Following last week’s release of the Stern Report on the economic costs of climate change, the Met Office Hadley Centre scientists will present their latest research based that is based on their own climate models.
Presenting at a side event at the annual UN conference today, Dr Vicky Pope will detail the Met Office’s latest work in investigating the impacts of climate change on developing countries to the international scientific community.
The worldwide damage to the environment could be most acutely felt in the developing world, according to the report entitled ‘Effects of climate change on developing countries’.
Dr Hope will reiterate recent findings of the Met Office published last month, which highlight the likely major increases in the areas affected by drought across the globe.
Extreme drought, the researchers believe, is likely to increase from under three per cent of the planet today to 30 per cent by 2100, and areas affected by severe drought could see a five-fold increase from eight per cent to 40 per cent.
Finding and applying data on the effects of climate change
Dr Hope will also explain that there are, alternatively, some positive effects of climate change, such as reduced drought and potential crop increases in a limited number of regions.
Many of the results to be detailed at the meeting was produced from around the world on PRECIS – a regional climate modelling system developed by the Met Office to run on personal computers.
Currently, there are over 190 users in over 60 countries around the world.
More insight to fully evaluate the regional and local implications of climate change is needed if overseas relief can assist developing countries to adapt and alleviate the problem.
Today’s briefing will also include a report on how recent increases in vegetation fires in reaction to human activity are releasing more carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere.
The Hadley Centre report is available on the Met Office web site at www.metoffice.gov.uk/research/hadleycentre/pubs/brochures/.
You’ve read it. Now review it.
Date Published: November 13, 2006
More by this source
|
Print
|
Send to a friend
|
Rate & Comment
|
Keep up to date
If you found this item fun or informative, please let others know. Simply send to a friend or recommend it to even more people - on any of the following sites:
Latest Science News | reddit | digg.com | del.icio.us | rollyo | stumbleupon
More on climate change...
Out of season
Climate change has repeatedly been identified as one of the greatest challenges faced by humanity, but our wildlife too will have to cope with a changing environment.
America feels the heat
The gap between scientists' increasingly urgent warnings about climate change and the lack of action by politicians was never more apparent than at the end of the G8 summit in Gleneagles last week.
The art of prediction
Economists join climate scientists in quest for better forecasting.
