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- Dictionarydrought/draʊt/
noun
- 1. a prolonged period of abnormally low rainfall, leading to a shortage of water: "the cause of Europe's recent droughts"
- 2. thirst: archaic, dialect "I asked for something to slake my drought"
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Drought is a prolonged dry period in the natural climate cycle that can occur anywhere in the world. It is a slow-onset disaster characterized by the lack of precipitation, resulting in a water shortage. Drought can have a serious impact on health, agriculture, economies, energy and the environment. An estimated 55 million people globally are ...
Oct 26, 2020 · Climate change: Land degradation and desertification. What is land degradation? Land degradation is caused by multiple forces, including extreme weather conditions, particularly drought. It is also caused by human activities that pollute or degrade the quality of soils and land utility. It negatively affects food production, livelihoods, and ...
About us. A WHO field staff talks to a woman fetching water from a water catchment tank in Kiribati. WHO recognizes healthy, innovative cities across Asia. Singapore contributes to regional health emergency readiness through achieving Emergency Medical Team classification. Parliamentarians call for strengthening health workforce in the Asia ...
The UK Met Office will issue a national severe weather warning if snow is predicted to fall at a rate of approx 2 cm/hour or more for at least two hours. Avalanches. Typically avalanches relate to snow or ice. In this context the term defines a process where loosened snow and ice move down hill at high velocities.
Nov 9, 2023 · El Niño and its counterpart La Niña are associated with characteristic patterns of rainfall and temperature, which can include extreme events such as flooding and drought. ENSO affects many parts of the globe, but most intensely impacts the tropics, including countries and areas in Africa, Latin America and South and South-East Asia that are particularly vulnerable to natural hazards.
Oct 12, 2023 · Climate change is directly contributing to humanitarian emergencies from heatwaves, wildfires, floods, tropical storms and hurricanes and they are increasing in scale, frequency and intensity. Research shows that 3.6 billion people already live in areas highly susceptible to climate change. Between 2030 and 2050, climate change is expected to ...
Wildfire smoke is a mixture of air pollutants of which particulate matter (PM) is the principal public health threat. PM 2.5 from wildfire smoke is associated with premature deaths in the general population, and can cause and exacerbate diseases of the lungs, heart, brain/nervous system, skin, gut, kidney, eyes, nose and liver.
Floods are often caused by heavy rainfall, rapid snowmelt or a storm surge from a tropical cyclone or tsunami in coastal areas. Floods can cause widespread devastation, resulting in loss of life and damages to personal property and critical public health infrastructure. Between 1998-2017, floods affected more than 2 billion people worldwide.
Jan 12, 2023 · Cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) is the most common form and causes skin lesions, mainly ulcers, on exposed parts of the body. These can leave life-long scars and cause serious disability or stigma. About 95% of CL cases occur in the Americas, the Mediterranean basin, the Middle East and central Asia. It is estimated that 600 000 to 1 million new ...
Jun 3, 2015 · Biodiversity plays a crucial role in human nutrition through its influence on world food production, as it ensures the sustainable productivity of soils and provides the genetic resources for all crops, livestock, and marine species harvested for food. Access to a sufficiency of a nutritious variety of food is a fundamental determinant of health.
