Researchers to undertake regional impact study of climate change

BENGALURU: As citizens battle the above-average rainfall in the city, researchers are gravely concerned that this is due to climate change. This led them to probe deeper into the regional causes and repercussions and undertake a study.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report of 2013, had a chapter on the regional aspects of climate change, which predicted the impact and changes in monsoon durations. However, officials did not pay enough attention to the report.“We all talk about it being connected to climate change, what the exact and accurate impact is, and thereby, what has happened is to be studied,” said a senior professor from IISc, working with the government on these issues.

Dr Govindaswamy Bala, Professor, Centre for Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences, IISc told TNSE, “The growing seasons have been documented, and it has been found to have increased. Changes have also been found in high altitudes, and the impact of people staying there also needs to be assessed in detail. The extension of the rainfall duration over the years and its causes will be studied by experts, as per Bala.

He added, “Even as changes in environment and climate have caught the attention of many, an in-depth study of the local causes and its impact needs thorough research now. It has been observed that the quantum of rainfall has not increased because of the presence of aerosols in the atmosphere in the south-eastern regions.The monsoon has been kind of flat, but the number of rainy days has increased.”