Latest news with #sandstorms
Arab News
6 days ago
- Climate
- Arab News
Sand and dust storms affect about 330 million people in over 150 countries, UN agency says
UNITED NATIONS: Sand and dust storms affect about 330 million people in over 150 countries and are taking an increasing toll on health, economies and the environment, the UN World Meteorological Organization says. 'About 2 billion tons of dust are emitted yearly, equivalent to 300 Great Pyramids of Giza' in Egypt, the organization's UN representative, Laura Paterson, told the General Assembly. More than 80 percent of the world's dust comes from the deserts in North Africa and the Middle East, she said, but it has a global impact because the particles can travel hundreds and even thousands of kilometers (miles) across continents and oceans. The General Assembly was marking the International Day of Combating Sand and Dust Storms on Saturday and its designation of 2025 to 2034 as the UN decade on combating sand and dust storms. Assembly President Philemon Yang said the storms 'are fast becoming one of the most overlooked yet far-reaching global challenges of our time.' 'They are driven by climate change, land degradation and unsustainable practices,' he said. Yang, in a speech Thursday that was read by an assembly vice president, said airborne particles from sand and dust storms contribute to 7 million premature deaths every year. He said they trigger respiratory and cardiovascular disease, and reduce crop yields by up to 25 percent, causing hunger and migration. Undersecretary-General Rola Dashti, head of the UN Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia, told the assembly the storms' economic costs are 'staggering.' In the Middle East and North Africa, the annual cost of dealing with dust and sandstorms is $150 billion, roughly 2.5 percent of GDP, she said. 'This spring alone, the Arab region experienced acute disruption,' Dashti said, citing severe storms in Iraq that overwhelmed hospitals with respiratory cases and storms in Kuwait and Iran that forced schools and offices to close. Dust from the Sahara Desert in Africa has reached as far as the Caribbean and Florida, she said. Dashti, who also co-chairs the UN Coalition on Combating Sand and Dust Storms, said over 20 UN and international agencies are working to unite efforts on early warning systems for storms and to deal with other issues, including health and financing. She urged all countries to put sand and dust storms into global and national agendas. 'From land restoration and sustainable agriculture to integrated early warning systems, we have the tools to act,' Dashti said. 'What we need now is collective determination and financing to bring these solutions to scale.'
Arabian Business
6 days ago
- Climate
- Arabian Business
Sand and dust storms impact 330million worldwide, fuelling health and economic crises: WMO
The World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) has reported that sand and dust storms affect 330 million people in more than 150 countries worldwide, causing growing harm to both public health and the global economy. In the annual WMO Airborne Dust Bulletin, the organisation stressed the need to continue enhancing monitoring, forecasting and early warning systems. The Bulletin highlighted that although the global average of annual mean dust surface concentrations in 2024 was slightly lower than in 2023, there were big regional variations. Dust and sand storms In the most affected areas, the surface dust concentration in 2024 was higher than the long-term 1981-2010 average. Every year, around two billion million tonnes of sand and dust enter the atmosphere. More than 80 percent of the global dust budget originates from the North African and Middle Eastern deserts and can be transported for hundreds and even thousands of kilometres across continents and oceans. Much of this is a natural process, but poor water and land management, drought and environmental degradation are increasingly to blame. The report, issued to mark the International Day of Combating Sand and Dust Storms on Saturday, July 12, noted that while a significant part of the phenomenon is natural, poor water and land management, drought and environmental degradation are increasingly contributing factors. It added that, in 2024, sand and dust concentrations were lower than the long-term average in many of the main source areas, and higher than average in many areas to where the dust is blown. The regions that are most vulnerable to long-range transport of dust are: The northern tropical Atlantic Ocean between West Africa and the Caribbean South America The Mediterranean Sea The Arabian Sea The Bay of Bengal Central-eastern China In 2024, the transatlantic transport of African dust invaded parts of the Caribbean Sea region. WMO Secretary-General Celeste Saulo said: 'Sand and dust storms do not just mean dirty windows and hazy skies. They harm the health and quality of life of millions of people and cost many millions of dollars through disruption to air and ground transport, on agriculture and on solar energy production. 'This Bulletin shows how health risks and economic costs are rising – and how investments in dust early warnings and mitigation and control would reap large returns. 'This is why sand and dust storms are one of the priorities of the Early Warnings for All initiative.' A new sand and dust storm indicator developed by WMO and the World Health Organisation showed that 3.8bn people (nearly half the world's population) were exposed to dust levels exceeding WHO's safety threshold between 2018–2022. This represents a 31 percent increase from 2.9bn people (44.5 percent) during 2003-2007. Exposure varied widely, from only a few days in relatively unaffected areas to more than 87 per cent of days, equivalent to over 1,600 days in five years, in the most dust-prone regions. This indicator and the associated findings were published in the Lancet Countdown on Health and Climate Change: 2024 Global Report. The economic impact is often underestimated, according to a case study from the United States of America. In the USA alone, dust and wind erosion cost an estimated $154bn in 2017- more than a fourfold increase over the 1995 calculation. The estimate included costs to households, crops, wind and solar energy, mortality from fine dust exposure, health costs due to Valley fever, and transport. The true cost of dust was certainly much higher, since reliable national-scale evaluations of many of dust's other economic impacts (for example, on human morbidity, the hydrological cycle, aviation and rangeland agriculture) were not available, according to the study, which was published in Nature.
Arab News
7 days ago
- Science
- Arab News
Saudi Arabia praised at UN for global leadership on dust storm early warnings
NEW YORK: Saudi Arabia's international efforts to combat sand and dust storms were commended this week during a high-level meeting at the UN Headquarters in New York, the Saudi Press Agency reported on Friday. The meeting highlighted the Kingdom's $10 million commitment over five years to strengthen early warning systems and support countries vulnerable to dust storm impacts. The initiative, led by Saudi Arabia in cooperation with regional centers affiliated with the World Meteorological Organization, was praised for enhancing forecasting and response capabilities. Jumaan bin Saad Al-Qahtani, deputy CEO of the National Center of Meteorology, emphasized the Kingdom's work through Vision 2030 programs such as the Saudi and Middle East Green Initiatives. He also noted the establishment of the Regional Center for Dust and Sand Storms in Jeddah as a strategic hub for regional coordination, data exchange, and capacity building. Saudi Arabia has hosted major research events, including the First International Conference on Dust and Sand Storms in Riyadh, and plans to hold a second edition in 2026. Its environmental efforts have resulted in planting over 142 million trees and reclaiming more than 436,000 hectares of degraded land. Al-Qahtani reaffirmed the Kingdom's readiness to expand international partnerships to reduce dust sources, protect the environment, and improve resilience against climate change, SPA added.
Forbes
26-05-2025
- Climate
- Forbes
Poor Soil Management Fuels Sand And Dust Storms Across The Middle East
Sand and dust storms in southeastern Iran, near the Hamun Lake in Sistan and Baluchistan Province. ... More Image taken in October 2018. (Photo by Hamed Gholami / Middle East Images / Middle East Images via AFP). The Middle East is no stranger to sand and dust storms. Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, and Saudi Arabia are among the countries hit hardest by this transboundary problem, which costs billions of dollars each year in damages to infrastructure and health systems. In May, Iran's local media reported severe sand and dust storms in the southeast near the border with Afghanistan, which swept through the area, sent hundreds to the hospital with respiratory illnesses, and disrupted local livelihoods. 'Dust storms happen when strong winds lift loose, dry, and fine soil particles from barren or degraded land surfaces into the atmosphere,' says Nima Shokri, professor of geo-hydroinformatics at the Hamburg University of Technology in Germany. 'Unlike people, dust particles don't require visas to cross international borders- they can travel effortlessly thousands of kilometers from one country to another,' adds Shokri. The Middle East is naturally prone to strong winds, extreme heat, and arid landscapes—factors that create an ideal environment for sand and dust storms when coupled with climate change. But decades of poor water management, which have dried up lakes, rivers, and wetlands that once helped contain these storms, have turned sand and dust storms into a pressing challenge for the region, with many consequences. Food and water insecurity, air pollution, conflict, and forced migration are just a few examples. Meanwhile, as governments across the Middle East struggle to combat the growing problem of SDS, experts highlight soil degradation as a significant contributing element that demands urgent global attention. Sand and dust left behind after a storm on dry soil in southeastern Iran's Sistan and Baluchistan ... More Province. Image taken in July 2021. (Photo by Oshida / Middle East Images / Middle East Images via AFP). According to the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization, healthy soil is defined as having the ability to perform functions such as retaining water or sustaining plant and animal life. Soil then becomes degraded when it loses vegetation and organic matter, like manure, and is exposed to long periods of drought. Research indicates that in the Middle East, soil in many parts of the region has been harmed because of the excessive extraction of groundwater for irrigation and farming, as well as climate change. This mix of problems has caused a big issue for many countries called soil salinization, where water dries up and leaves salt behind, preventing crops from growing. Scientists say Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Afghanistan are among the nations in the region experiencing the highest salt increases in their soil. In a part of the world with no shortage of environmental problems, soil degradation poses an added threat to food, water, and the resilience to cope with disasters such as floods and wildfires. But that's not all that it does. Pete Smith, a professor of plant and soil science at the University of Aberdeen in Scotland, told me in an interview that poor soil management can also increase the severity of sand and dust storms. 'Failing to retain plant cover on the soil and practices like overgrazing lead to the destabilization of soil, making it easier for particles to be picked up and carried by the wind,' adds Smith. On the other hand, scientists have discovered that wet and heavy soil is less likely to release dust into the air quickly or in large quantities. This means the drier the land, the worse the dust storms, experts say. 'Dust emissions greatly depend on soil moisture,' says Paolo D'Odorico, a professor of environmental science at the University of California, Berkeley. Particularly in the Middle East, 'there are a few basins of internal drainage that are drying out and exposing the sediment to the action of wind and consequent dust storms,' D'Odorico adds. Agricultural land ruined by the relentless onslaught of drifting sand in a village in Iran's ... More southeastern Sistan and Baluchistan Province. Image taken in August 2021. (Photo by Oshida / Middle East Images / Middle East Images via AFP). The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) plan to help nations achieve peace and prosperity by 2030. They include objectives like fighting climate change and making sure everyone has access to clean and safe water. However, the list does not include the need for well-functioning soil, an essential component of the SDGs that experts say the international community is overlooking. 'It would be naive to think we can achieve any of these goals without giving soil the proper attention it deserves,' says Shokri. 'In the absence of that, the whole foundation of sustainable development will begin to crumble,' he adds. The World Bank reckons that over 40% of the land in the Middle East has already lost its productivity. As droughts become increasingly severe and temperatures rise, scientists believe that healthier soil can be a key solution for mitigating these problems. When it comes to sand and dust storms, 'it can certainly reduce the impact and severity for communities," says Smith. Decision makers 'should definitely discuss it as a tool for tackling climate change, food security, and combating land degradation and desertification,' he adds. 'This is truly the definition of a transboundary issue in need of serious global cooperation,' Shokri adds.
