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| Climate change fuelling water crisi |
| This is particularly worrisome as the Himalayas provide most of the water to the two most populous nations in the world, China and India.
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| INDIA
, 16-November-2007
1:21:28 AM |
| South Asia will be particularly affected by water shortages due to global warming, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has warned.
The IPCC, the UN body that shares this year's Nobel Peace Prize, will release the synthesis of its fourth assessment report in Valencia, Spain, on Saturday.
In its section on Asia, the report says, ''Glacier melt in the Himalayas is projected to increase flooding and rock avalanches from destabilised slopes and to affect water resources within the next two to three decades. This will be followed by decreased river flows as the glaciers recede.''
This is particularly worrisome as the Himalayas provide most of the water to the two most populous nations in the world, China and India.
The IPCC predicts that freshwater availability in Central, South, East and Southeast Asia will decrease due to climate change, particularly in large river basins.
''Along with population growth and increasing demand arising from higher standards of living, (this) could adversely affect more than a billion people by the 2050s.''
The report, written by over 1,250 scientists and reviewed by over 2,500 from all over the world, says ''coastal areas, especially heavily populated mega delta regions in South, East and Southeast Asia, will be at greatest risk due to increased flooding from the sea and, in some mega deltas, flooding from the rivers''.
Climate change will compound pressures on natural resources and the environment associated with rapid urbanisation, industrialisation and economic development, the IPCC says.
It predicts that crop yields may decrease up to 30 percent in Central and South Asia by the mid-21st century, while it increases up to 20 percent in East and Southeast Asia.
''Taken together, and considering the influence of rapid population growth and urbanisation, the risk of hunger is projected to remain very high in several developing countries.''
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