ADB warns Nepal of climate change risks

Climate change-driven events, including melting of glaciers, pose a grave risk to Nepal's economy which would see losses equivalent to up to 2.2 per cent of annual GDP by 2050, an Asian Development Bank (ADB) report said today.
The ADB report titled Assessing the Costs of Climate Change and Adaptation in South Asia says the changes can cause losses equal to almost 10 per cent of the country's annual gross domestic product (GDP) by 2100.
The ADB has identified Nepali population as "extremely vulnerable, not only to the immediate threats of increasingly frequent glacial lake overflows, landslides, flash floods, and droughts, but also to longer-term climate change."

According to the report, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, and Sri Lanka of South Asia will see an average economic loss of 1.8 per cent of their collective GDP every year by 2050.
"It will further rise to 8.8 per cent in 2100," estimated the Bank.
"Without changes to current global behaviour, Nepal would see economic losses equivalent to up to 2.2 per cent of annual GDP by 2050, widening to 9.9 per cent by the end of the century," reads the report.

But if mitigation and adaptation steps are taken, the damage could be limited to around 2.4 per cent of GDP by 2100, adds the report.

However, Nepal's agriculture sector will reap some short-term gains from warmer temperatures and melting snow and ice, boosting water supplies, the report said.
The report warned that melting glaciers pose a risk to both human settlements and hydropower systems as they form high-altitude lakes causing catastrophic flooding downstream.
"In mountainous areas, landslides are likely to increase, threatening lives and infrastructure," said the report.
Deteriorating and dwindling forests will result in habitat losses for some of the country's rich flora and fauna, including snow leopards, according to ADB.
"The cost of climate change adaptation measures in South Asia will depend largely on how the global community tackles the issue," the report said.

It added that if the world continues on its path, the region will need to spend at least USD 73 billion, or an average of 0.86 per cent of its GDP, every year between now and 2100 to adapt to the negative impacts.