Unusual weather: Deforestation, irregular land use patterns blamed

ISLAMABAD:

With changing climatic conditions and weather patterns, the kind of floods that hit Pakistan last year may become more frequent and intense in the future globally.

World Wildlife Fund Pakistan’s Deputy Director Ejaz Ahmad stated this while talking to APP here on Sunday.

He said that land use patterns and heavy deforestation in various parts of the country, especially in northern regions, were the main factors contributing to the changing weather patterns. He said the country has been hit by cyclones, Phet and Yemyin, in the span of just few years while such cyclones occurred in decades.

It would be scientifically incorrect to link any single set of events with human-induced climate change, but there was enough evidence to show an increase in the frequency and intensity of floods, droughts and extreme precipitation overall, he said.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 18^th,  2011.