Climate Summit 4 July, 2011 - As a build up to the “Climate Summit for a Living Himalayas 2011,” scheduled for November in Bhutan this year, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Nepal identified a host of issues related to water security for regional cooperation.
This was done at a two-day expert group regional consultative meeting in Bangladesh to develop a 10-year regional roadmap beginning 2012 on water security, which ended yesterday. Water is one of the four thematic issues of the climate summit among food, biodiversity, and energy.
The members identified areas of cooperation, divided into two broad headings - climate change and its impact on regional water resources, and sharing of knowledge and capacity building.
The countries agreed to assess the existing hydro-meteorological network and enhance the data collection process. They will review the climate modelling and select appropriate modelling tools to develop hydrological scenarios at different scales in the region.
The member countries also agreed to enhance ecosystem management practices to minimise the impacts of climate change-induced disasters. They will develop effective approaches and actions concerning disaster management.
Considering irreversible impacts of climate change, the countries agreed to build resilience through conservation of mountain, coastal and wetland ecosystems, while also emphasising the need to promote traditional water conservation techniques backstopped by modern methods to increase the efficiency of water use. Full Article >>>
Location:Cayman Islands
