Rising, warming and increasingly acidic seas threaten the very
survival of Pacific island countries. The retreat of glaciers
and snowfields in the Himalaya and Tibetan Plateau jeopardize
these “water towers” on which one billion Asians depend for dry
season and drought year flows. More than 450 million Asians live
within the low-elevation coastal zone, including almost 20 per
cent of the region’s urban residents. There’s no question the
scale of climate challenges facing Asia and the Pacific is
daunting – especially since the fallout of regional climate-
related calamities can be felt around the world. Thailand’s
floods are a perfect illustration. Regional and global supply
chains suffered, affecting production in the car manufacturing
and electronics sectors and causing an estimated two per cent
drop in the country’s GDP growth in 2011. Multiply that impact
by the potential for climate-related ruin in other major low-
lying coast cities in Asia – Jakarta, Manila, Ho Chi Minh and
Kolkata, even the recent floods