FACTBOX-Impacts for Americas of climate change
Source: Reuters
April 1 (Reuters) - Following are impacts of global warming for the Americas outlined in a draft U.N. climate report due to be released in Brussels on April 6. The draft, to be discussed by scientists and government experts in the U.N.'s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change meeting from Monday, is looking at the regional effects of warming: NORTH AMERICA -- Population growth, rising property values and continued investment increase the vulnerability of coastal regions. Any rise in destructiveness of coastal storms is very likely to bring "dramatic increases" in losses from severe weather and storm surges. -- Sea level rises and tidal surges and flooding have the "potential to severely affect transportation and infrastructure along the Gulf, Atlantic and northern coasts." -- Severe heatwaves are likely to worsen over parts of the United States and Canada. -- Ozone related deaths are projected to increase by 4.5 percent from the 1990s to the 2050s. -- Projected warming in the western mountains is likely to cause large decreases in snowpack, earlier snowmelt, more winter rains by mid-century. -- Climate change is likely to increase forest production. But by the second half of the century, the dominant impacts will be disruptions from pests and fires. Forest areas burnt each summer in Canada could rise by between 74 and 118 percent by 2100 compared to now. -- Vulnerability to climate change is likely to be concentrated in specific groups and regions, such as indigenous peoples and the poor and elderly in cities. LATIN AMERICA -- Glaciers in the tropical Andes are very likely to disappear over the next 15 years, reducing water availability and hydropower generation in Bolivia, Peru, Colombia and Ecuador. -- Any decline in rainfall in semi-arid regions of Argentina, Brazil and Chile is likely to lead to severe water shortages. -- By the 2020s, between 7 and 77 million people are likely to suffer from a lack of adequate water supplies. -- A rise in sea level, weather and climatic variability are very likely to have impacts on low-lying areas, buildings and tourism, mangroves, coral reefs and the location of fish stocks off Peru and Chile. -- Temperature increases of 2 Celsius (3.6 Fahrenheit) and decreases in soil water would turn eastern parts of Amazonia to savannah from tropical forest. In turn, that could threaten many species. -- The frequency and intensity of hurricanes in the Caribbean might increase. -- Rice yields are expected to fall after 2020, but soybean yields in south eastern parts of South America may increase.
| AlertNet news is provided by |








