Sand and Dust Storms in the Middle East and North Africa Region : Sources, Costs, and Solutions
Dust storms are capable of transporting sediment over thousands of kilometers, but due to the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region’s proximity to the Sahara Desert, the region is one of the dustiest in the world. While natural sources such as...
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| Language: | English |
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World Bank, Washington, DC
2019
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| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/483941576489819272/Sand-and-Dust-Storms-in-the-Middle-East-and-North-Africa-MENA-Region-Sources-Costs-and-Solutions http://hdl.handle.net/10986/33036 |
| Summary: | Dust storms are capable of transporting
sediment over thousands of kilometers, but due to the Middle
East and North Africa (MENA) region’s proximity to the
Sahara Desert, the region is one of the dustiest in the
world. While natural sources such as the Sahara are the main
contributors to dust storms in MENA, land-use changes and
human-induced climate change has added anthropogenic sources
as well. Like sources, drivers of sand and dust storms are
also natural and anthropogenic, as both wind speed and land
management can cause them. Dust deposition has wide-ranging
health impacts, such as causing and aggravating asthma,
bronchitis, respiratory diseases, and infections and lung
cancer. Apart from devastating health impacts, dust also
impacts the environment, agriculture, transport, and
infrastructure. Globally, welfare losses from dust are
approximately 3.6 trillion USD, where costs are about 150
billion USD and over 2.5 percent of Gross Domestic Product
(GDP) on average in MENA. Besides investing in early warning
systems, governments all over the world are designing
policies to mitigate the impact of sand and dust storms,
both at national and regional levels. The World
Meteorological Organization (WMO) launched a sand and dust
storm warning system that aims to deliver reliable dust
storm forecasts through a network of research organizations
all over the world. It aims to improve the ability of
countries to deliver quick and high-quality sand and dust
storm forecasts and knowledge to users through an
international partnership of research and operational organizations. |
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