IRI Climate Digest February
2001
Climate Impacts - January
Contributions to this page were made by IRI researchers Dr. A. Amissah-Arthur (Agriculture), Dr. K. Broad (Fisheries), Dr. M. Hopp (Health), Dr. B. Lyon (Energy), Dr. A. Seth (Hazards) and Dr. L. Zubair (Water Resources).
Hazards/Threats
Afghanistan "The situation in Afghanistan has
seriously deteriorated in the course of 2000 and early 2001," said
United Nations Co-ordinator Erick de Mul at a January press
conference in Islamabad. Two years of drought, many years of war,
and lack of investment in productive capacity have culminated in a
major human tragedy. "This country has never faced a humanitarian
crisis of such dimensions before," he added. A cold wave hit the
western provincial capital city of Heratat the end of January, with temperatures
falling to as low as -25 C, resulting in some 150 deaths in the
IDP (internally displaced people) camps outside the city.
(OCHA;
OCHA)
Mozambique Mozambique entered 2001 under the threat of floods in Zambezia province because heavy
rain in Zambia had forced the authorities to release water from the Kariba dam. However, the Zambezi River burst its banks on 3 January, flooding farmland in the north-western
province of Tete, while the Cahora Bassa dam in Tete province stored enough water to prevent flooding further downstream. Later in January, a tropical storm brought heavy rain to
Quelimane, capital of Zambezia, and other areas of the province. By 26 January, 17,000 people were reported to be affected by floods in six districts, as well as the provincial capital. (UNRC; OCHA; DMC Seasonal Outlook)
East Africa Drought in Eritrea, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya and Tanzania is a consequence of three years of poor rainfall in the region followed by total failure of rainfall in April 2000 in
many parts of the Horn. Although some forecasts indicate improvements in Ethiopia and Somalia, and rain has been falling in Nairobi for most of January, there are significant parts of Kenya, Eritrea, Tanzania and Djibouti which are still
awaiting signs of first normal rains this year. (Reuters;
UN)
Sri Lanka A powerful cyclone with winds reaching 180 kmph followed a month of unseasonably high rainfall in Eastern Sri Lanka and Southern Tamil Nadu. This was the fourth strongest cyclone
of the last 100 years in Sri Lanka. 5 persons died and 75, 000 were rendedered homeless and reservoirs and monuments suffered damage.
(Reliefweb
and SLMOHN)
Mongolia
Following the worst winter in decades last year, which seriously undermined the food security of large numbers
of people especially nomadic herders, this year the country again faces a devastating winter which will greatly
exacerbate existing food supply problems. Thick snow has blanketed livestock pastures for the second year in
succession on which herds usually feed in winter and temperatures have fallen to as low as -50 C. The
harsh winter has already killed about 600 000 animals, on which a third of the population rely entirely for their
livelihood and income. With more snow forecast in February and March, it is currently projected that several million
livestock could be again lost this year. The current livestock losses come on top of some 3 million animals lost in
1999/2000, which represented around 10 percent of the total herd.
(OCHA,
OCHA)
Siberia Heavy snowstorms with unprecedented frosts have been raging in Russia's Far East and Siberian regions during
these first days of the new year. The temperature fell to -55 in some Russian regions on 5 Jan,
with winds as strong as 25-30 metres a second. Temperatures plunged to as low as -58 F (-50 C) as part of an ongoing cold spell over a two-week period. Authorities in the district of Krasnoyarsk,
2,200 miles (3,500 km) east of Moscow, reported that they expected to deplete all of their coal reserves by mid
Jan 2001. Police restricted traffic in the region in order to prevent further freezing deaths of motorists and
passengers. (CNN)
Bolivia According to the United Nations Resident Coordinators' Office in Bolivia, heavy rains continue in the western and northern highlands, increasing the risk of further flooding, in particular,
in the Amazon lowlands. The Government of Bolivia has declared an emergency situation in four departments (La Paz, Oruro, Cochabamba and Beni) and requested the assistance of the
international community for the victims of the floods. According to reports from the SENADECI (The National Civil Defense Service), approximately 70,000 people are affected as a
result of both floods and drought.
(IFRC; OCHA)
Australia
Australian officials began airlifting food and supplies to communities in northern Queensland as a result of floods
that have covered more than 58,000 square miles and left some communities stranded for up to 6 weeks. The
area has been experiencing flooding since October 2000. The Australian Bureau of Meteorology said that the La
Nina weather phenomenon in 2000 had produced the second wettest year in Australia since 1900. (DRO)
Health
Australia Seventy-five cases of Ross River
virus-associated disease have been reported in the Northern
Territory of
Australia. Recent heavy rains in the region have resulted
in increased
densities of mosquitoes that carry this debilitating
disease. Warnings
have also been issued concerning the presence of Kunjin and
Murray
Valley encephalitis viruses.
(ProMED)
Saudi Arabia Since the beginning of the Rift Valley Fever (RVF)
outbreak last
September, 843
people have been affected with the disease, including 114
deaths.
Concern over additional RVF cases exists with the appearance
of
mosquito-breeding swamps in Jeddah caused by recent rain
storms.
(ProMED)
India A cold wave in northern and eastern India left 68
dead from
hypothermia. Most of the victims were homeless people in
the states of
Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. (EA)
Southern Africa Earlier rains are believed to have
triggered cholera
outbreaks in six
southern
countries including: South Africa, Swaziland, Malawi,
Mozambique,
Zambia and Zimbabwe. In KwaZula-Natal, South Africa, 37,204
cases and
85 deaths have been reported since the start of the outbreak
in August
2000. 2,300 cases and 60 deaths have been reported in
Mozambique since
the outbreak began in Dec. 2000. (UNWire;
WHO)
Burundi With a lack of rainfall reducing last year's
harvest in
northern Burundi, the number of severely malnourished children in the province of Karuzi has
doubled from
460 children at the end of Dec. 2000 to 1,100 at the end of
Jan. 2001. Currently 19,000 children and nursing
mothers are receiving supplementary food in Karuzi.
A malaria epidemic continues in the area with 30,000 cases
being treated
per week. (MSF)
Siberia Over 200 people have been admitted to hospitals
with frostbite
following frigid temperatures of -50 C. Rising fuel prices
and energy
shortages are worsening the situation. (IFRC)
Water Resources/Energy
Romania
Water availability in surface flows, reservoirs and ground water reserves is very low due to the prolonged
drought Romania has been facing since May 2000. The most affected are localities in the Jiu Valley of the
southwestern part of the country. Water rationing is under consideration. (CNN)
Kenya
The Kenyan government announced that the unprecedented 16-month nationwide power rationing was
suspended from 22 Jan following the currently unexpected heavy rains. The rationing
started in September 1999 after a record water shortage due to prolonged drought, which led to the lowest water
levels of energy reservoirs affecting the operations of the hydropower generators. (PMA)
Sri Lanka The receding water levels of the Mahaweli reservoirs due to shortfall in rains has left some reservoirs at 20% of capacity in a month in which it is usually full. Electricity rates
have been raised by 25% and air conditioners and non-essential consumption have been banned. The next season's forecast is for unusually dry conditions to continue. (Ceylon Daily News)
Iran Paralyzing snow and avalanches killed seven people in the western province of Kermanshah, Iran's official news agency IRNA reported. However, the much needed blanket of snow covered most of the
Iranian plateau, bringing some relief to a nation which is emerging from two consecutive years of crippling drought.
According to a United Nations report, last year's drought cost Iran 3.5 billion U.S. dollars in losses. (CNN)
Agriculture
Kenya
The widespread onset of the Oct-Nov "short rains" helped to boost tea production. Widespread failure
of the "long rains" during the spring had caused numerous crop failures during the earlier growing
season. Although the short rains were a boost to crops during the fall, water rationing remains in effect
in Nairobi due to the previous drought conditions. Reports also indicate that the drought has resulted in
a 40% loss to the nation's cattle with 10-20% losses to sheep and goat herds nationwide. (Reuters, CNN, CIP)
South Africa A heat wave in the corn belt stressed
summer crops in or nearing reproduction. (JAWF)
South America
Across central Argentina and southern
Brazil, widespread showers benefited vegetative to
reproductive summer crops. (JAWF)
Western Russia
Unseasonably mild weather continued to
provide favorable overwintering conditions for winter
grains. (JAWF)
Australia Warm weather aided summer crop
development and heavy rain increased moisture reserves in
Western Australia's agricultural districts. (JAWF)
Europe Unseasonably mild weather benefited
vegetative winter grains in western Europe, and
provided favorable overwintering conditions for
dormant winter grains in eastern Europe. (JAWF)
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