Category Archives: Water systems

Access to fresh water
Hydrological cycle
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Climate Change, Water systems

Current Affairs: Himalayan Lake Flooding In India

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https://www.reuters.com/world/india/fourteen-dead-102-missing-after-indian-glacial-lake-bursts-bank-heavy-rain-2023-10-05/

Above is a link to a website regarding the recent a burst in the Himalayan lake earlier this month. This sudden burst could be because of the heavy monsoon rains and us also being in a El Nino year.

This interested me because my IA has been somewhat based around El Nino’s, Floods and Droughts so over the course of doing my IA it has become a topic I have been regularly investigating. Just knowing these extreme El Nino’s are occurring is quite concerning as they are becoming more frequent and gaining severity which is also do the rise in global temperatures. I believe this will be a sort of wake up call for the world because it really emphasises that our actions, big or small, have consequences.

With regard to what an El Nino is by using the NOAA website “An El Nino condition occurs when surface water in the equatorial Pacific becomes warmer than average and east winds blow weaker than normal. The opposite condition is called La Nina. During this phase of ENSO, the water is cooler than normal and the east winds are stronger. El Niños typically occur every 3 to 5 years.”

https://www.noaa.gov/education/resource-collections/weather-atmosphere/el-nino#:~:text=An%20El%20Ni%C3%B1o%20condition%20occurs,the%20east%20winds%20are%20stronger.

How do you believe we can combat how frequent the El Nino’s are occurring and lower the risks ? Do you think we are beyond the point of redemption?

Atmopshere, Climate Change, Human Population Dynamics, Water systems

Current Affairs- Amazon River Dolphins : Death- El Nino & Impact

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The deaths of 120 river dolphins in a tributary of the Amazon River are believed to be linked to a severe drought and high temperatures.

  • Low river levels during the drought have led to water temperatures that are harmful to the dolphins.
  • The Amazon River dolphin (Inia geoffrensis) is a species of toothed whale that lives in the rainforest rivers of South America. They are also known as the boto, bufeo, or pink river dolphin.
  • Known for their striking pink colour, are a unique freshwater species in South America and face vulnerability due to slow reproductive cycles.

EL NINO

These massive floods and extreme events are a cause of El Nino. El Niño is a climate pattern that describes the unusual warming of surface waters in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean. This event has an impact on ocean temperatures, the speed and strength of ocean currents, the health of coastal fisheries and species, and local weather from Australia to South America and beyond. El Niño events occur irregularly at two- to seven-year intervals.

Effects on humans

Extreme temperatures caused by El Nino, lead to a loss of
livelihoods, spikes in hunger, malnutrition, food and
water insecurity, and deepening poverty and inequality,
hitting the most vulnerable the hardest. While
El Niño lasts for a short period, the impacts on
people, agricultural production, and the sustainable
development of affected countries can persist for years.
The scale and scope of the devastation for communities
in countries most affected by the current El Niño/La
Niña highlights gaps in responses and signals the need
for a new approach to address slow-onset, predictable
weather events in the context of climate change. This
new approach must reflect the deeply integrated
challenges of promoting long-term development,
building resilient communities and reducing vulnerability
to natural disasters.