With the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report identifying coastal countries as among those likely to be most affected by climate change, Kerala's low-lying coastal districts are said to be among the most-vulnerable ones in the country . The state government has assigned experts to chalk out future climate scenario in the state for the next 50 years. The department of environment and climate change has assigned scientists from Centre for Earth Science Studies (CESS) and Centre for Mathematical Modelling and Computer Simulation (CMMACS) to study and give projections of the climate. “We hope to get a picture of the climate scenario for the next few decades so that appropriate policies and programmes can be put in place to cut down potential damages,“ said Sreekantan Nair, director, directorate of environment & climate change. The Centre has sanctioned Rs 2,160 crore for the implementation of state action plan on climate change that has identified Alappuzha, Wayanad, Idukki and Palakkad as the four most vulnerable districts. “CMMACS will give a projection of impact of climate change on temperature and rainfall in Kerala while CESS will look into the sea level rise,“ he added. Alappuzha is sensitive because of its wetlands and sandy beaches and PalakI kad is vulnerable because of agriculture. Wayanad and Idukki are vulnerable because of the large dense forests. The pro jected climate change scenario estimates that the temperature will rise by two degrees by 2050. The number of rainy days is likely to decrease and there could be a sea-level rise of 1 m that could inundate the coast. CESS is studying the issue and will project a scenario in 2100 on how many districts could be vulnerable. “ Alappuz ha and Ernakulam are more prone to inundation. We are working on a computer model based on data from 1939. It is ex pected that there could be around 0.5 m sea-level rise by 2100 based on the projected greenhouse gas emission lev els. So the state will have to plan solutions to move people away from such areas,“ said CESS marine scientist Shahul Hameed.