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Climate change will worsen drought, hunger in Africa mongabay.com April 10, 2007
The IPCC says that the projected increases in greenhouse gas emissions will put up to 1.8 billion more Africans "at risk of water stress" this century. Modest rises in temperature will reduce water availability in parts of the continent. "Between 75 and 250 million people in Africa will be at risk of increased water stress with a one degree C rise; between 350 and 600 million with a two degree C climb and up to 1.8 billion if temperatures rise by three degrees C which could happen by around 2080," stated a release from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). The report says that rising sea levels, especially in coastal East Africa, could cost as much as 10 percent of GDP. Tourism is also expected to take a hit as wildlife migrates and becomes endangered and temperatures climb, making the climate less hospitable to visitors.
Adaptation UNEP says that climate change adaptation is critical in Africa, though the continent is less able to pay implementation that other parts of the world. "The report underlines the enormous costs facing Africa as a result of unchecked climate change—costs that are wholly unacceptable for the 800 million people alive today and for the generations to come," said Achim Steiner, Executive Director of UNEP. "It is the Continent with the least responsibility for the climate change and yet is perversely the Continent with the most at risk if greenhouse gases are not cut". Related articles Africa Heats Up -- climate change threatens future of the continent. Global warming has become an increasingly pervasive topic of discussion and concern for the scientific community. From fears over oceanic inundation of low-lying island nations such as the Maldives to glacial melting in the Arctic, higher temperatures around the globe have put experts on edge about the future of the world's health and balance. Nowhere has the phenomenon become more immediate than for the African continent. A series of recent studies have revealed a sobering future for the majority of Africa, a future predicated by undeniable and significant climate change. The threat traverses all levels of the environmental, social, political and economic spheres, from heightened socio-economic disparity to dwindling fish populations, from civil strife to desperate hunger. Climate report warns of drought, rising sea levels, species extinction. Global warming is likely to have wide-ranging impacts on the world's ecosystems, water availablity, and sea levels warned the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in its latest installment. It said that mitigation and adaption strategies are the best way to reduce and prepare for the coming changes. This article uses quotes and information from a UNEP news release. Comments? News options Liquid error: Template not found languages/english/includes/x/_79.liquid SHARE THIS ARTICLE:
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