Averaged over their entire areas, within the period 1960– 2003 glaciers in Patagonia and Alaska have thinned by ap- proximately 35 m and 25 m, respectively, whereas high mountain glaciers in Asia have thinned by over 10 m. Data for Patagonia and Alaska are computed from glacier surface elevations for dozens of glaciers. In many other high moun- tain environments such as the Himalayas and the high Andes, where data are limited due to bo...

Seasonal fooding can occur along all the major watersheds in the Himalayan region (Figure 11–14). The largest problems occur in food prone areas with high population densities. This includes parts of northeast India, south-central Nepal, central and southern Pakistan, large parts of Bangladesh and lower reaches of the large rivers in China. In India around 40 million people are affected by fooding annually and the damage has been estimated...

Simulated contributions of glacier melt (frn/ice melt) to annual total runoff were calculated between 1 and 4%. In the period 1999–2000, when the glacier mass balance of Goldbergkees and Stubacher Sonnblickkees have been observed to be zero or slightly above zero, the annual contribution of glacier melt was calculated as 1% (Fig. 7). The highest monthly contribution in 2000 was 4% for the month of August, and the highest daily glacier melt was 12...

Downstream variation in the impact of glacier recession is illustrated in Figure 5, which shows modelled river fows for idealized catchments under climates representative of the western and eastern Himalaya and a 0.06º C per year warming scenario. In the upper parts of the river basins, where glaciers occupy 95% of the catchment area, the impact of glacier shrinkage is large. River discharges increase until mid-century, after which they de...

Since Asia comprises a large portion of the World’s popula- tion, and more than 40% of all the foods in the world occur in Asia, a large number of people are affected by disasters (Fig. 14). More than 40% of the people killed by natural di- sasters are killed in Asia (Fig. 15). In the ten-year period from 1999–2008, 402 foods were recorded in Africa, 342 in the Americas, 259 in Europe and 649 in Asia. In the same time period close to 1 bill...

The main source of water in Port Harcourt is boreholes, which account to about 50 per cent of the water sources for domestic use. Many of these boreholes are shallow, making them prone to pollution, and increasing the risk of water-borne diseases.

One of the major challenges of urbanisation in Africa is the rapid expansion of areas of informal settlements. These slum areas tend to lack infrastructure such as pipe-borne water and sewerage, and services such as garbage collection and waste management are often non-existent.

The number of people in Africa with access to improved sanitation, defined as “one that hygienically separates human excreta from human contact” (WHO/UNICEF 2010), has increased over the last two decades. Still, because of the rapid urbanisation, the proportion of the urban population with access to improved sanitation is on the decrease.

Africa’s urban centres are currently growing at an annual rate that is the fastest compared to other regions. The urban expansion is expected to continue, with cities like Abuja and Ouagadougou expecting very high growth in the next decade, while Cairo, Africa’s largest city, is projected to see a comparatively lower growth rate.

In 1990 there were only 24 cities in Africa with more than one million inhabitants. Today this number has increased to 48 cities, of which Cairo and Lagos are the largest with more than ten million inhabitants each.

The bulk of water supply for Nairobi comes from Thika, Sasumua and Ruiru Dams, as well as the Kikuyu Springs. Over time water supply for the city has failed to meet demand. The current estimated water demand for Nairobi is 650 000 m3/day compared to the production of 482 940 m3/day (WRMA 2010). The difference between production and demand has been widening over time due to population growth, inadequacy of the carrying capacity of the distributio...

Improved water sources, defined as “one that is protected from outside contamination” (WHO/UNICEF 2010), is essential for ensuring the health of Africa’s urban dwellers. Although an increasing number of people have access to improved water, rapid urban population growth in the African region has equally increased the number of people without proper access.

As the total urban population of Kenya continues to grow, the capital of Nairobi still harbours the largest share of the country’s urban population. Between 1948 and 2009, Nairobi’s share of the country’s urban population increased from 5.2 per cent to 32.4 per cent and in 2009 the city had an estimated 3.1 million inhabitants.

Proper disposal of sewage is essential for urban water quality, and in Yaoundè the treatment of wastewater, excreta, and sewage can be classified into two categories – individual wastewater systems (septic tanks and latrines) and collective wastewater systems (sewer and treatment plants). About half of the residents of Yaoundè are connected to the sewer system, while the rest depend on either septic tanks, latrines, or a combination of the two.

While the white population were the majority in the early period of Grahamstown, South Africa, they were outnumbered around 1920. Historically, the non-white population did not pay for water and sanitation services, and this became a problem when this demographic group became the clear majority.

Kwazulu-Natal has the largest share of population in the coastal areas. Approximately 9 million people live in the province and they are Zulu-speakers. The Eastern Cape Province has the second largest population with 5.8 million people and they are Xhosa-speakers. Northern Cape remains the province with the smallest population, with approximately 1.1 million people, who are Tswana and Coloured.

Working for the Coast is a programme initiated under the Social Responsibility Programme, which provides jobs and training for unemployed people in coastal communities to create and maintain a cleaner coastal environment. The programme works towards protecting the coastal ecosystems which are essential in providing food and sustenance for the many people living in urban and rural coastal areas.

South Africa is blessed with a rich abundance of biodiversity and a wide range of ecosystems and biomes. Among them are the wetland ecosystems, which occupy approximately seven per cent of South Africa’s total land area. Wetlands are regarded as one of the most productive ecosystems because of all the ecosystem services they provide. But the country’s wetlands are under pressure from both natural and human threats and approximately sixty per cen...

In examining environmental challenges in South Africa, it becomes clear that environmental pressures tend to occur in overlapping geographical areas. This tendency results in amplified environmental threats in already disadvantaged regions through negative feedback loops.

The Working for the Environment programmes (water, fire, wetland, coast) are all supported by important national environmental legislation including the National Environmental Management: Biodiversity Act, the Disaster Management Act, the National Veld and Forest Fire Act, the National Environmental Management: Biodiversity Act, and the National Environment Management: Integrated Coastal Management Act.