T. Nandakumar
The Hindu, Thiruvananthapuram,March 20, 2014
Alappuzha, Palakkad, Wayanad and Idukki districts are
climate change hotspots in Kerala, with a high degree of vulnerability
to natural hazards like flood and drought and impact on biodiversity and
human life.
The State Action Plan on Climate Change
(SAPCC) has classified Alappuzha and Palakkad as the most vulnerable
districts. Palakkad is listed as very highly vulnerable because of the
higher percentage of population relying on agriculture, a lower ranking
in the human development index and higher social deprivation. Alappuzha
has been included in the same category because of the network of
environmentally sensitive wetlands, lagoons and sandy beaches. Idukki,
Wayanad, Thiruvananthapuram and Kannur have been listed as highly
vulnerable. The two hilly districts are categorised as climate change
hotspots because of the large area of dense forest cover and shola
forest.
The degree of vulnerability of climate
sensitive sectors like agriculture, fisheries and forests, tribal
population and low ranking in the human development index were also
considered in identifying the hotspots.
Kannur has
been included in the high vulnerability list because of the extensive
mangrove forests while Thiruvananthapuram makes it to the list because
it has registered medium values in terms of all the indicators.
The
SAPCC, due to be taken up for implementation this financial year,
assesses that Kerala is severely threatened by climate change. The
projected climate change scenario estimates that the atmospheric
temperature across Kerala will rise by 2 degrees Celsius by the year
2050. The minimum surface temperature in the Western Ghats region may
rise by 2 to 4.5 degrees Celsius. The number of rainy days is likely to
decrease along the entire western coast including the Western Ghats.
Also, it is projected that if the sea level rises by one metre, 169 sq
km of the coastal region surrounding Kochi would be inundated.
Implementation
The
Department of Environment and Climate Change is preparing to implement
the SAPCC from this year, Director P. Sreekantan Nair told The Hindu.
He said the programmes would be prioritised and implemented in a phased
manner. “Discussions are on with NABARD, the funding agency identified
by the Global Environment Fund (GEF). We are also trying to find other
sources of funds.” Mr. Nair said a monitoring committee would be set up
to oversee the implementation of the action plan.
The
SAPCC report estimates that paddy production in Kerala would drop by
six per cent with each degree rise in temperature. The document says
changes in temperature and rainfall would be detrimental to
thermo-sensitive crops like cardamom, coffee, tea and black pepper
cultivated in the high ranges. The action plan recommends strategies
focussing on climate-tailored agricultural management, integrated pest
management, improved land use, organic farming, farm mechanisation,
water use efficiency, weather forecasting, crop insurance and
diversification of agriculture.
In the animal
husbandry sector, the report warns that higher temperature and changing
rainfall pattern could enhance the spread of vector borne diseases and
macro parasites, besides leading to the emergence of new livestock
diseases.
It estimates that heat stress and humidity
variation could also have a significant association with bacterial,
viral and other parasitic infections and animal diseases. Some of the
viral diseases such as goat plague may also reappear while the frequency
of incidence of mastitis and foot diseases among crossbred cows may
increase, the document says.
