This book is the first in a series of assessments of regional climate change. Irreversible changes to regional biogeochemistry, and terrestrial and marine ecosystem functioning are brought about by increases in population, intensified land use, urbanization, industrialization and economic development. These may have global as well as regional consequences. The objectives of the assessments are, (i) to better understand how human activities in regions are altering regional atmospheric, terrestrial, and marine environments, (ii) to provide a sound scientific basis for sustainable regional development, and (iii) to develop the capability of predicting changes in global-regional linkages in the Earth System and to recognize the future consequences of such changes. This book describes such a study for monsoon East Asia, providing a state-of-the-art summary of what we already know, and serves as a basis for identifying knowledge gaps that require study.

Contents: Variability of Monsoon: Thermal-Dynamical Effects of the Tibetan Plateau on the East Asian Monsoon (G-X Wu et al.); Paleo-Monsoon Variations in East Asia Reconstructed from Terrestrial Records (L Li & Z-S An); Paleo-Monsoon Evolution and Variability Derived from Deep Sea Sediments (P-X Wang); Late Quaternary Paleoclimate Simulations and Model Comparisons for the East Asian Monsoon (G Yu et al.); El Niño and the Southern Oscillation-Monsoon Interaction and Interannual Climate (C-Y Li & R-H Huang); Atmospheric Composition: Recent Trends in Summer Precipitation in China and Mongolia (T Yasunari et al.); Warming in East Asia as a Consequence of Increasing Greenhouse Gases (Z-C Zhao et al.); Climate Impacts of Atmospheric Sulfate and Black Carbon Aerosols (Y Qian et al.); Long-Range Transport and Deposition of Dust Aerosols Over the Ocean, and Their Impacts on Climate (Z-F Wang et al.); Land-Use Change: Land Use and Land Cover Change in East Asia and Its Potential Impacts on Monsoon Climate (C-B Fu & S-Y Wang); The Terrestrial Carbon Budget in East Asia: Human and Natural Impacts (H-Q Tian et al.); Impacts of Agriculture on the Nitrogen Cycle (Z-Q Xiong et al.); Impacts of Land Use on Structure and Function of Terrestrial Ecosystems and Biodiversity (K Kitayama et al.); Impact of Land Use in Semiarid Asia on Aridification and Desertification (D Ojima et al.); Marine/Coastal Systems: Transport of Materials Induced by Human Activities Along the Yellow and Yangtze Rivers (D-X Hu et al.); Impacts of Global Warming on Living Resources in Ocean and Coastal Ecosystems (Q-S Tang & L Tong); Sea-Level Changes and Vulnerability of the Coastal Zone (N Mimura & H Yokoki); Driving Forces: Changes in Population Number, Composition, Distribution, and Consumption in East Asia (X-Z Peng & X-H Han); Application of Clean Technologies and New Policies to Reduce Emissions and the Impacts of Environmental Change on Human Health (K-J Jiang & G Wen); Trends and Proactive Risk Management of Climate-Related Disasters (P J Shi et al.); Assessment of Vulnerability and Adaptation to Climate Change in Western China (Y-Y Yin et al.); Application of Asia Pacific Integrated Model in East Asia (X-L Hu & K-J Jiang); Human Drivers of Change in the East Asian Monsoon System (K Seto et al.).