UNESCO: Climate change also threatens world heritage

Paris - The historic cores of Prague and Český Krumlov are among the sites on the UNESCO World Heritage List that this organization designates as threatened by current climate change. In a study on the impact of climate change on the world's natural and cultural heritage, recently published, UNESCO included about 25 other sites, including Venice and the historic center of London.
    UNESCO (the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) discusses the potential impact of climate change on marine and terrestrial biodiversity systems, archaeological sites, and historic cities among the 830 items on the organization's prestigious list. The study partly relies on conclusions reached recently by the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which also points to the likely contribution of human activity to climate change.
    In the case of Prague and Český Krumlov, the study recalls the floods of 2002 and states that given the high probability of more frequent and even more intense extreme precipitation events worldwide, and considering that the historic centers of both cities have proven particularly vulnerable, it is time to "implement an appropriate response." It is necessary to move from emergency actions to prevention. Therefore, the Czech government is reinforcing flood protection for the sites inscribed on the UNESCO list, the study notes.
    The risk of more frequent and larger floods, potentially combined with the influx of seawater into the mouth of the Thames, is also mentioned concerning the historic center of London. In Venice, the rising sea level, which is one of the consequences of global warming, poses a threat. Even under moderate climate change scenarios, Venice is expected to sink by 54 centimeters by the year 2100, whereas in the past it averaged a decrease of 10 centimeters per century, UNESCO estimates.
    Among the historic sites listed by the organization, the current study also addresses Timbuktu in Mali, which is threatened by encroaching desert, and mentions archaeological sites such as Chan Chan and Chavín in Peru.
    UNESCO considers ecosystems of the Australian Great Barrier Reef, among others, to be threatened by climate change, as it predicts an increased coral die-off due to warming sea temperatures and rising acidity. It simultaneously points out that globally, 58 percent of coral reefs are threatened by these phenomena.
    Glacier melting is endangering the nature of Nepal's Sagarmatha National Park, which is also home to the snow leopard, but it could have catastrophic consequences for human lives as well.