Study Shows Human-Caused Climate Change Responsible for Global Impacts

A vast array of physical and biological systems across the earth are being affected by warming temperatures caused by human activity, says a new Columbia study. These impacts include earlier leafing of trees and plants over many regions; movements of species to higher latitudes and altitudes in the Northern Hemisphere; changes in bird migrations in Europe, North America and Australia; and shifting of the oceans’ plankton and fish from cold- to warm-adapted communities. Based on an analysis of aggregated data, this study is the first to link observed global changes in diverse systems to human-caused, or anthropogenic, climate change. The study appears in the May 15 issue of the leading scientific journal Nature.

By Columbia University, USA.

Climate Policy Resource.