Reservoirs in South Korea's Gangwon-do Province are facing severe water shortages, with storage levels far below the national average and with some reservoirs nearly dry, as the scorching heatwave continues to rage across the country.
A reservoir near Gangneung City, once a wide lake providing water for domestic and agricultural use, has now shrunk to a narrow stream due to insufficient rainfall, and large portions of the reservoir bed are now exposed to sunlight.
Currently, many reservoirs in the Gangwon-do region have seen water storage rates running below 40 percent, much lower than the national average of 61.7 percent.
This year, Gangwon-do has received only about 70 percent of its usual rainfall. In the Gangneung area, the total precipitation over the past 30 days was just 43 millimeters, which is only 9.3 percent of the amount from the same period of last year. The Korea Meteorological Administration has reported no indications of heavy rain in the area recently, raising more concerns over the reservoirs' ability to maintain normal water supplies if the dry conditions persist.
Meanwhile, high temperatures have also severely impacted agriculture and aquaculture in South Korea. In Gangwon-do, peach growth is poor due to the lack of rainfall, while on Jeju Island, only 20 percent of carrots sown last month have germinated.
In addition, from June 11 to Aug 18, over 900,000 poultry and livestock have died due to the intense heat, 2.6 times higher than the same period of last year. Moreover, more than 1.5 million fish in ponds have died due to excessive water temperatures, surging 190 percent from the same period of last year, according to data from South Korea's Ministry of Security and Public Administration.
Reservoirs in South Korea's Gangwon-do face severe water shortages as heatwave persists
The opening day of the China Pavilion at the United Nations Climate Change Conference, or COP29, in Baku, Azerbaijan Monday brought together climate experts, policymakers and students to explore how diverse sectors can come together to amplify climate messaging and enhance public participation. The China Pavilion was abuzz with energy and positivity for climate action on the first day of the 29th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP29) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.
The United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) held a series of events in collaboration with China's Ministry of Ecology and Environment to promote efforts in addressing climate change, a critical move as global leaders look to empower communities in the transition to a greener future.
"We focus on training and human resources development. So, of course, we are going to participate and observe what kind of agreements and discussions will be done during negotiations. But, simultaneously, our focus will be, okay, decisions are made, discussions are done, but after people return to their country and community, what kind of actions will be taken? And particularly enhancing everyone's capacity to promote climate change – that's going to be our main focus," said Mihoko Kumamoto, director of UNITAR's Division For Prosperity. Speakers at the event on public participation underscored current challenges, but highlighted how individuals, companies or countries can leverage their respective strengths to effectively communicate about climate action. They say change has to be enabled on the individual level in order for society as a whole to make meaningful progress toward collective climate goals.
The Youth Scholar Program was launched on the opening day, with organizers hopeful that young people can learn to collaborate to make the most of available resources and technology and contribute toward sustainable development.
"It's a really major program that collaborates with youth from all over the world. We are projected to have 1,000 students to join this program and we are going to manage them, to arrange them to attend some conferences, [carry out] an academic research program. They can learn from this program and set up their life goal to help us get into a sustainable life," said Lin Guoyu, founder and editor-in-chief of College Daily, a prestigious media platform aiming to help Chinese students overseas. Young students also shared their experiences of climate initiatives as well as their ideas on how action can lead to real change. The one thing all attendees agreed upon is that there is no time to waste.
The China Pavilion will host 10 themed days featuring various side activities during COP29, scheduled to run from Nov. 11 to 22.
COP29 China Pavilion looks to enhance public awareness, youth participation on climate action
