September 25, 2012 — The Persian Gulf, Libya, and Pakistan are at high risk of food insecurity in coming decades because climate change and ocean acidification are destroying fisheries, according to a report released on Monday.
The report from the campaign group Oceana warns of growing food insecurity, especially for poorer people, from the Faroe Islands in the North Atlantic to the Cook Islands in the South Pacific, Eritrea, Guyana, Indonesia, Kuwait and Singapore. Some of the countries at highest risk were in oil-rich — and politically volatile — regions.
“The Persian Gulf is actually expected to be one of the hardest-hit regions. In terms of fish catch they are supposed to lose over 50 per cent of their fisheries,” said Matt Huelsenbeck, an Oceana marine scientist and author of the report.
The report put Iran, Libya, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates among the top 10 countries most at risk because of the decline in fish stocks due to climate change.
America is expected to lose about 12 per cent of its catch potential by mid-century, the report said.
The study used climate models created by the University of British Columbia to rank countries’ exposure to degradation of the oceans due to climate change and ocean acidification.
Low-income countries, with high levels of malnutrition and rapid population growth, such as Pakistan, were viewed as high risk.