Al-Sisi reviews Egypt's food security, strategic commodity reserves    Egypt signs strategic agreements to attract global investment in gold, mineral exploration    Syria says it will defend its territory after Israeli strikes in Suwayda    Egyptian Exchange ends mixed on July 15    Suez Canal vehicle carrier traffic set to rebound by 20% in H2: SCA chief    Tut Group launches its operations in Egyptian market for exporting Egyptian products    China's urban jobless rate eases in June '25    Egypt's Health Minister reviews drug authority cooperation with WHO    Egypt urges EU support for Gaza ceasefire, reconstruction at Brussels talks    Pakistan names Qatari royal as brand ambassador after 'Killer Mountain' climb    Health Ministry denies claims of meningitis-related deaths among siblings    Egypt, Mexico explore joint action on environment, sustainability    Egypt, Mexico discuss environmental cooperation, combating desertification    Needle-spiking attacks in France prompt government warning, public fear    Foreign, housing ministers discuss Egypt's role in African development push    Korea Culture Week in Egypt to blend K-Pop with traditional arts    Egypt, France FMs review Gaza ceasefire efforts, reconstruction    CIB finances Giza Pyramids Sound and Light Show redevelopment with EGP 963m loan    Greco-Roman tombs with hieroglyphic inscriptions discovered in Aswan    Egypt reveals heritage e-training portal    Three ancient rock-cut tombs discovered in Aswan    Egypt condemns deadly terrorist attack in Niger        Sisi launches new support initiative for families of war, terrorism victims    Egypt's GAH, Spain's Konecta discuss digital health partnership    Egypt expands e-ticketing to 110 heritage sites, adds self-service kiosks at Saqqara    Egypt's Irrigation Minister urges scientific cooperation to tackle water scarcity    Palm Hills Squash Open debuts with 48 international stars, $250,000 prize pool    Egypt's Democratic Generation Party Evaluates 84 Candidates Ahead of Parliamentary Vote    On Sport to broadcast Pan Arab Golf Championship for Juniors and Ladies in Egypt    Golf Festival in Cairo to mark Arab Golf Federation's 50th anniversary    Germany among EU's priciest labour markets – official data    Cabinet approves establishment of national medical tourism council to boost healthcare sector    Egypt's PM follows up on Julius Nyerere dam project in Tanzania    Paris Olympic gold '24 medals hit record value    A minute of silence for Egyptian sports    Russia says it's in sync with US, China, Pakistan on Taliban    It's a bit frustrating to draw at home: Real Madrid keeper after Villarreal game    Shoukry reviews with Guterres Egypt's efforts to achieve SDGs, promote human rights    Sudan says countries must cooperate on vaccines    Johnson & Johnson: Second shot boosts antibodies and protection against COVID-19    Egypt to tax bloggers, YouTubers    Egypt's FM asserts importance of stability in Libya, holding elections as scheduled    We mustn't lose touch: Muller after Bayern win in Bundesliga    Egypt records 36 new deaths from Covid-19, highest since mid June    Egypt sells $3 bln US-dollar dominated eurobonds    Gamal Hanafy's ceramic exhibition at Gezira Arts Centre is a must go    Italian Institute Director Davide Scalmani presents activities of the Cairo Institute for ITALIANA.IT platform    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



Torrential rains, prolonged drought - climate change causing more extreme weather
Published in Daily News Egypt on 21 - 08 - 2015

Heavy rains in Europe, wildfires in California, desertification in North Africa: extreme weather is one way climate change influences our daily life. Humanity has to adapt – which will be difficult in certain places.
For many people in Germany, the week started with torrential rains that probably inspired some cursing of the heavens: It's summer! Why is there so much rain?
"Scientists will only speak of climate change 20 years after they have observed phenomena – but it's safe to say that we've been facing extreme weather with ever-shorter periods between the individual events," Heinrich Bottermann, general secretary of the German Federal Environmental Foundation, told DW.
Bottermann added that torrential rains were among these extreme weather phenomena, which are palpable evidence for climate change in central Europe.
Tropical Europe
As we emit ever more CO2 into the Earth's atmosphere, temperatures are rising. And warm air can hold more moisture than cold air, explained Roger Brugge, a meteorologist at the University of Reading.
Warm air travelling across the Atlantic, for example, can gather up a lot of moisture – and then release it as precipitation across Europe.
"A warmer climate is a more energetic climate," Brugge told DW. "The tropics see heavy thunderstorms and large rainfall. Now, there'll be a tendency for more, heavier rainfalls occurring in northern Europe as well."
Greening cities to adapt – and mitigate
Cities are already struggling with heavy rain and the flooding that comes as a result. Flooded basements, muddied parks and nonfunctional roads pose great challenges to local officials and residents.
That's because existing sewers aren't made for the large amounts of water they suddenly have to hold, Bottermann said. "We have to work on that: either create overflow basins or increase the sewer size."
But instead of adapting to the effects of climate change, we could also mitigate them, Bottermann said. He suggests establishing "fresh air aisles," or areas without buildings, to prevent the "heat island effect" of cities. That's what happens when air heated on the cement and asphalt of city surfaces remains trapped between apartment buildings and office skyscrapers.
Another idea: large-scale "green infrastructure" projects. More plants in urban environments would directly tackle global warming, since plants produce oxygen and store CO2.
Climate links to wildfires, desertification
In California, people are not struggling due to too much rain, rather instead to a lack thereof. Drought has persisted there for around four years now. Farmers are not sure how they will be able to irrigate their crops.
The drought is also facilitating catastrophic wildfires. So far this year, more than 4,500 fires have destroyed 580 square kilometres (225 square miles) of land. And a recent study published in "Geophysical Research Letters" indicates that global warming is worsening the drought in California.
Climate change is also affecting accelerating desertification in North Africa's Sahel, as rising temperatures allow the desert to desert spread, stripping away people's livelihood.
"In the middle of Sahel, you are a long way from the nearest sea," meteorologist Roger Brugge said – and that's why the region sees different weather systems than Europe.
Desertification also leads to another issue that can ultimately be chalked up to global warming: climate refugees, for example people whose formerly fertile fields turn to dust, forcing them to leave their homes and find another place to live.
Fleeing climate change
"If climates change, then there's no saying you will be able to grow the same crops in 50 years as you can now," Brugge said. He added that England now has wine-growing regions, for example, which was inconceivable a few decades ago.
"And that's just Europe. If you're living on the edge of a desert and it moves 200 miles over 50 years, what are you going to grow? You are going to have to move."
People in other world regions are also losing their homes because of climate change. Many islands in the South Pacific are threatened by rising sea levels, and whole villages on South Asian shores are gradually being swallowed by the ocean.
According to a Greenpeace study, there are already 20 million climate refugees today. If temperatures continue rising as they do now, 200 million people will have to leave their homes because of climate change over the next 30 years, according to the study.


Clic here to read the story from its source.