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South Asia needs stronger cross-border climate cooperation: Experts

South Asian countries need stronger regional cooperation on #ClimateChange, #disaster preparedness and #energy security as #climate-related risks increasingly cross national borders, experts said at a parliamentary forum in #Thimphu today.
For #Bhutan, experts said #ClimateResilience needs to be integrated into development planning as climate change creates increasing uncertainty for hydropower and raises the risks from natural disasters.

Bhutan remains #CarbonNegative and has committed to carbon neutrality by 2050. The country aims to expand its #RenewableEnergy capacity to around 25,000 megawatts by 2040 through #hydropower and #solar.

However, the forum highlighted Bhutan's heavy dependence on hydropower and generation deficits during the dry season.

Sumedha Basu (PhD) urged Bhutan to explore ways to diversify its economy, saying the country is currently highly dependent on tourism and hydropower.

"Hydropower is becoming increasingly uncertain because of climate change," she said.

She said Bhutan should also strengthen its systems for #monitoring vulnerable areas and collecting real-time climate-related data to know exactly where changes are occurring.

https://kuenselonline.com/news/south-asia-needs-stronger-cross-border-climate-cooperation-experts

#ClimateCrisis