Rising temperatures may pose a challenge to the long-term food
security of China, the world's most populous country, according to
an official report evaluating climate change.
China's output of major crops, including rice, wheat and corn,
could fall by up to 37 percent in the second half of this century
if no effective measures are taken to curb greenhouse gases in the
coming 20 to 50 years, according to the report.
Global warming will negatively impact China's ecological, social
and economic systems, especially farming, animal husbandry and
water supply, and some damage will be irreversible, said the
report.
The average temperature in China has risen by 0.5 to 0.8 degree
centigrade in the past century and is expected to go up another two
to three degrees centigrade in the coming 50 to 80 years, it
said.
Most areas in China, especially northern areas, will get drier,
even though annual rainfall may increase 7 to 10 percent, it
said.
The greater demand for water for agriculture will impact the
cost of farm produce, it reasoned.
This year, China's southwestern Chongqing Municipality and
neighbouring province Sichuan were ravaged by the worst drought in
more than 50 years.
China's central and western regions will suffer an annual water
shortage of about 20 billion cubic meters from 2010 to 2030, the
report said.
The report also predicted that more floods and droughts will hit
the country as water evaporates more rapidly from rivers.
The Yellow River, China's second longest, will see evaporation
increase by 15 percent a year, it said.
It also warned that coastal areas would be at a greater risk of
flooding as China's sea level will climb 1 to 16 centimeters by
2030.
The report was jointly released by six central departments and
academic organizations, including the Ministry of Science and
Technology, China Meteorological Administration and the Chinese
Academy of Sciences.
(Xinhua News Agency January 4, 2007)
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