Hungry, Waterless By 2080?

1 Feb 2007 (TODAY)

CANBERRA - Millions more people will go hungry and waterless by 2080 if
temperatures keep rising, reported The Age newspaper citing a leaked draft
of an Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

China, Australia, and parts of Europe and the United States will face
critical water shortages by the end of the century as temperatures rise by
2 to 3 Celsius, it added. Between 1.1 billion and 3.2 billion people will
be affected, according to the IPCC report to be released in April.

It said an additional 200 million to 600 million people across the world
would face food shortages in another 70 years. Some seven million homes
will be hit by coastal flooding.

"The message is that every region of the earth will have exposure," Dr
Graeme Pearman, who helped draft the report, told Reuters news agency.
"If you look at China, like Australia they will lose significant rainfall
in their agricultural areas," he said.