Outlook on Climate Change Adaptation in the South Caucasus Mountains

The study by the WWF, Climate Change study for the Southern Caucasus, impacts on nature, people and society (WWF 2008), considers certain climate change impacts on agriculture, water and biodiversity in mountain regions of the three countries. Agriculture: The study on Building Resilience to Climate Change in South Caucasus Agriculture (Ahouissoussi et al . 2014), produced by the World Bank, includes analysis of issues such as climate impacts on crops and water availability, and priority measures for agricultural adaptation in mountains through regional actions. Water: The KfW assessment report on Adaptation to Climate Change in the Kura-Aras River Basin (Kerres 2010) refers to adaptation challenges and measures of water resources including ones formed in mountainous regions of the South Caucasus countries. The report also states that: “Once the glaciers disappear completely (estimates suggest that hardly any glaciers might be left by 2100), the hydrology will lose one of its main drivers and regulators. In areas where total average discharge decreases, this will contribute to water quality degradation, since less water has less potential to dilute pollutants”. Forests: The Report on Adaptation of Forests to Climate Change (WWF 2012), produced with support from the EU, provides an analysis of the vulnerability of different species growing in mountain and high mountain regions. All regional reports are desk studies and mostly utilise information from the National Communications to UNFCCC.

Alpine toundra, Georgia

Multiple areas: The Climate Change in the South Caucasus (UNDP 2011) study, which is based on official country information from the communications to the UNFCCC and from the Regional Climate Change Impact Study for the South Caucasus Region, and which was funded by UNDP, produced a number of research papers. The study covers relevant aspects of mountain region vulnerability to climate change derived from the Second National Communications to UNFCCC.

address the forestry, biodiversity, agriculture sectors and desertification/land degradation, etc. (see table: National Climate Change Vulnerability Assessments Availability by Sector/Country). The mountain regions of the South Caucasus countries are to certain extend covered by about half of the national vulnerability reports. In addition, the following aspects for mountain regions are covered through regional studies:

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