As giant swarms of locusts spread across East Africa, the Arabian Peninsula and the Middle East, devouring crops that feed millions of people, some scientists say global warming is contributing to proliferation of the destructive insects. The largest locust swarms in more than 50 years have left subsistence farmers helpless to protect their fields and will spread misery throughout the region, said Robert Cheke, a biologist with the University of Greenwich Natural Resources Institute, who has helped lead international efforts to control insect pests in Africa. “I’m concerned about the scale of devastation and the effect on human livelihoods,” Cheke said, adding that he also worried about “the impending famines.”e change
Tag Archives: Climate Change
Lessons from coronavirus and climate change: Don’t be deceived by small numbers
The flu has a death rate of around 0.1 percent in the U.S. COVID-19 has put an estimated death rate between 1 and 3.4 percent, although we won’t know the true death rate until the outbreak is over. The difference between 0.1 percent and 2 percent may not sound like much. Indeed, some people on social media have opined that a 97 or 98 percent survival rate sounds pretty good to them.
Similarly…
At 1.5 degrees C of warming, heat waves will affect 14 percent of the world’s population once every five years. At 2 degrees C, 37 percent of the world will be exposed to heat waves — 420 million more people. At 2 degrees C of warming, 61 million people more will be exposed to severe drought than if we kept warming to 1.5 degrees C. That half a degree could expose between 180 and 270 million more people to be exposed to water scarcity.
COVID-19 Rekindles Discussion on Climate Change, Infectious Disease – The Energy Mix
“We don’t know with COVID, what role if any the climate effects that we’re already seeing in species around the world may have had on the risk of this disease emerging,” he stresses. But a warming climate has already triggered “this extraordinary migration to the poles”, as species scramble to escape the heat. “That has led to the spread of pathogens, because animals that carry pathogens came in contact with other animals that didn’t carry those pathogens, and there was transmission.”
So “the bottom line here is that if you wanted to prevent the spread of pathogens, the emergence of pathogens, as we see not just with people and COVID, but as well with wildlife, you wouldn’t transform the climate. Because that forces species to come into contact with other species that may be vulnerable to infections. There are lots of forces, and habitat loss is a major contributor to it.”
Storms wreak havoc on land. We’re only beginning to understand what they do underwater.
You’ve likely heard about broad trends that scientists are certain
will occur as a result of climate change: Plants and animals will be
pushed out of their native habitats. Ice sheets will melt, and sea level
will rise. Extreme weather events, like droughts and storms, will
become more common and more severe.
will occur as a result of climate change: Plants and animals will be
pushed out of their native habitats. Ice sheets will melt, and sea level
will rise. Extreme weather events, like droughts and storms, will
become more common and more severe.
But go a layer deeper and ask about the effects of those changes on
the environment — on plants, animals, and ecosystems at large — and the
certainty fades. “There’s been research on climate extremes for a number
of years — but it’s the impact research, the impacts on the ecology,
that is now catching up with that,” said Stephen Thackery.
‘World is on fire’, Greta warns climate strike
She accused politicians and the media of ignoring the climate emergency and “sweeping their mess under the rug”.
“We are the change, and change is coming whether you like it or not,” the Swedish environmentalist said.