Impacts of Global Climate Change on Temperature and Precipitation Patte

Impacts of Global Climate Change on Temperature and Precipitation Patterns in the Midwest and the Consequences for Soils Introduction During the last century, human activities in agriculture, industry and technology have brought about a change in the chemical composition of the atmosphere. This change so far has not had a noticeable or discernible effect on world climate, but if these same activities continue, global climate change will become irreversible. The major contributing factor is the increase in the amount of carbon dioxide and other gasses in the atmosphere. These gasses are being cited as the cause for a "greenhouse effect" where they trap the heat of the sun and cause global climate change, specifically a warming trend on the surface of the Earth. Many different scenarios for the possibilities and extent of global climate change have been proposed, and many global climate models have been created to look at the possibilities. While there are a wealth of differing opinions, there are also some consistencies in the predictions. Among other things, climate change is expected to cause increases in average global temperatures and changes in worldwide precipitation patterns. Even though these broad consequences are agreed upon, the affects which these changes will have on the climates and ecosystems around the world is still a matter of uncertainty. However, there is some consensus for the localized effects of global change in different climatic zones of the world. In the subboreal climate of the Midwestern region of North America, it is generally agreed that the temperature will increase an average of one to five degrees over the next ten to one hundred years (Varallyay, 1990). Also, it is expected that overall ... ...e Scenarios for Soil Erosion Potential in the USA" Land Degredation and Rehabilitation 4: 61-72 Ritchie, J.C. 1986 "Climate change and vegetation response", Vegetation 67: 67-74 B.G. Rozanov and E.M. Samoilova 1990 "Soils of the subboreal region on a warmer earth" in Developments in Soil Science, volume 20: Soils on a Warmer Earth pp185-191; H.W. Scharpenseel ed., Elsevier Science Publishing Company Inc., New York Tate, K.R. 1992 "Assessment, based on a climosequence of soils in tussock grasslands, of soil carbon storage and release in response to global warming" Journal of Soil Science 43: 697-707 Varallyay, G.Y. 1990 "Influence of climate change on soil moisture regime, texture, structure and erosion" in Developments in Soil Science, volume 20: Soils on a Warmer Earth pp 39-51; H.W. Scharpenseel ed., Elsevier Science Publishing Company Inc., New York.