WORKING GROUP III: THREATS DUE TO CLIMATE CHANGE - GLOBAL PROBLEMS IN A REGIONAL CONTEXT

摘要

The expertise of the participants in the Working Group primarily encompassed the area stretching from Eastern Europe through the Caucasus to the states of Central Asia. This region is the focus of this report. The group was aware of the work and recent reports of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and used the information there as the global background to the regional analysis. The region is one with a continental climate. There is a large annual temperature range, with cool to cold winters and warm to hot summers. Precipitation is concentrated in the summer, but commonly some precipitation occurs in all seasons. There is a general decrease in total annual precipitation from west to east. In addition to the strong seasonally, there are large inter-annual variations in temperature and precipitation. A major characteristic of the region is that all areas have snow accumulation in winter and a spring thaw. Some regions have permafrost, while higher elevations often have permanent glaciers. Topographically, the west has many flat open plains, while the east has many major mountain ranges interspersed with open basins.