--- title: "Climate change as threat to civilization" subject: "Technology, Environment and Society" chapter: 3 key: "semester_7/technology_environment_and_society:climate-change-threat-civilization" source: https://www.bctengineer.com/q/semester_7/technology_environment_and_society/climate-change-threat-civilization site: BCT Engineering --- # Climate change as threat to civilization Technology, Environment and Society · Chapter 3: Brief History of Human Civilization - Asked in: 2081 Baisakh, 8 marks - Answer checked by Claude Opus 5.5 (high effort) on 2026-10-14 - Page: https://www.bctengineer.com/q/semester_7/technology_environment_and_society/climate-change-threat-civilization - Whole chapter: https://www.bctengineer.com/md/semester_7/technology_environment_and_society/chapter-3 ## Question Justify the statement, "Climate change is highly threatening to Human civilization", with suitable examples. ## Short answer Climate change, driven by greenhouse gases, threatens food and water security, causes sea-level rise, extreme events, and health crises, undermining civilization's stability. Examples include Himalayan glacier melt, GLOFs, and coastal city flooding, showing urgent need for emission cuts. ## Answer **Climate change** is a long-term change in the average temperature and weather patterns of the Earth, now mainly caused by human activities that release greenhouse gases (CO₂, CH₄, N₂O, CFCs). The global average temperature is already about **1.1–1.2 °C** above pre-industrial levels (IPCC AR6), and the effects threaten the base of human civilisation: food, water, health, settlements and peace. #### Justification with examples 1. **Food security** – heat, drought and erratic monsoon reduce crop yields (rice, wheat, maize); pests spread; risk of hunger in South Asia and Africa. 2. **Water crisis** – melting glaciers (Himalaya, the "water tower of Asia") first increase floods and then reduce dry-season flow; springs in Nepal's hills are drying. 3. **Sea level rise** – about 20 cm since 1900; threatens coastal cities (Dhaka, Mumbai, Jakarta) and small island countries (Maldives, Tuvalu). 4. **Extreme events** – stronger heat waves, cyclones, floods and droughts, e.g. 2022 Pakistan floods (about one-third of the country flooded), European heat waves, 2021 Melamchi flood in Nepal. 5. **Glacial lake outburst floods (GLOF)** – e.g. the Dig Tsho GLOF (1985) in the Khumbu; Imja and Tsho Rolpa are high-risk lakes in Nepal. 6. **Health** – heat stress, spread of dengue and malaria to higher altitudes (dengue now in Kathmandu and hill districts). 7. **Biodiversity loss** – coral bleaching, species extinction, shifting tree lines. 8. **Economy and migration** – damage to infrastructure, tourism and hydropower; climate refugees and conflict over resources. ```text GHG emissions --> warming --> glacier melt, heat, erratic rain, sea rise | food, water, health, homes at risk | poverty, migration, conflict ``` Past civilisations (e.g. the Maya and the Indus Valley) are believed to have declined partly due to long droughts. Today's change is faster and global, so it threatens all humanity, especially poor and mountain countries like Nepal that contribute very little (Nepal emits only about 0.03% of global greenhouse gases). #### Way forward - **Renewable energy** – hydropower, solar, wind instead of coal and oil. - **Energy efficiency** – efficient appliances, buildings and industry. - **Clean transport** – electric vehicles, public transport, cycling. - **Forests** – afforestation, community forestry, REDD+. - **Sustainable agriculture** – less methane from rice and livestock, organic farming. - **Waste management** – reduce, reuse, recycle; capture landfill methane. - **International agreements** – UNFCCC (1992), Kyoto Protocol (1997), **Paris Agreement (2015)**: keep warming well below 2 °C, aiming at 1.5 °C; Nepal targets net-zero emissions by 2045. - **Adaptation** – climate-resilient infrastructure, early warning systems, drought-tolerant crops, water harvesting. Hence the statement is justified: unless emissions are cut quickly and societies adapt, climate change can undo the gains of human civilisation. ## Check yourself The answer's key points as multiple-choice questions, with the correct option and why. 1. What is the main cause of present climate change? A. Natural solar changes only B. Human activities releasing greenhouse gases (CO2, CH4, N2O, CFCs) C. Volcanoes only D. Ozone layer growth Answer: B. Climate change today is mainly caused by human GHG emissions. (Key point: Definition) 2. How do melting Himalayan glaciers affect water? A. Reduce floods and increase dry-season flow B. First increase floods and then reduce dry-season flow C. Have no effect D. Only raise sea level in Nepal Answer: B. Melt first raises flood risk and later reduces dry-season river flow. (Key point: Glaciers) 3. Which hazard is a glacial lake outburst flood example in Nepal? A. Melamchi 2021 only B. Imja and Tsho Rolpa lakes C. Chitwan Park D. Sisdol landfill Answer: B. Imja and Tsho Rolpa glacial lakes pose GLOF risk. (Key point: GLOF) 4. What does the Paris Agreement (2015) aim for? A. Keep warming well below 2 °C, aiming at 1.5 °C B. Ban hydropower C. Eliminate the ozone hole D. Increase warming to 3 °C Answer: A. The Paris Agreement aims at well below 2 °C and 1.5 °C. (Key point: Paris Agreement) ## Related in Technology, Environment and Society - [Climate change threat, impact and mitigation](https://www.bctengineer.com/question.md?key=semester_7%2Ftechnology_environment_and_society%3Acc-threat-impact-mitigation) — Technology, Environment and Society, chapter 3 - [Human-induced climate change and international efforts](https://www.bctengineer.com/question.md?key=semester_7%2Ftechnology_environment_and_society%3Ahuman-induced-cc-international) — Technology, Environment and Society, chapter 6 - [Short note: Human induced climate change](https://www.bctengineer.com/question.md?key=semester_7%2Ftechnology_environment_and_society%3Ahuman-induced-cc-note) — Technology, Environment and Society, chapter 6 - [Short note: Causes and impacts of climate change](https://www.bctengineer.com/question.md?key=semester_7%2Ftechnology_environment_and_society%3Aclimate-change-causes-impacts) — Technology, Environment and Society, chapter 6, asked 2× - [Short note: Climate change](https://www.bctengineer.com/question.md?key=semester_7%2Ftechnology_environment_and_society%3Aclimate-change-note) — Technology, Environment and Society, chapter 6, asked 2× - [Relation of air pollution and climate change](https://www.bctengineer.com/question.md?key=semester_7%2Ftechnology_environment_and_society%3Aair-pollution-climate-change) — Technology, Environment and Society, chapter 5 ## Related in other subjects - [Human civilization, development and the environment](https://www.bctengineer.com/question.md?key=semester_7%2Fenvironment_and_pollution_control%3Acivilization-development-environment-history) — Environment and Pollution Control, chapter 7 - [Biogas routes and climate change](https://www.bctengineer.com/question.md?key=semester_7%2Fenergy_environment_and_society%3Abiogas-routes-climate-change) — Energy Environment and Society, chapter 3 - [Climate change and renewable mitigation](https://www.bctengineer.com/question.md?key=semester_7%2Fenergy_environment_and_society%3Aclimate-change-renewables-mitigation) — Energy Environment and Society, chapter 4 - [APA and MLA: newspaper article (Clinton on Climate Change)](https://www.bctengineer.com/question.md?key=semester_5%2Fcommunication_english%3Aapa-mla-harris-clinton-climate) — Communication English, chapter 4