The World Meteorological Organization’s State of the Climate in Asia 2024 report warns that the region is warming nearly twice as fast as the global average, driving more extreme weather and posing serious threats to lives, ecosystems, and economies. In 2024, Asia experienced its warmest or second warmest year on …
Droughts, an integral part of India's geophysical profile, have registered a steep rise in frequency and ferocity during the past 50 years. To its credit, the scientific community has kept pace by conducting research that can minimise the impact of dry spells. But the government has done precious little to …
it is a downpour that has left most parts of central and eastern Europe submerged in misery. Over the past few weeks, unprecedented and severe storms have triggered floods in the region, claiming more than 112 lives, rendering thousands homeless and causing damage worth more than us $21.5 billion. Authorities …
GEOENVIRONMENTAL HAZARDS IN HIMALAYA . Bindhy Wasini Pandey . Published by Mittal Publications . New Delhi . 2002 . 430 pages This book is a research-based analysis of the geomorphic and hydrological hazards in the upper Beas basin of the Himalaya together with their mapping and mitigation strategies. It describes …
Forewarned is forearmed. With this motto, Argentina has embarked on a mission to launch two Earth observation satellites so that it is alerted against environmental threats. Named Saocom 1 and 2, the satellites are supposed to improve the management of emergencies such as forest fires, droughts and floods. While monitoring …
Vietnam is grappling with the elements. Different parts of the country are reeling under varying extremes of weather, with the central region in the grip of a deadly drought and northern areas deluged by floods. A two-month dry spell has hit paddy crop in central Vietnam severely. More than one-third …
it might be the lull before a storm. This year, the Bhakra dam is gushing with more water than normal. Its inflow in July 2002 was as much as 38,000 cusecs
Concrete drama Actsaid the court. The government did not. The realtors are at the deep end now since April 182001new construction activity in Ahmedabad has virtually come to a standstill. The realtors of the commercial capital of Gujaratone of the two most industrialised states of Indiaare desperate. Builder after builder …
Africa is reeling under a double whammy. As if the erratic weather pattern that has led to a widespread famine was not enough, corruption and mismanagement has compounded the people's misery. Two seasons of crops have been devastated, first by flood and then by drought. The continent is grappling with …
Flood Studies in India brings to fore several aspects of this natural disaster that are not yet conventional wisdom in policy circles. The book looks at floods from a variety of expertise areas, such as civil engineering, meteorology, hydrology, remote sensing, geomorphology and geography - the only way to do …
Suriname's northwest district of Coronie is threatened by encroaching Atlantic waves that have created a saltwater swamp. Swampwaters are starting to eat into the main road through Totness, the district capital. It is the only paved road running east-west across the South American country, along the coastline where most of …
The world is getting warmer. This can cause glaciers to melt and within the next 10 years, water from Himalayan lakes can come hurtling down in torrents, and result in floods which could threaten thousands of lives. According to a recent report of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), global …
A storm of high intensity swept through the Bolivian capital of La Paz, claiming 48 lives. The storm brought the worst floods and hailstorms in the 500-year history of the city. Many people suffered injuries and some went missing. As a result of the storm, the Choqueyapu river overflowed destroying …
More than 120,000 hectares (ha) of rice fields and 300,000 tonnes of unhusked rice have been devastated by recent floods in Indonesia. "At least 120,991 ha of paddy fields in seven main rice producing provinces have been inundated by floods,' said Sarsito Wahono, a senior agriculture ministry official. He added, …
Radiative effects of anthropogenic changes in atmospheric composition are expected to cause climate changes, in particular an intensification of the global water cycle with a consequent increase in flood risk. But the detection of anthropogenically forced changes in flooding is difficult because of the substantial natural variability, the dependence of …
current forecasts of climate change for 2050 suggest a significant adverse effect on flora and fauna species and habitats in the uk. This was the finding of an extensive study that used computer modelling and observation for assessing impacts of climate change on 50 species of the country. The study …
Deforestation in the Hirakud dam's catch-ments has led to heavy siltation. The dam stores less water than its estimated capa-city. The state government's study of Hirakud's sedimentation shows that every year 12,000 acre feet silt is deposited. Out of the 53 km upstream spread of the reser-voir, 50 km has …
This year Orissa suffered one of its worst droughts as well. The drought gripped more than two-thirds of the state's districts. After the great famine of 1866, it was for the first time that drought of such a magnitude hit Orissa. It affected the lives of 11 mil-lion people. After …
The ghost of the 1999 super cyclone still haunts the people of Orissa. On October 18, 1999, a cyclone with a wind velocity of 200 km/hr hit the coastal district of Ganjam. It ripped through the district killing 300 people and destroying all standing crops. And while the state government …
THE debate on whether climate change causes calamities in Orissa rages on. But nobody denies that environmental degradation in the state has let loose a chain of problems. Massive deforestation in west Orissa is not only destroying the livelihood of local people but also silting up riverbeds causing floods in …
