Photo by: Nordroden / iStock
Climate change leads to floods, which destroy sanitation, roads, energy infrastructure, people lose their homes and land, among other things. Droughts are also becoming more frequent, causing major damage to agriculture. Forest and steppe fires, which we see every year, are also a consequence of abnormal temperatures. The result is not only the loss of natural resources (e.g. trees) but also the destruction of ecosystems, settlements and human lives.
Russia has another serious problem — melting of permafrost, which occupies two-thirds of the country. All infrastructure located on permafrost, including cities, oil and gas pipelines, power lines, and roads, was built in the 1940s–1960s with the expectation that ground freezing would be very long-term indeed. However, much of the infrastructure is already subject to breakdowns and accidents due to deep freezing, and the problem will only worsen in the future as temperatures in Russia’s Arctic zone rise several times faster than the global average. It is almost impossible to correct the situation. To replace the infrastructure that has been built over many decades with new infrastructure will require huge investments.
Cover photo: zanskar / iStock
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