Extreme weather more routine across China

• Source: Global Times
• [02:09 December 01 2009]
• Comments

Last month, the Yangtze River region, including Hubei, Hunan, Jiangxi, and Anhui provinces saw devastating rains that were rare in years past. North China had its first snowfall a month earlier than usual. Hebei, Henan and Shanxi provinces recorded record snow.

Some of the 14 extreme weather incidents in foreign countries include a heat wave in Australia and heavy rainfall in Africa.

Many blamed environmental pollution and global warming.

Yu said global warming would inevitably lead to abnormal atmospheric circulation, and trigger extreme weather conditions.

"It's indisputable excessive carbon dioxide emissions resulted in the global climate change," he said. "That's why we take actions together."

Xu Ming, an expert from the Chinese Academy of Sciences, told the Global Times that regular appearance of extreme weather along the Yangtze River was due to many reasons.

"The change of weather conditions and its impacts are different in places," Xu said.

He said Shanghai experienced the highest temperature of 40 C this year, while less frost occurred in northern China as the temperatures rose.

Xu said the nation should improve its capacity to deal with climate fluctuation, but added it would be difficult.

"It is difficult to adapt to the fluctuation as it can suddenly turn cold during these global warming days," Xu said.

For example, eucalypts in Hunan Province were destroyed because of cold weather and heavy snowfall, according to Xu.

"People extended the planting area to north as it got hotter, but didn't expected the sudden cold weather," he said.

It's most important to take effective measures to reduce hazards and errors, he said.

The bureau's another spokesman, Chen Zhenlin, said the temperature in most parts of the nation will remain high in December, and the rainfall will be small.

Countries will make joint efforts to cut greenhouse gas emissions at the upcoming Copenhagen Climate Conference next week.

"Even though we won't see an immediate decline of extreme weather next year by promising to cut emissions, it will lower the risk of nega-tive impact on the atmosphere in the long run," Xu from the Chinese Academy of Sciences, said.