An evaluation of the dangers faced by the UK due to greenhouse
gas emissions has been released by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra).
Called the Climate Change Risk Assessment (CCRA), the document highlights the 100 most significant challenges to the nation and its economy if
gas and electricity consumption continues and strategies are not established to deal with this problem, such as greater use of
alternative energy technologies.
It confirms that the country is one of the world leaders in understanding these hazards and should enable the development of robust strategies to help it to cope with the threats.
Some of the key hazards identified in the report include growing pressures on the UK's water supply, with the Thames River basin representing the greatest challenge.
London will also experience a far larger number of days with temperatures greater than 25 degrees C, from a current figure of 18 days every year to between 27 and 121 days by 2080, the document predicted.
Furthermore, many areas of the UK will be at an elevated risk of flooding, while a larger number of droughts and changing climates could cause timber yields to fall and invasive pests and diseases to flourish.
Hotter summers could also substantially increase the number of people who die prematurely, Defra stated.
However, climate change could might open up shipping routes in the Arctic, provide opportunities for farmers to grow new crops and reduce the number of cold-related deaths and illnesses experienced in the winter, particularly among vulnerable groups, the organisation remarked.
The Scottish government's minister for environment and climate change Stewart Stevenson said the report "is a welcome contribution to our growing understanding of the potential threats and opportunities faced by Scotland from a changing climate".
He added: "The CCRA will contribute to the development of Scotland's first Adaptation Programme, building a stronger, more resilient Scotland in the future."
Posted by Robert Shaw
