Ahead of World Environment Day on June 5, a have a look at how Karnataka has witnessed a rise in extreme climate patterns in each frequency and depth within the final a long time
Ahead of World Environment Day on June 5, a have a look at how Karnataka has witnessed a rise in extreme climate patterns in each frequency and depth within the final a long time
Last month, at the same time as elements of north India have been reeling underneath warmth wave, many locations in Karnataka, together with Bengaluru, have been suffered large-scale destruction brought on by heavy pre-monsoon showers. In truth, the quantum of rainfall recorded within the State from March 1 to May 31 was 105% above regular.
Climate change is right here to remain, and the imprints of modifications in weather conditions, says the Karnataka State Disaster Management Authority (KSDMA), are within the type of high-impact climate occasions. The State has witnessed a rise in such occasions in each frequency and depth within the final a long time, as additionally hydro-meteorological disasters comparable to drought, flood, hailstorm, cyclone and heatwave.
“During the past few years, the entire State witnessed extreme events in the Western Ghats and parts of the interior district. A significant increase in the rainfall is observed in Kolar for the pre-monsoon season, and a decreasing trend is observed in northeast monsoon for the north interior Karnataka (NIK) region. The main reason for these extreme events can be attributed to the active phase of monsoon season coupled with La Nina and positive / Neutral Indian Ocean Dipole (IDL) conditions over the State,” defined Manoj Rajan, Commissioner, KSDMA.
At the identical time, there’s a discount within the quantity of annual rainfall and a marginal improve within the variety of wet days in NIK and coastal areas, he mentioned. The KSDMA Commissioner additionally mentioned there was a steady change in temperature and relative humidity (RH) information from 2002 to 2018.
Electric poles broken in heavy rain in Bengaluru.
“The average temperature has shown an increasing trend, whereas the RH had a decreasing trend in most regions,” he mentioned. Thunderstorms and lighting occasions have occurred extra continuously in recent times, whereas the variability of south-west monsoon rainfall has elevated considerably since 1960. Several districts are seeing an improve in extended dry intervals with low or no rainfall or intermittent with quick, intense spells of rainfall.
“The analysis of the temperature and relative humidity data series for 2002 to 2020 shows an increasing trend in average temperature, while the relative humidity showed a decreasing trend. The State has experienced drought for 15 years in the last two decades. Karnataka also experienced severe floods, and the last four years have been consecutive flood years for the State. The recurrence of droughts and changing rainfall patterns are detrimental to the surface and groundwater recharge and pose a significant challenge to water security,” mentioned Mr. Rajan.
Bharath Setturu, Post-Doctoral Fellow, EWRG, CES, IISc, mentioned their examine of modifications in land floor temperature throughout agro-climatic zones of Karnataka from 2006 to 2019 utilizing spatial information highlights improve in temperature throughout the agroclimatic areas of Karnataka resulting from large-scale deforestation, urbanisation and lack of wetlands. The districts of sizzling dry semi-arid and sizzling moist semi-arid areas, such as Bidar, Yadgir, Kalaburagi, Vijayapura, Raichur and Ballari depict a rise in temperature principally disadvantaged of forest cowl, he added.
A flooded residential space in Horamavu, Bengaluru.
| Photo Credit: PTI
“Overall, the State has experienced a 0.5 to 1 degree Celsius increase in its average temperature, but in some regions, it shows 2-3 degrees Celsius. Statistical analysis between the rate of change in forest cover and change in temperature indicates a high degree of the strong correlation. We have also noticed a reduction in the number of rainy days in the Western Ghats of Karnataka (2 to 3 days), but increased rainfall intensity. Due to climate change and landscape degradation, and urbanisation, the soils across the State are unable to hold the high-intensity rains, which results in floods and landslides. Earlier, the rainfall was distributed over a long period, and intensity was less, but due to climate change, unseasonal rains are becoming common with high intensity,” he defined.
Regions of North Karnataka are experiencing greater losses resulting from larger depth rains, and soils are unable to recharge resulting from scanty vegetation cowl and better degradation. The long-term rainfall evaluation reveals rising developments near 50-100 mm improve in rainfall with a diminished variety of wet days (2 to 4), he mentioned additional, including that local weather change is for certain.
An instance of the noticeable shift within the climate sample is that the annual common rainfall of Karnataka has elevated by 10% throughout 1990–2019, when rainfall throughout the kharif season (June–September) and rabi season (October–December) elevated by about 30% and 60%, respectively, added Indu Okay. Murthy, Sector Head and Vidya S, Senior Analyst, each working within the Climate, Environment and Sustainabilty sector at CSTEP.
“North Karnataka districts such as Vijayapura, Raichur, Kalaburagi, Yadgir, and Uttara Kannada experienced flooding in 2019 because of an increase in extreme rainfall events. Vijayapura received five times the normal rainfall of 436 mm, Raichur received 25% higher rainfall, and Kodagu received about 55% higher rainfall in 2019. While flooding is due to poor water management and bad drainage systems, the increase in rainfall is largely due to climate change.
According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s (IPCC’s) latest report on impacts, vulnerability, and adaptation, human-induced climate change, including more frequent and intense extreme events, has caused widespread adverse impacts and related losses and damages to nature and people, beyond natural climate variability,” they added.
Where does this depart present interventions? Dr. Rajan mentioned all stakeholders must plan and implement mitigation measures to attain long-term local weather resilience and obtain the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG).
“Since the Indian economy is intrinsically linked to the annual monsoon cycle, a better understanding of the future behaviour of the monsoon and its variability is warranted for disaster mitigation and for developing adaptation strategies to cope with climate variability and climate change. With some confidence and accuracy, a quantitative assessment of the magnitude of climate change over the Indian subcontinent is also crucial to evaluate the social and economic consequences expected and formulate appropriate, though flexible, policy options,” he mentioned, including that the federal government is taking a number of steps to mitigate the impression of local weather change on agriculture and livelihood by offering scientific info, customised climate forecasts and climate info and pure hazard info to the general public and farmers to observe and handle their each day crops and actions.
Dr. Setturu confused on the necessity to assist large-scale afforestation of native species in degraded landscapes by involving native stakeholder. incentives for farmers for agroforestry, and distribution of excessive fruit yielding tree saplings to farmers on subsidy/ minimal pricing.
“Native species such as Melia dubia (Hebbevu) (which has commercial timber value) or Pongamia need to be planted in the degraded/ fallow agricultural lands, which requires minimum maintenance but fetches greater profits for the community. Alternative renewable energy needs to be prompted to reduce the emission from fossil fuels. The union government should focus on carbon credits to reduce the ill effects of climate change,” added.
Source: www.thehindu.com
