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The impacts of climate change on terrestrial Earth surface systems

Nature Climate Change volume 3, pages 24–29 (2013)Cite this article

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Abstract

National and international policy initiatives have focused on reducing carbon emissions as a means by which to limit future climate warming. Much less attention has been paid by policymakers to monitoring, modelling and managing the impacts of climate change on the dynamics of Earth surface systems, including glaciers, rivers, mountains and coasts. This is a critical omission, however, as Earth surface systems provide water and soil resources, sustain ecosystem services and strongly influence biogeochemical climate feedbacks in ways that are as yet uncertain. We argue that there is a significant policy gap regarding the management of Earth surface systems' impacts under climate change that needs to be closed to facilitate the sustainability of cross-national Earth surface resource use. It is also a significant challenge to the scientific community to better understand Earth surface systems' sensitivity to climate forcing.

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Figure 1: Variations in climate forcing and Earth surface system responses during the period AD 1550–1850 in Europe, including the Little Ice Age.

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Acknowledgements

We thank B. Murray for comments.

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  1. School of Geography, Archaeology and Environmental Studies, University of the Witwatersrand, Private Bag 3, Wits, 2050, South Africa

    Jasper Knight

  2. College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Penryn, TR10 9EZ, UK

    Stephan Harrison

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Knight, J., Harrison, S. The impacts of climate change on terrestrial Earth surface systems. Nature Clim Change 3, 24–29 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1038/nclimate1660

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