'Disaster, disease causedby global warming'

2000-10-30 10:52

Dhaka, Bangladesh - Frequent natural disasters and the return of diseases previously eradicated in Bangladesh are the results of global warming, experts say.

A study by the South Asian Association for Regional Co-operation (SAARC) showed an "alarming" rise in sea levels of "up to 10 millimetres (0.4 inches) at some points in some countries, including Bangladesh," Abdul Musawwir Chowdhury of the government's Bangladesh Space Research and Remote Sensing Organisation (SPARRSO) said.

"This is very serious. A study of 40 years of rain patterns also indicated that there has been an increase (in rain) and also a break from the regular pattern - causing untimely floods."

The recent severe flooding in southwestern Bangladesh could have been the result of global warming, which brought more rain to the upper catchement area, leading to an overflow, Chowdhury said.

"There is also a suspicion now that the return of malaria, a mosquito-borne disease, once eradicated in Bangladesh, along with dengue fever might be linked to this weather pattern as more rains and moisture help breed mosquitoes," Chowdhury said.

Bangladesh, with a population of 120 million living on 147 570 square kilometres (59 028 square miles), is located to the north of the Bay of Bengal in the Indian Ocean.

Its coastal area comprises 2,85 million hectares (7,6 million acres) and its coastal length is 200 kilometres (120 miles).

"Countries like Bangladesh have no choice but to adapt to the weather changes being brought about by global warming," said Mozaharul Alam, an expert on global warming, working with the private Bangladesh Centre for Advanced Studies (BCAS).

"An adaptation fund has to be created by the international community because countries like Bangladesh would need funds to adapt to climatic changes," he added.

Some reports have indicated that cyclone and flood-battered coastal districts and scores of low-lying off-shore fishing and farming islands, home to one-quarter of the nation's population, were being slowly swamped by seawater.

Alam said it was universally agreed that Bangladesh was extremely vulnerable to climate change and stood eventually to lose 17 percent of its land mass.

"So far there has been no comprehensive study on the effects of global warming in Bangladesh and thus it is difficult to pin-point a visible example, but floods in southwestern Bangladesh in September-October were very odd and could be linked to this weather phenomenon," he said.

Alam suggested global warming could thaw the icy mountain-tops of the Himalayas, from where the melted waters would flow down through Bangladesh to the sea.

Despite little scientific evidence linking global warming to floods, what was noticeable, Alam said, was "the propensity, intensity and increase in the frequency of natural calamities."

"There is also an impact on health like the increase of vector-borne diseases," he said.

SAARC groups Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Nepal and the Maldives. - Sapa-AFP

- SAPA