Shanghai is world's most at risk from rising sea levels, experts sayNovember 7, 2016 - 10:48 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - The gleaming towers of Shanghai belie the Chinese commercial hub's vulnerability to climate change, and the city is spending billions to try to protect itself, but experts say the country's authoritarian system is a hidden weakness, AFP says. According to a report last year by Climate Central, a US-based research group, the low-lying megacity is, in population terms, the world's most at risk from rising sea levels. A two degree Celsius increase in global temperatures would inundate land currently lived on by 11.6 million people, it said -- by far the world's highest. A 4 C rise would see that leap to 22.4 million. The United Nations' Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change lists Shanghai among the cities in Asia expected to be most vulnerable to coastal flooding by the 2070s. It is already scrambling to fortify itself against increased rainfall city officials say is outstripping current defences. "In the past two years we have often seen more than 100 millimetres of rainfall within a single hour, but our city only has the capacity to deal with 36 millimetres," Zhang Zhenyu, the deputy director of the Shanghai Flood Control Headquarters told AFP, as staff pored over weather data. "Especially this year with global warming, Shanghai's weather has seen a dramatic change." Work will begin this year on a 40 billion yuan ($6 billion) underground tunnel beneath Shanghai's Suzhou Creek to manage excess rainfall, and 135 kilometres of a more than 500 kilometre long sea wall are to be reinforced. Top stories Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". The earthquake caused a temporary blackout, damaged many buildings and closed a number of rural roads. Partner news | Czech-Armenian military cooperation discussed in Yerevan A delegation led by the Director General for the Industrial Cooperation Division of the Ministry of Defence of the Czech Republic visited Armenia. U.S. welcomes efforts to define Armenia-Azerbaijan border The United States welcomes efforts to define the border between Armenia and Azerbaijan, says Vedant Patel. Biden honors resilience of Armenian people on April 24 U.S. President Joe Biden has issued a statement on the 109th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. Ex-Karabakh leader moved to solitary confinement cell in Baku, his son says David Vardanyan is the son of former Karabakh leader Ruben Vardanyan who who is currently imprisoned in Azerbaijan. |