U.N. to look at climate change threats

NF Reporter · 04-05-2007, 07:16 AM

AP - The U.N. Security Council put climate change on its agenda for the first time, warning global warming could be a catalyst for new conflict around the world.

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waltky · 11-29-2007, 03:34 AM

Cambodia food production to suffer from global warming...

Cambodia faces immediate threats from climate change
Nov. 29, 2007 -- Cambodia faces immediate threats to its agricultural production and food security from climate change in rainfall, temperatures and availability of water, said the UNDP Human Development Report (HDR) 2007 released here on Thursday.

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For most Cambodians live in rural areas and are reliant on agriculture, long-term risks associated with climate change include water insecurity, increased sea level, cyclones and disruption or collapse of Cambodia's critical ecosystems, said the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) in the report.

Climate change may increase occurrence of drought and flood while increasing the vulnerability of Cambodia's poor people to their effects, it said. Increase of disease with climate change may have an adverse impact on people's health, particularly the most vulnerable poor, it said.

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waltky · 12-06-2007, 04:50 PM

Climate wars?...

Could Climate Change Fuel World Conflict?
Dec. 6, 2007 - From Nepal To Nigeria, Indonesia To The Arctic, A Warmer World Poses Different Problems

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Nepal: Unforeseen flash point

When it came to climate change fueling conflict, "Nepal was not on people's watch list," says Marc Levy, a political scientist at Columbia University. But several experts now say the country's Maoist insurgency has received a substantial boost from global warming.

During the past decade, a change in precipitation patterns and the shrinking of glaciers -- events linked to climate change -- have put added stress on Nepal's impoverished western hill districts. "There is a lack of irrigation," says Bishnu Upreti of the National Centre for Competence Research in Kathmandu, Nepal. As snowmelt and glacial runoff have been interrupted, he says, "it has caused a lot of tension."

Maoists have used this to their advantage. These areas "were expecting help from the government, but the government was not able to handle the difficulties," Mr. Upreti says. Maoists stoked these frustrations to turn people against the government.

Many highland Nepalis have left, overcrowding lowland districts along the border with India. Twenty years ago, 18 percent of the population lived in these districts, which make up one-fifth of Nepal's area. Today, nearly half of all Nepalis live there. Says Geoff Dabelko, director of the Woodrow Wilson Institute's Environmental Change and Security Program in Washington: "It's becoming harder for people in the highlands to earn a living."

Indonesia: Unintended effects

waltky · 12-14-2007, 06:33 AM

With water rights being one of the issues between the Israelis and Palestinians, global warming's effect on the water supply could very well be the cause of a flare-up between the two...

Will Global Warming Really Lead To More Wars?
Thursday, December 13, 2007 - When the Nobel Committee awarded the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize to former US Vice President Al Gore, Jr. and the IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) part of their rationale was:

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Extensive climate changes may alter and threaten the living conditions of much of mankind. They may induce large-scale migration and lead to greater competition for the earth’s resources. Such changes will place particularly heavy burdens on the world’s most vulnerable countries. There may be increased danger of violent conflicts and wars, within and between states.

So saving the environment is working for peace. A new study from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) says that is only true if the concept of peace is broadened substantially. The Nobel Committee interprets “working for peace” as including saving the Earth’s environment. Researchers, advocacy groups, politicians and the media have all highlighted local resource crises as the reason for a host of armed conflicts around the globe. The premise underlying the Nobel Committee’s expanded definition of peace is that there is a causal connection between natural resource shortages and violent conflict.

But is that true?

Resources and populations

In their article, the NTNU researchers challenge a popular school of thought, the Neomalthusian school. They see climate change and the over consumption of natural resources as a modern day illustration of Thomas Malthus’ theory. Thomas Malthus (1766-1834) developed the well-known theory that a country’s food production cannot keep up with its population growth over the long run. Starvation, war and early death would regulate the balance between food availability and population numbers. That means that the bulk of the population would live a minimalist existence.

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