Global Warming and Climate Change: A Practical Study on Bartin, Zonguldak and Düzce

Abstract

Global warming is regarded as one of the most important problems of our century. In almost all scientific circles and media organizations, there is a common opinion that the world is getting warmer. It is estimated that the world temperature will increase between 1.5 °C and 5.0 °C during the 21st century. In Turkey around 2030, it is reported that the summer and winter temperatures will increase around 2.0 °C-3.0 °C, winter precipitation will increase by up to 10%, summer precipitation will decrease and, the drought in terms of soil moisture will increase. In this study, the minimum, maximum and average temperature values and maximum and total precipitation amounts between 1980-1999 and 2000-2015 for the central meteorological stations of Bartin, Zonguldak and Düzce Provinces in Western Black Sea Region of our country were examined. The results indicate the marked increases in minimum and maximum temperatures monthly basis. At the same time, increasing tendency was determined in the Bartin, Zonguldak and Düzce monthly and annual average temperature data, especially during the summer months. On the other hand, in the period between 1980-1999 and 2000-2015 years monthly and annual, especially during the summer months (June, July and August), average precipitation data showed a tendency to decrease. Turkey is among the riskiest countries from the point of the possibility to experience the potential consequences of global warming. Unless measures are taken against climate change, it will be inevitable that the climate change would degrade the composition and productivity of the natural ecological systems in our country and reduce biological diversity.