Climate change could devastate Middle East and Eastern Mediterranean, say scientists

Climate change could have a devastating effect on the lives of millions of people in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Middle East, where temperatures are rising nearly twice as fast as the global average, an international team of scientists has warned.

The region could see a general warming of up to 5°C or more by the end of the century in a scenario of maintenance of the current pattern, according to a report prepared by the Cyprus Institute.

This temperature spike was nearly double that predicted in other areas of the planet and faster than any other inhabited part of the world, the document showed.

The report, prepared under the auspices of the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry and the Cyprus Institute’s Climate and Atmosphere Research Center, will be presented at the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27), which will take place in Egypt in November.

A combination of reduced rainfall and warming climate will contribute to severe droughts, compromising water and food security, with many countries unprepared for sea level rise, an expert said.

“This (scenario) would imply serious challenges for coastal infrastructure and agriculture, and could lead to salinization of coastal aquifers, including the densely populated and cultivated Nile Delta,” said George Zittis of the Cyprus Institute, author of the report.

Meeting the main targets of the Paris Agreement, a global pact of countries to reduce emissions, could stabilize the annual temperature rise at around 2°C.

Scientists recommend the rapid implementation of decarbonization actions with special emphasis on the energy and transport sectors.