The global cost of disasters is growing: The economic burden of disasters is intensifying. While the direct costs of disasters averaged $70–80 billion a year between 1970 and 2000, between 2001 and 2020 these annual costs grew significantly to $180–200 billion. But the real cost is far higher. Disaster costs …
The number of drought-hit mandals in Andhra Pradesh will go up to 549 from 456, with District Collectors submitting proposals to add 93 more mandals to the list. The State has 1,128 mandals. The State Government will send a preliminary report to the Union Government in a week, seeking financial …
The collapse of the Maya civilization is often attributed to drought, but is the explanation really as simple as that? On the basis of evidence from their respective fields, an archaeologist and a palaeoclimatologist call for a more nuanced assessment.
After one of the hottest summers on record, the lake that is the lone water supply and main recreational draw in this tiny West Texas town is more than 99 percent empty. Robert Lee, which is a two-hour drive east of Midland, has received only about six inches of rainfall …
This new UN Global Assessment Report on Disaster Risk Reduction explores trends and patterns in disaster risk globally & regionally. It highlights the political and economic imperative to reduce disaster risks. The second edition of the United Nations Global Assessment Report on Disaster Risk Reduction is a resource for understanding …
Officials wrongly report rain in taluk above average People in the taluk may soon have to literally go in search of greener pastures, if it does not rain for another few days. An exodus seems imminent with the land being bone-dry and no sign of rain in the near future. …
The world's population of seven billion is set to rise to at least 10 billion by 2100, but could top 15 billion if birth rates are just slightly higher than expected, the United Nations said on Wednesday. In a report ahead of ceremonies on October 31 to mark the seven …
The world's governments and relief agencies need to plan now to resettle millions of people expected to be displaced by climate change, an international panel of experts said on Thursday. Resettlement is already occurring at the rate of some 10 million people a year, said the report's lead author, Alex …
After a celebrated comeback from abysmal water conditions and high pollution levels in the 1970s, Lake Erie is regressing to the highest levels of phosphorous contamination in 40 years, a Great Lakes expert said on Thursday. "Levels are back-up to when it was considered a dead lake," said Jeff Reutter, …
Global temperature rise could exceed "safe" levels of two degrees Celsius in some parts of the world in many of our lifetimes if greenhouse gas emissions continue to increase, two research papers published in the journal Nature warned. "Certain levels of climate change are very likely within the lifetimes of …
Under pressure: millions of people are moving to places that are more vulnerable to environmental disaster, including the Dharavi slum in Mumbai Tens of millions of people are moving to places that are more vulnerable to environmental disaster, particularly the urban flood plains of Asia and Africa, according to a …
The Supreme Court today said it would not favour interlinking of rivers if it causes huge financial burden on the Centre and asked for a report on its costs. “My concern is only on the financial liability of the project. We want to make it clear that we would not …
The fear of floods in the Bennihalla stream has come back to haunt the residents of the taluk. On Thursday morning, farmer Mabusab Rajesab Nadaf (70) and his wife Hasanbi (66) left for their field on the outskirts of Navalgund town to check their groundnut and chilli crops. They remained …
The United Nations has placed Pakistan among the ‘water hotspots’ of Asia-Pacific region, saying that the country is facing major threats of increasing water scarcity, high water utilisation, deteriorating water quality and climate change risk. Changes in weather patterns across the world have increased occurrences and intensities of extreme events …
Kolar, Bangarpet, Srinivaspur among 70 drought-hit taluks in the State The State government has declared Kolar, Malur and Bangarpet taluks drought-hit. The scanty rainfall is estimated to cause huge crop loss in the district. Ragi sown prior to the monsoon is in the stage of developing ears. However, lack of …
A new plan to curb global warming risks becoming a battleground between rich and poor nations and could struggle to get off the ground as negotiators battle over the fate of the ailing Kyoto climate pact. The 1997 Kyoto Protocol covers only emissions from rich nations that produce less than …
A new plan to curb global warming risks becoming a battleground between rich and poor nations and could struggle to get off the ground as negotiators battle over the fate of the ailing Kyoto climate pact. The 1997 Kyoto Protocol covers only emissions from rich nations that produce less than …
Believe it or not, the humble earthworm can be the latest weapon in the war against climate change. A major four-year-old study has revealed that instead of just wriggling around and providing food for birds, earthworms – have been burrowing their way through the ground for 300 million years – …
With climate change, the world is generally getting warmer —- but not in a slow and straight line. Instead, many models show that weather is simply becoming more unpredictable and possibly more volatile, with more severe storms, more severe droughts and more peaks in all kinds of weather extremes. All …
