2013 Disasters Affected Third of China

GLOBAL DISASTERS 2013

Human-enhanced natural disasters affected 390 million people across China 

Some 390 million people  across the country, or about 30 percent of China’s population, were affected by [human-enhanced] natural disasters, which left at least 1,181 people dead, 431 others missing [and possibly thousands injured] and resulted in direct economic losses of about 593 billion yuan (US$98 billion), according to an annual report issued by the Ministry of Civil Affairs (MCA) on Friday, Xinhua reported.

“The National Committee for Disaster Reduction and the MCA have issued 49 warning or emergency responses in response to various disasters, and a total of 10.1 billion yuan (US$1.7 billion) in disaster relief funds was allocated by the central authorities this year,” the report said.

The ministry has also promised to protect “615,000 graves of revolutionary martyrs and 12,000 memorial facilities for them,” the report quoted an official as saying.

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China Formally Eases One Child Policy after 30 Years

China’s top legislature passed a resolution easing the country’s one-child policy on Saturday following a six-day meeting , Xinhua reported.

The Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress (NPC) passed a resolution allowing couples to have two children provided either parent is an only child.

NPC also adopted a proposal to abolish “re-education” through labor camps, said the state news agency.

China introduced its one-child policy in the late 1970s to curtail rapid population growth. However, the policy has reportedly become increasingly unpopular because the country’s aging population is both reducing the labor pool and burdening elderly care systems.

The Chances Are…

If Homo sapiens sapiens couldn’t get their act together in 200,000 years…

SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 911 Days Left

FIRE-EARTH Climate Models show climate change forcings and feedbacks switching global weather patterns onto “primordial tracks.”

FIRE-EARTH Population Models show mass die-offs resulting from human impact and the planetary response to the anthropogenic assault could occur by early 2016.

Critical Planetary Overload

• Earth is fighting to stay alive! A dead planet cannot support life
• Critical Overload Threatens Planetary Life Support Systems
• RAPID DECLINE IN PROGRESS!

Global Disasters: Links, Forecasts and Background

• The First Wave of World’s Collapsing Cities
• Back to the Primordial Future
• The Fate of Energy Dinosaurs
• Mass Die-offs

Collapse in Progress

• Europe: The First Phase of Collapse Has Started 
• United States: The First Phase of Collapse Has Begun

Global Disasters/ Significant Events – August 4, 2013

About 5 percent of China’s population directly affected by drought

FIRE-EARTH Models show up to 60 million people in China are affected by the persistent drought in at least 12 provinces.

Hundreds of rivers, lakes and reservoirs along the Yangtze River have dried up amid worsening drought, said the local drought relief headquarters.

“Figures released by the Hubei Provincial Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters on Friday showed that 900 reservoirs and 132 rivers have been affected by the drought, causing one-third of the province’s farmland to dry up.”

Widespread drought has severely affected also the provinces of Hunan and Guizhou , as well as Chongqing Municipality in the Yangtze River valley, a major rice-producing area.

Original caption: Villagers pump [the last drops of] water from the riverbed of a dried river to farmland in Jiangjiaping Village, Qiyang County of central China’s Hunan Province, Aug. 2, 2013. Hunan Province has been hit by the most severe drought in 10 years since July, which caused drinking water shortages for about 1.38 million local people by Aug. 1. The local authorities has taken measures to combat the drought. (Xinhua/Li Ga). More images…

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China bans milk powder imports from New Zealand, Australia

China has banned imports of all milk powder from New Zealand and Australia, New Zealand’s trade minister said. The ban comes after bacteria that can cause botulism found in some dairy products, said a report.

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Monsoon floods kill at least 100 people in Pakistan, Afghanistan

A vast region in Pakistan and eastern Afghanistan has again suffered devastating monsoon floods for a third consecutive year.

The floods have destroyed or damaged thousands of  homes and businesses, as well as much of the local infrastructure in both countries. Meantime, officials have warned that more rain could hit the region.

In 2010, the worst monsoon floods in Pakistan’s history left about 2,000 people dead and affected more than 21 million others.

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Severe flooding displaces more than 247,000 people in southern Philippines

At least 20 towns were flooded in the southern island of Mindanao, following a week of monsoon rains, displacing about quarter of a million people, the country’s national disaster relief agency said.

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Floods inundate at six towns on Myanmar-Thai border

Extreme Rain Events have flooded creeks Myanmar-Thai border inundating towns in the southeastern state of Kayin, reports said.

“Myawaddy, another town along the Myanmar-Thai border, was heavily flooded and Myawaddy-Hpa-an border trade routes were inundated,” said a report.