Expert warns of increased health risks to humans from climate change
A climate expert has warned that the increased melting of polar ice and the presence of dark surfaces in the ocean would result in more extreme weather conditions throughout the world, pointing to the record high temperature during the summer this year in Thailand.
Sonthi Kotchawat, a health and environmental expert from the Thai Environment Academics Association, said in a Facebook post on Friday that human emissions of greenhouse gases had accelerated the global warming phenomenon. This had speeded up the melting of polar ice and more dark surfaces had appeared in the oceans.
The dark surface refers to the condition of large ice chunks in the sea that undergo changes. These ice chunks have smooth, translucent surfaces that reflect up to 80 per cent of sunlight. However, when the ice melts into smaller chunks and ice flakes that are cloudy and murky and they mix with seawater that contains salt, it makes the ocean water a dark blue colour. This dark surface can absorb up to 90 per cent of the heat from the Sun, causing the ocean water to warm faster, Sonthi explained.
“It is estimated that ice melting and the dark surface phenomenon have expanded to approximately 13.45 million square kilometres of the oceans worldwide, resulting in significantly higher temperatures in various parts of the Earth,” he said. “It is predicted that if the polar ice continues to melt at this rate, sea levels could rise by another 1.8 metres by 2100.”
Sonthi said the accelerated global warming had raised the temperature during this year’s summer to much higher levels than in previous years, especially in provinces surrounded by mountains such as Lampang, or in big cities like Bangkok that is also surrounded by skyscrapers that block the winds.
“Moreover, Bangkok has average green area of only 6.9sqm per person, well below the World Health Organization’s minimum standard of 9sqm per person,” he pointed out.
He advised people to prepare for extreme temperatures brought about by climate change. This includes extreme heat in the summer, extreme cold in the winter, and more rains and storms during the rainy season.
“Climate change can also cause weather fluctuations, such as hot weather in winter or cold weather during summer, which could adversely affect the health of humans,” he warned.
