Climate change

climate change is a severe problem that Egypt has endured for many
decades. Climate change affects the environment in many different ways, including
rising temperatures, sea level rise, drought, flooding, and more. Climate change is
a term that refers to alternations and long shifts in temperature may be due to some
natural reasons like volcanic eruption or human activities like burning fossil fuels
and factories chimneys. This affects Egypt’s economy and lifestyle. Due to
changes in Egypt's climate and extreme heat, this made Egypt's workers reduce in
their productivity. It was estimated that they lost 0.16% of their annual work hours
because of heat.
With increasing temperatures, the worst is expected for sectors like
agriculture and industry. Egypt contributes 0.6% of the global carbon emissions.
These events affect things that we depend upon and value, like water, energy,
transportation, wildlife, agriculture, ecosystems, and human health. From the years
2000-2020, the average temperature in Egypt increased by 0.38 degrees Celsius per
decade, a temperature increase that is higher than the world average.

Causes for climate change:

1-urbanization:
Urbanization is the movement of people from rural areas to cities
searching for better opportunities.
As shown in Figure 1 the growth
of Egypt's rural and urban
population, in 2023, the share of
the urban population in Egypt
remained nearly unchanged at
around 43.1 percent. Today, the
urban population is projected to
outnumber people living in rural
Figure 1 urban and rural population in Egypt
areas for the first time in 2041. By that
time, 69 million people will reside in urban areas. So, the increase
in the number of people in a certain area increases the pollution
of this area causing it to change its climate.

2- Fossil fuels
in 2020, Egypt was Africa’s largest non-
OPEC oil producer and the second-largest
natural gas producer in the continent
after Algeria. Egypt mainly relies on fossil
fuels to meet its energy demand, with
more than 90% of electricity generation
coming from oil and natural gas, as
shown in Figure 2.

Figure 2 energies consumption in Egypt

Egypt is the largest consumer of fossil energy in Africa, with 22%

of the continent’s petroleum and other liquids consumption and
37% of dry natural gas consumption in 2016.

When these fuels are burned, they emit carbon dioxide, a primary
greenhouse gas, which is also a major cause of pollution and
contributes to global warming. When we burn coal and oil, we
emit Sulphur dioxide, which can cause respiratory difficulties and
acid rain.

According to UNITED NATIONS, Fossil fuels – coal, oil, and gas –

are by far the largest contributor to global climate change,
accounting for over 75 percent of global greenhouse gas
emissions and nearly 90 percent of all carbon dioxide emissions.
As greenhouse gas emissions blanket the Earth, they trap the
sun’s heat. This leads to global warming and climate change.

3. Cutting down trees

As trees grow, they help
stop climate change by
removing carbon dioxide
from the air, storing carbon
in the trees and soil, and
releasing oxygen into the
atmosphere. Trees provide
many benefits to us, every
day. They offer cooling
shade, block cold winter
winds, attract birds and
wildlife, purify our air, Figure 3 trees cover loss in Egypt
prevent soil erosion, clean our water, and
add grace and beauty to our homes and communities.
Cutting down trees increases climate change. Egypt needs
approximately 58 million square meters of parks and green
spaces to keep its air clean and decrease climate change, yet
currently only about 5.4 million square meters are available.
Egypt lost 75% of its tree cover between 2010 and 2023 as
shown in Figure 3. Trees help stop climate change by removing
carbon dioxide from the air, storing carbon in the trees and soil,
and releasing oxygen into the atmosphere.

Impacts of climate change:

1-rising temperature
The climate crisis has increased the average global temperature
and is leading to more frequent high-temperature extremes, such
as heatwaves. Higher temperatures can cause increased
mortality, reduced productivity and damage to infrastructure. The
most vulnerable members of the population, such as the elderly
and infants, will be most severely affected.

Higher temperatures increase the evaporation of water, which –

together with the lack of precipitation – increases the risks of
severe droughts.
In fact, between 1850 and 2020, the average annual temperature
in Egypt increased by around 1.6 degrees Celsius, and Between
1901 and 2013
temperatures in Egypt
increased by an average
of 0.1°C per decade. most
of the warming happening
in just the past couple of
decades.
The rate accelerated
between 2000 and 2020
with a temperature
increase averaging
0.38°C per decade, which was higher
Figure 4 temperature change in
than the world average (0.31°C per Egypt
decade). Figure 4 shows how
temperatures have changed since 1901, with the blue bars below
the line showing cooler temperatures and the red bars above the
line showing warmer temperatures. You can see how much the
overall temperature has increased in just over 100 years.

2- Disruption of water resources

Climate change is already affecting water access for people
around the world, causing more severe droughts and floods.
Increasing global temperatures are one of the main contributors
to this problem. Climate change impacts the water cycle by
influencing when, where, and how much precipitation falls. It also
leads to more severe weather events over time. Increasing global
temperatures cause water to evaporate in larger amounts, which
will lead to higher levels of atmospheric water vapor and more
frequent, heavy, and intense rains in the coming years.
Almost two-thirds of the world's population experiences severe
water shortages for at least one month of the year. Data from the
World Health Organization indicate that about 85% of the world's
population lives in the arid part of the planet, and that in many
parts of the world the availability of water resources is
decreasing. About 780 million people in the world do not have
access to water, and about 2.5 billion people do not have access
to adequate sanitation. Also, about 6 to 8 million people a year
suffer the consequences of diseases caused by contaminated
water.

Egypt is almost entirely dependent on the water of the Nile River,

which supplies an annual water volume of approximately 55.5
km3, accounting for 93% of the country's conventional water
resources. The annual total water demand is 81.3 km3, with
approximately 86% for agriculture, 2.5% for industry, and 11.5%
for the domestic sector. There is a gap between water demand
and water availability, which is compensated for by the reuse of
drainage water, wastewater, and shallow groundwater. The
uncertainty of climate change impacts is another challenge to the
water resources system in Egypt

In Egypt and In 2014, around 91 percent of the Egyptian

population received water directly into their residence. However,
while access to water is almost universal and reliable in urban
areas, a significant number of households are still not connected
with the water system in rural areas and in urban slums. 7.3
million people are deprived of access to safe water, among which
5.8 million live in rural areas and 1.5 million in urban areas. In
rural areas, around 12 percent of the population live in dwellings
not connected to the water system while, in urban areas, it’s 4
percent which do not have water connection. They are usually
located in urban slums and poor settlements. In urban slum areas,
only around 77 percent of households have piped water coming
into their homes and in many cases the connection is illegal.