European climate change to hit Mediterranean hardest

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MEDIA INFORMATION: 23/2012
ISSUED ON: 04/05/2012

Global warming in Europe this century will mostly affect Scandinavia and the Mediterranean basin, the European Environment Agency warned in its latests projections.

“The highest warming is projected over the eastern Scandinavia, and southern and south-eastern Europe,” experts at the agency said in comments accompanying a series of maps posted on the agency’s website.

Europe will be on average 1.5 degrees Celsius warmer between 2021 and 2050 than the 1960-1990 reference period, the agency said.

The biggest temperature increases in the summer will be around the Mediterranean. It will also be drier in the Med.

While a few degrees increase may not seem significant, it is important to note that these are average annual temperatures, potentially masking large extremes. For example, during the period 2021 – 2050 summer in some parts of the Mediterranean is expected to be up to 2.5° C warmer than 1961-1990. Higher temperatures lead to an increase in number of heat waves and droughts, which have great impact on water supply, agriculture production and human health.

Higher temperatures and dwindling rainfall “will have significant effects on agriculture and tourism industries, especially in the Mediterranean area,” the agency said.

“Agriculture is extremely water-intensive in some Mediterranean countries, accounting for up to 80 percent of water use,” it noted.

The agency stressed however that the world could still slow the pace of climate change by rapidly cutting emissions through “replacing fossil fuels with renewable energy technologies”.

Environment and Climate Change are among the priority areas to which PAM dedicates particular attention. Among other initiatives it had organised in collaboration with the United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UNISDR), and the Government of Malta, the International Roundtable of Parliamentarians on Disaster Risk Reduction and Climate Change Adaptation on 24 November 2009 .

Participants included members of parliaments from as far as Algeria, Argentina, Colombia, Costa Rica, France, Indonesia, Jordan, Kenya, Malta, Namibia, Senegal, Uganda and Turkey, in representation of regional parliamentary assemblies from Asia, Latin America, Africa, Europe and the Mediterranean.

The parliamentarians had agreed upon a common position to be presented at the UN Climate Conference, COP15, held in Copenhagen a few weeks later. withe the unanimous adoption ofThe Malta Declaration of the Commitment by Parliamentarians to COP 15 and Beyond.”

PR 53/2009 : UNISDR-PAM parliamentarians meeting ends with Malta Declaration” to COP15 (follow link)

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