Addressing current climate issues in Pakistan: An opportunity for a sustainable future

Climate change is an inevitable phenomenon and is no longer a myth. Climate change is a new rising problem in South Asia; Pakistan suffers from its disastrous effects. This review examines the risks and effects of climate change in South Asia, particularly Pakistan. It seeks to illuminate recent flo...

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Main Authors: Muhammad Adnan, Baohua Xiao, Shaheen Bibi, Peiwen Xiao, Peng Zhao, Haiyan Wang
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2024-04-01
Series:Environmental Challenges
Subjects:
Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2667010024000532
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author Muhammad Adnan
Baohua Xiao
Shaheen Bibi
Peiwen Xiao
Peng Zhao
Haiyan Wang
author_facet Muhammad Adnan
Baohua Xiao
Shaheen Bibi
Peiwen Xiao
Peng Zhao
Haiyan Wang
author_sort Muhammad Adnan
collection DOAJ
description Climate change is an inevitable phenomenon and is no longer a myth. Climate change is a new rising problem in South Asia; Pakistan suffers from its disastrous effects. This review examines the risks and effects of climate change in South Asia, particularly Pakistan. It seeks to illuminate recent floods' environmental, social, and economic implications, analyze the causes of the region's heightened climate change susceptibility, and evaluate current measures and policies to mitigate these effects. The assessment also seeks to identify research and policy gaps, particularly in environmental funding and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The results indicate that the current weather trends, including glacier melting, glacier lake outburst floods (GLOFs), and extraordinary monsoon rainfall, caused disastrous floods in July and September 2022. Pakistan's population suffers more from climate change despite contributing less than 1 % to global greenhouse gas emissions. Rapid industrialization, fossil fuel use, plastic use, and deforestation worsen the situation. The review emphasizes the benefits of reservoir management and dam development in strengthening ecosystems and reducing flood risks. It also stresses the importance of integrating climate policies into a socio-economic and political framework for sustainable environmental outcomes. This assessment emphasizes the need for comprehensive, coordinated climate change agreements in South Asia. Governments can prevent climate change and build a resilient and sustainable future by prioritizing sustainable development, innovative adaptation methods, and international collaboration. This review recommends increasing funding for climate and water-related research, improving flood risk mitigation strategies, and using knowledge from diverse research and policy domains to develop innovative climate adaptation measures to combat climate change. The review emphasizes alignment with SDGs and indicates that addressing climate injustice's fundamental causes can improve political strategies and outcomes. It emphasizes limiting global temperature increases to 1.5 °C to protect ecosystems, human health, and economic stability, especially in low and middle-income countries where climate threats could impair SDGs.
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spelling doaj.art-0f39e37c8da4449593936788e3a7636c2024-03-12T04:16:56ZengElsevierEnvironmental Challenges2667-01002024-04-0115100887Addressing current climate issues in Pakistan: An opportunity for a sustainable futureMuhammad Adnan0Baohua Xiao1Shaheen Bibi2Peiwen Xiao3Peng Zhao4Haiyan Wang5State Key Laboratory of Environmental Geochemistry, Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guiyang, Guizhou 550081, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Environmental Geochemistry, Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guiyang, Guizhou 550081, China; Corresponding author.Lanzhou Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Lanzhou 730046, China; Graduate School, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Environmental Geochemistry, Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guiyang, Guizhou 550081, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Environmental Geochemistry, Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guiyang, Guizhou 550081, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Environmental Geochemistry, Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guiyang, Guizhou 550081, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, ChinaClimate change is an inevitable phenomenon and is no longer a myth. Climate change is a new rising problem in South Asia; Pakistan suffers from its disastrous effects. This review examines the risks and effects of climate change in South Asia, particularly Pakistan. It seeks to illuminate recent floods' environmental, social, and economic implications, analyze the causes of the region's heightened climate change susceptibility, and evaluate current measures and policies to mitigate these effects. The assessment also seeks to identify research and policy gaps, particularly in environmental funding and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The results indicate that the current weather trends, including glacier melting, glacier lake outburst floods (GLOFs), and extraordinary monsoon rainfall, caused disastrous floods in July and September 2022. Pakistan's population suffers more from climate change despite contributing less than 1 % to global greenhouse gas emissions. Rapid industrialization, fossil fuel use, plastic use, and deforestation worsen the situation. The review emphasizes the benefits of reservoir management and dam development in strengthening ecosystems and reducing flood risks. It also stresses the importance of integrating climate policies into a socio-economic and political framework for sustainable environmental outcomes. This assessment emphasizes the need for comprehensive, coordinated climate change agreements in South Asia. Governments can prevent climate change and build a resilient and sustainable future by prioritizing sustainable development, innovative adaptation methods, and international collaboration. This review recommends increasing funding for climate and water-related research, improving flood risk mitigation strategies, and using knowledge from diverse research and policy domains to develop innovative climate adaptation measures to combat climate change. The review emphasizes alignment with SDGs and indicates that addressing climate injustice's fundamental causes can improve political strategies and outcomes. It emphasizes limiting global temperature increases to 1.5 °C to protect ecosystems, human health, and economic stability, especially in low and middle-income countries where climate threats could impair SDGs.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2667010024000532Climate change adaptationPakistan climate policySustainable development goalsWater resource managementEnvironmental educationEnvironmental sustainability
spellingShingle Muhammad Adnan
Baohua Xiao
Shaheen Bibi
Peiwen Xiao
Peng Zhao
Haiyan Wang
Addressing current climate issues in Pakistan: An opportunity for a sustainable future
Environmental Challenges
Climate change adaptation
Pakistan climate policy
Sustainable development goals
Water resource management
Environmental education
Environmental sustainability
title Addressing current climate issues in Pakistan: An opportunity for a sustainable future
title_full Addressing current climate issues in Pakistan: An opportunity for a sustainable future
title_fullStr Addressing current climate issues in Pakistan: An opportunity for a sustainable future
title_full_unstemmed Addressing current climate issues in Pakistan: An opportunity for a sustainable future
title_short Addressing current climate issues in Pakistan: An opportunity for a sustainable future
title_sort addressing current climate issues in pakistan an opportunity for a sustainable future
topic Climate change adaptation
Pakistan climate policy
Sustainable development goals
Water resource management
Environmental education
Environmental sustainability
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2667010024000532
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