Climate change could bring higher temperatures, droughts, floods and soil degradation to Middle East3 March 2008
CAIRO, Egypt (AP) — Climate change is likely to reduce agricultural production and exacerbate water shortages in the Middle East, threatening the region's poor, the U.N. Food and Agricultural Organization warned Monday.
Many countries in the Middle East already suffer from a shortage of arable land and limited access to water necessary to irrigate crops. But climate change could bring higher temperatures, droughts, floods and soil degradation, according to a new report released by the agency.
"Changes in temperature, rainfall and climatic extremes will only add to the stress on agricultural resources in a region where land availability and degradation, food price shocks and population growth are already a major concern," said the report, which is being discussed at a regional conference in Cairo.
Among the problems climate change could cause is an increased risk of conflict over the scarce resources, the report said. More >>>
