BANGKOK: Disasters induced by climate change pose a more serious threat to the Asia-Pacific region than previously documented, according to a new United Nations report, prompting urgent calls to build resilience. The Asia-Pacific Disaster Report 2023 – released by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and theContinue Reading
“CLEAN ENERGY COOPERATION” On Sunday, Kishida discussed energy security and decarbonisation with senior Saudi officials including Prince Mohammed in the Red Sea city of Jeddah, official Saudi statements said. During the meeting with Prince Mohammed, Tokyo and Saudi Arabia agreed to launch the “Lighthouse Initiative for Clean Energy Cooperation,” accordingContinue Reading
BEIJING: China on Monday (Jul 17) said the mercury hit 52.2 degrees Celsius in the northwest of the country over the weekend, setting a record for mid-July. A weather station in the Xinjiang region’s Sanbao village “recorded a temperature peak of 52.2 degrees Celsius at 7pm on Jul 16, breakingContinue Reading
SINGAPORE: Indonesia is “preparing very well” for the possibility of transboundary haze this year, said Indonesia’s coordinating minister for maritime and investment affairs Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan on Tuesday (Jun 6). “We have climate modification technology. This is (so) we can make early rain in order to prepare a pond, soContinue Reading
SINGAPORE: Indonesia is preparing “very well” for the possibility of transboundary haze this year, said Indonesia’s coordinating minister for maritime and investment affairs Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan on Tuesday (Jun 6). “We have climate modification technology. This is (so) we can make early rain in order to prepare a pond, soContinue Reading
BEIJING: China’s agriculture ministry is urging local authorities to speed up the harvesting and drying of damaged grain after heavy rain flooded fields of ripe wheat in the country’s most important growing region. Authorities should send emergency teams to drain water from fields, speed up access by harvesters and mobiliseContinue Reading
SINGAPORE: Mongolia was the main source of northern China’s worst sandstorms in five years from January to April, and may have contributed as much as 70 per cent of the dust floating over capital Beijing, China’s environment ministry said on Monday (May 29). Northern China is routinely hit by heavyContinue Reading
HANOI: Several Vietnamese cities are cutting use of public lighting to save energy for households and manufacturing, the ministry of industry and trade said on Thursday (May 25), amid looming power shortages due to heatwaves. “Authorities in many provinces and cities have taken measures to save energy to ensure stableContinue Reading
The analysis also found that such events in India and Bangladesh, previously once-a-century, can now be expected around once every five years because of human-caused climate change. For Laos and Thailand, if global temperatures rise by two degrees Celsius – as will happen within around 30 years if emissions areContinue Reading
According to the sixth Synthesis Report from the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in March, over the last 50 years, climate change has likely slowed growth in agricultural productivity across the globe.
It has led to food insecurity in parts of Africa, Asia, Central and South America and other vulnerable regions, according to the report.
China, one of the most populous countries, has begun to see the negative impacts of global warming in rising sea levels, severe weather events and melting glaciers.
The Ministry of Water Resources predicted in March that China’s southern region – now in its annual flood season – would suffer from frequent flooding and droughts this year, with some areas experiencing more severe extreme events compared to normal.
Aside from the threats of climate change, concerns over food security in China have arisen over deteriorating relations with the United States and its allies – many of which are major agricultural suppliers.
Chinese President Xi Jinping said at the annual central rural work conference in December that agriculture was the foundation of national security and weak links – including low productivity – must be fixed.
Previous studies had focused mainly on the impacts of drought and extreme heat on crop yields, but relatively little research had been done on the impact of extreme rainfall, Jian said, adding that the impact on the yields remained largely uncertain.
Past studies have usually analysed daily or seasonal rainfall data in county-level or city-level administration zones to evaluate the impact of extreme rainfall, but the method can miss negative impacts, according to the authors.
“Extreme rainfall may occur in a few hours. If you average it out over a whole day or over a whole week, the impact may be invisible,” Wang Xuhui, study lead author and a researcher at Peking University, said.