Climate Change Poses Threat to Egypt’s Farming, Tourism, Water Supply (Video)

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ffl4MMGLLPk&feature=related[/youtube]

This light-hearted clip bears a serious warning of what Egypt might look like in 2150.

Climate change threatens to drastically reduce Egypt’s agricultural production and water supplies, the head of the Egyptian Environmental Affairs Agency’s climate change unit warned in an interview with Reuters. El Sayed Sabry also noted that key tourist destinations are at risk.

“We are looking at an expected loss of 10-12% of agricultural land, the bulk of which is threatened to flood. But more importantly, most such land will lose fertility and productive capacity,” Sabry told Reuters.

Wheat production could fall by 15% by 2050 if temperatures increase by two degrees Celsius and up to 36% if temperatures rise by four degrees, he noted. (Egypt is already the world’s largest importer of wheat.)

With the projected increases in temperature, parts of the low-lying Nile Delta, where nearly half of the country’s crops are grown, would be submerged or soaked in salt water. As noted in a recent climate change powwow in Israel, millions of climate refugees would be created in this scenario. (Over a third of Egypt’s 78 million people live in the Nile Delta.)

Similarly, popular tourist destinations could be devastated by climate change, as increased acidity destroys coral reefs in the Red Sea and rising seawater washes away Mediterranean beaches. “Climate change will permanently alter the attraction of some holiday regions,” Sabry said. (Tourism contributes about 11% of Egypt’s GDP.)

Another major challenge could be a decline in the flow of the Nile River: A rise in temperature of 2-4 degrees Celsius would decrease its flow by 88-98% according to a recent study. (The Nile provides Egypt with some 87% of its water, most of which is used for farming.)

:: Reuters

More Green Prophet posts on climate change:

Will You Be A Middle East Climate Refugee?
Climate Change Kills 160 Syrian Villages
Israel’s Best and Brightest Debate Climate Policy

Author: Ira Moskowitz

When his kids were small, Ira would point to litter on the ground and tell them: “That makes me angry!” He still gets angry about pollution, waste and abusive treatment of our world, but is encouraged by the growing awareness of environmental issues and has been following the latest developments in cleantech with great interest. Ira grew up in the green hills of western Massachusetts and moved to Israel in the early 1980s after completing an MA in Middle Eastern Studies. He has worked as a software developer and journalist, and translates works of Hebrew fiction and non-fiction to English. Ira is trying to age gracefully, but refuses to surrender his youthful belief in the potential for change, including a collaborative future for the peoples of the Middle East. To contact Ira, email ira (at) greenprophet (dot) com.

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