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Latin America
Climate Change Effects
Argentina - Sea Rise
Risks Are Small But Tangible
Limited development of the Argentine coastline affords a great opportunity to plan for the future, according to the first quantitative national assessment of the nation's vulnerability to sea level rise. While Argentina is less at risk than other countries studied using Aerial Videotape-assisted Vulnerability Analysis (AVVA) - Senegal, Nigeria, Uruguay, Venezuela - there are still important impacts: the erosion of tourist beaches, the erosion and inundation of low-lying urban, industrial and harbor areas, including the capital city of Buenos Aires with one million inhabitants, and loss of wetlands. However, only two percent of the shoreline requires protection; about 3400 km2, or 0.1 percent of the national land area is rated vulnerable.
Brazil Harbors and Mangrove
Forests Face New Strains
Long-term sea level measurements and topographic and cartographic records for Brazil do not exist, but despite the belief of many Brazilians that the level is dropping, tide gauge records from 1946 to 1988 show the relative sea level rose 5.6 mm per year, although some of this may be related to neotectonic subsidence.
Brazil Has Water Power And
Ethanol But Can They Meet Rising Needs?
Brazil has the greenest energy system in the world, according to Professor Jose Goldemberg of the University of Sao Paolo, with renewables accounting for 60 percent of all energy consumed in the country, a fact which has been true for many years. Energy consumption has been growing at the rate of four to five percent a year, and will probably double in about 15 years. Can the share of renewables remain at high levels for the next decade? Goldemberg answers this question with a cautious "Yes."
Mexico Suffering Severe Strain;
Little Progress in Green Energy Expected
Renewables make up seven percent of energy use in Mexico, and their benefits could be expanded to people not connected to the electricity grid, Manuel Guerra reported. Guerra is Director of the Instituto Autonomo de Investigaciones Ecologicas (INAINE), an environmental organization. He estimated five percent of the population could be connected to the renewables, solar and wind power, but heavy dependence on oil, unlike the situation in India and Brazil, will probably not change, and more rational use of energy is not foreseen. The only expected progress is an increased use of natural gas. Nuclear energy usage &emdash; at one percent &emdash; is not expected to grow, even though opposition is declining.
URUGUAY: Protection of Uruguay's Beaches,
Target of Millions, Would Be Expensive
Some of the most valuable real estate in Uruguay lies in the coastal zone, and the predicted loss of land from a one-meter sea level rise would have a major impact on the vital national and international tourist industry, target for one million visitors each summer and generating $235 million. Fishing and shipping are other important sectors of the coast's economy.
VENEZUELA: Oil Drilling Leads to Land Subsidence,
Increasing Vulnerability In Venezuela
In the first assessment ever made of the vulnerability of the Venezuelan coast to accelerated sea level rise, the authors conclude there is neither "cause for alarm nor complacency." Much of the coast consists of unerodible cliffs and slopes, but in the deltas and sedimental coastal plains, particularly the extensive Orinoco delta, 5,000 km2 of land could be inundated. However, costs of protection of the coast are comparatively low compared to some of the other national studies.
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