Botswana: Climate Change Affects Country

The depletion of the ozone layer does not only affect Antarctic but the whole globe, director of Meteorological Services Phetolo Phage said yesterday.

Explaining the importance of celebrating World Meteorological Day, which falls today, he said the weather has no boundaries and any climatic change can affect Botswana. He said the ozone is getting repaired again as substances causing the depletion are reduced or stopped all together.

Speaking at a press briefing in Gaborone, Phage said as the climate changes, there is need to recognise this as it may affect the agricultural and energy sectors or even humans. He said people would have to adapt to changes to survive the impact. He advised that the way resources are utilised would have to change. On the issue of conserving water level in dams, he said that there is no way that evaporation, which has already taken its toll on levels, can be halted. Phage however emphasised the importance of water harvesting. He also said that recycled water could be used for activities such as gardening and construction.

Chief meteorologist David Lesolle noted that the trend in temperature increase would continue to rise over many generations. He said that people would have to adapt or die and that the increase was due to green house effects (the warming of the earth's surface as a result of atmospheric pollution by gases).