bodies, urban waste, toxic chemicals, radioactive waste, ammunitions etc.
When sea water starts to inundate this class of underground voids it will aggressively begin to dissolve the most water-soluble of them and gradually leach them out into surrounding soils and waters. This is how Persistent organic pollutants and heavy metals, in particular, enter into food chains and "food webs"/"food pyramids".
Where these plumes of toxic liquor flow into bodies of water, four main processes will take over:
A) TRANSPORTATION: currents will transport the toxic effluent out towards the sea
B) ADSORPTION/ABSOPRTION: depending on the nature of the sands, silts and rock strata the toxic liquids encounter
C) ASSIMILATION: aquatic species will breather and ingest toxic liquor
D) BIOMAGNIFICATION: as invertebrates and vertebrates assimilate toxic pollutants in suspension/solution, predators will consume them and accumulate in their tissues.
As higher predators consume them, in turn, the process continues "up" the food chain so that, say 1000 plankton >> 100 crustaceans >> 10 fish >> 1 bird/mammal.
So, if each plankton carries a toxic burden of 0.1mg this is
1st trophic layer 0.1mcg x 1000 plankton = 100mcg
2nd trophic layer 100mcg x 100 crustaceans = 10,000mcg = 100mg
3rd trophic layer 100mg x 10 fish = 1000mg = 1g
So the toxic burden a bird feeding on a dead or dying fish in the above example would assimilate 1g of toxic pollutant for every 10 fish it consumes.
The process continues up the food chain, so that a predator consuming 10 birds would assimilate 10 gr. of toxic pollutant. Note that the LD50[1] for some substances is just a few as low as a few micrograms. Dioxins, for example, have an LD50 of just20 mcg/kg of bodyweight.
Footnotes.
1. The median lethal dose, LD50 (abbreviation for "lethal dose, 50%"), LC50 (lethal concentration, 50%) or LCt50 (lethal concentration and time) of a toxin, radiation, or pathogen is the dose required to kill half the members of a tested population after a specified test duration. LD50 figures are frequently used as a general indicator of a substance's acute toxicity.
What else can I help you with?
What would most likely increase a greenhouse effect?
The greenhouse effect is most likely to increase with the rise in greenhouse gas emissions, such as carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide, primarily from human activities like burning fossil fuels, deforestation, and industrial processes. The accumulation of these gases in the atmosphere enhances heat retention, leading to global warming. Additionally, factors such as increased land use changes and agriculture can further contribute to higher greenhouse gas concentrations, exacerbating the greenhouse effect.
Which action would most likely increase greenhouse effect?
Burn more oil for heating homes
What will most likely increase the greenhouse effect?
Increased emission of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide and methane from human activities like burning fossil fuels and deforestation.
What of l the following would most likely increase the greenhouse effect?
The greenhouse effect is most likely to increase with the rise in greenhouse gas emissions, such as carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), and nitrous oxide (N2O). Activities like burning fossil fuels, deforestation, and industrial processes release these gases into the atmosphere, trapping heat and leading to global warming. Increased agricultural practices and livestock farming also contribute significantly to methane emissions, further exacerbating the greenhouse effect.
Which would most likely have caused the giant ice capsthat exsisted in the paleozoic era to melt?
Increased Greenhouse effect apex
What would most likely cause the green house effect?
A greenhouse.
What is the difference between effect and effectiveness?
Effect is what it changes or causes the subject to do. Effectiveness is how likely the effect will cause these changes in the subject.
How does the cap and trade agreement affect greenhouse gasses?
It will have no effect on greenhouse gases, but will likely help destroy the economy of the United States and other nations.
Which action would most likely increase greenhouse effect?
Burn more oil for heating homes
Which action would most likely increase to the greenhouse effect?
Burning fossil fuels, such as coal, oil, and natural gas, is the action most likely to increase the greenhouse effect. This releases greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, which trap heat and lead to global warming.
What will most likely increase the greenhouse effect?
Increased emission of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide and methane from human activities like burning fossil fuels and deforestation.
Which cooking fuel is least likely to contribute to the greenhouse effect?
The cooking fuel that is the "dirtiest" has to be coal. This fuel source produces the most greenhouse gases than any of the "-tane" fuels.
Which would most likely have caused the giant ice capsthat exsisted in the paleozoic era to melt?
Increased Greenhouse effect apex
What caused the giant ice caps that existed in the paleozoic era to melt?
During the Paleozoic era, the Earth experienced significant fluctuations in climate due to factors such as variations in the Earth's orbit, volcanic activity, and changes in greenhouse gas levels. These fluctuations likely led to the melting of the giant ice caps that existed at that time.
Which would most likely have caused the giant ice caps that existed in Paleozic era to melt?
Changes in the Earth's orbit and axis tilt, increased volcanic activity releasing greenhouse gases, and decreased albedo due to the removal of vegetation cover could have contributed to the melting of the giant ice caps that existed in the Paleozoic era.
How can you control melting ice of Antarctica?
Everyone contributes to the accumulation of greenhouse gasses, which cause global warming, which causes the ice to melt. If humans were able to remove the greenhouse gasses, then the effect would most likely be reversed.
Did methane gas end the ice age?
Methane gas likely played a role in warming the Earth after the last ice age by contributing to the greenhouse effect. However, it was not the sole factor responsible for the end of the ice age. Other factors such as changes in Earth's orbit, solar radiation, and feedback mechanisms likely also played significant roles.
