REGIONAL SLIDES

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REGIONAL SLIDES
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Asia and the Pacific

• Ok Tedi Mine, Papua New Guinea
• Weipa Bauxite, Australia
• Huang He Delta, China
• Isahaya Bay, Japan
• Phnom Penh, Cambodia
• Thon Buri, Thailand
• Dead Sea, Jordan
• Aral Sea, Kazakhstan
• Lake Balkhash, Kazakhstan
• Kara-Bogaz-Gol, Turkmenistan
• Three Gorges Dam, China

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Asia and the Pacific

• Lake Hamoun, Iran
• Mesopotamia, Iraq
• DMZ, Korea
• Oudomxay, Laos
• Papua, Indonesia
• Sundarban, India/Bangladesh
• Shatt al-Arab, Iraq/Iran
• Al Isawiyah, Saudi Arabia
• Wyperfeld National Park, Australia
• Paektu San, North Korea

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Asia and the Pacific

• Asia is home to 60 of the worlds population,
  with only 36 of the worlds freshwater
  resources majority of the global population
  without access to improved sanitation lives in
  this region

• Asia has reversed the rate of forest loss from
  loss of 1.3 million hectares per year in the
  1990s, to a net gain of more than 600 000
  hectares per year between 2000 and 2005, yet the
  region has the lowest amount per capita (0.2
  hectares) of forest in the world

• Agriculture is the mainstay of Asian economies
  it constitutes a high portion of land usage in
  warm and humid areas of Asia majority of Asia's
  poor people depend directly or indirectly on
  agriculture for their livelihoods

UNESCO 2005 FAO 2005 CGIAR 2005
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Environmental Impact of Copper Mine Ok Tedi
Mine, Papua New Guinea
These images show environmental impact of the mine

• 1990 Both the mine and township of Tabubil,
  are clearly visible

• 2004 Raised river beds, forest damage and
  decline in biodiversity are some impacts

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Lowering of landscape in Weipa bauxite mine,
Australia
These images show environmental impact of the mine

• 1973 Under current mining practices,
  vegetation is cleared and the topsoil is removed

• 2002 Image show larger extent of cleared area

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Dramatic changes in Huang He Delta, China
The delta changed dramatically between 1979 and
2000

• 1979 Huang Hes yellow color is the result of
  huge load of sediments

• 2000 The image clearly shows the change in Delta

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Changes in Huang He Delta, China

• From 1989 to 1995 the Yellow River delta grew in
  area

• From 1995 to 2000 the Yellow River delta shrank
  in area

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Land reclamation changes along Isahaya Bay, Japan

• 1993 Turning tidal lands into farmlands

• 2001 The straight line of sea wall is visible

• 2003 The area has been fully reclaimed from
  the sea

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Flooding in the Mekong RiverPhnom Penh, Cambodia
These images show the extent of flooding and
extensive ditches and canals used for irrigation

• 2000 Taken during the period of flooding

• 2001 Taken after the flood waters had receded

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Replacement of mangroves by aquaculture in Thon
Buri, Thailand

• 1973-1978 Area is engulfed in a conflict
  between needs of people versus the welfare of the
  coastal areas

• 2002 Shows extensive aquaculture ponds (blue
  patches inland)

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Dramatic changes in the Dead sea, Jordan over 30
years

• 1973 The Sea level is dropping at the rate of
  1m/year

• 2002 Notice the expansion of salt works, and
  near-complete closing off of the southern part by
  dry land

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Death of the worlds fourth largest inland sea
Aral Sea, Kazakhstan

• 1973 The surface of the sea once measured 66
  100 km2

• 1987 60 of the volume had been lost

• 1999-2004 The sea is now quarter of the size it
  was 50 years ago

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Alarming drop in Lake Balkhashs water level,
Kazakhstan
Images show alarming drop in lakes water levels

• 1975-1979 Excessive use and waste of lake water
  are causes of the drop

• 2001 Smaller neighbouring lakes appear to be
  drying up

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Changes in Kara-Bogaz-Gol a lagoon of the
Caspian sea, Turkmenistan
Caspian Sea is the largest inland body of water
in the world

• 1988 KBG is the large shallow lagoon of the
  Caspian sea

• 2000 Caspian Sea levels are higher than 1978
  levels and water flows freely into salty waters
  of KBG

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Changes due to construction of Three Gorges Dam,
China

• 1987 Nature of the river and surrounding
  landscape before the dam

• 2004 The enormous dam is clearly visible

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Changes in water levels on Lake Hamoun, Iran

• 1976 The amount of water in the lake is
  relatively high

• 1999-2001 The lake dried up and disappeared

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Demise of an Ecosystem Mesopotamia
Marshlands, Iraq

• 1973-2000 Most of the wetlands disappeared

Upstream damming as well as drainage activities
in the marshlands themselves have significantly
reduced the quantity of water entering the marshes
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Revival of Mesopotamia Marshlands, Iraq

• 2000 Water returns to the Mesopotamian
  Marshlands

• 2004 Greening of some of the Marshlands in
  recent years

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Forest burning in Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) Korea
Images reveal significant burn scars in the DMZ
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Deforestation in Ouxomxay, Laos

• 1975 Image shows continuous forest cover

• 2000 Forest cover dotted with cleared patches

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Changes in worlds second largest palm oil
producing area Papua, Indonesia

• 1990 a new human presence, earth colored roads
  provide access to the forest

• 2000 rectilinear patterns cover 10,000 ha

• 2002 Cleared area nearly doubles since 2000

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Sundarban Changes in largest mangrove forest of
the world, India/Bangladesh
Forest degradation has been occurring in many
parts of Sundarbans
Shrimp farming is a major threat to mangrove
forests
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Changes in the largest date palm forest in the
world Shatt al-Arab, Iraq/Iran

• 1975-2002 Shows destruction of the largest
  date palm forest in the world, bordering Iraq and
  Iran

• By 2002, more than 80 per cent of palms were
  wiped out due to war, salt and pests

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Greening of a desert Al Isawiyah Saudi Arabia
Greening of a desert

• 1986 -A desert landscape

• 1991 -Irrigation begins

• 2000 -And transforms the desert

• 2004 Irrigation intensity increases

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Changes in the native scrubland Wyperfeld
National Park, Australia

• 1973 Vegetation in the Wyperfeld National Park
  is mostly rich green in the image

• 2000 The dark green areas are now mottled with
  light patches, areas where the ground is bare
  after a burn

• 2004 Significant additional burned areas

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Agriculture expansion around Paektu San North
Korea

• 1977 Shows result of intensive land development
  on the North Korean side of the border

• 1999 Shows expanding agricultural activities on
  and around Paektu San, especially after the
  construction of the dam

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Asia and the Pacific
One Planet Many People Atlas of Our Changing
Environment
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