Nearly 98% of the economic loss has been due to floods; losses associated with flooding were more than 4 times the average over the past 20 years
Extreme weather events in South-West Pacific led to economic damages to the tune of close to $8.7 billion in 2022 compared to $5.7 billion in 2021, according to a report released by World Meteorological Organization (WMO).
Though the number of disasters reported in the region in 2022 decreased by around 39 per cent compared to 2021, the events caused more economic damage in 2022. The region reported 35 natural hazards compared to 57 in 2021, but the overall economic damages were 53 per cent more than the loss in 2021.
Nearly 98 per cent of the economic loss has been due to floods. The economic losses associated with flooding in 2022 were more than four times the average over the past 20 years (2002-2021).
The economic damage of around $8.5 billion due to floods was almost three-fold compared to 2021, according to loss and damage estimates presented in the report released at the Third Pacific Ministerial Meeting on Meteorology held in Fiji on August 18, 2023.
The document titled State of Climate in the South-West Pacific, 2022 summarised the state of the climate, extreme weather events and their socioeconomic impacts in the region in 2022.
Despite the temporary cooling influence attributed to the three-year-long La Nina event, 2022 was still a warm year for the South-West Pacific, according to WMO. The mean temperature in 2022 was 0.2°C-0.3°C higher than in 2011, which marked the last strong La Nina event.
An overview of 2022 disasters in the South-West Pacific region. Source: United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific.
The year 2022 has been ranked within the top 10 warmest years for the region, stated the document. The most significant temperature rise was recorded over a region extending from Melanesia to French Polynesia and New Zealand.
El Nino, likely to continue during the rest of the year, will have a huge impact on the region, said WMO Secretary-General Petteri Taalas. The phenomenon is frequently associated with higher temperatures, disruptive weather patterns and more marine heatwaves and coral bleaching.
The WMO report focused on South-West Pacific, referred to as the focus WMO Region V which includes: Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Cook Islands, Fiji, French Polynesia, Indonesia, Kiribati, Malaysia, Marshall Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Niue, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Samoa, Singapore, Solomon Islands, Timor Liste, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu.
The report attributed most of the damages to a series of flood events in Australia. In 2022, flooding caused the highest economic losses in Australia (over $8 billion), followed by Indonesia (over $74 million) and the Philippines (over $11 million).
La Nina conditions contributed to significant rainfall anomalies in the region, leading to extreme floods in Australia and drier-than-normal conditions in most of the equatorial Pacific islands. Still, Kiribati and Tuvalu suffered from significant water shortages.
However, the number of people directly affected by these hazards has been 44 per cent less compared to 2021. Over eight million people were directly affected by these hazards, compared to 14.3 million in 2021.
“Early warning is said to be one of the most effective ways of reducing damage from disasters. But despite continuous efforts to strengthen multi-hazard early warning systems, there are still significant gaps to be addressed,” stated Taalas in a statement.
Unfortunately, only 18 per cent of National Meteorological and Hydrological Services in the region are providing climate services at an advanced level. And the majority (36 per cent) are providing those services at an essential level.
“Investments in data-driven observations and forecasting, supported by regional policy coordination and regional cooperation through the exchange of cross-sectoral expertise, are critical,” Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana, under-secretary-general of the United Nations, wrote in the document.
Agriculture is one of the most critical sectors affected by climate-related disasters, WMO pointed out. For instance, the floods in Timor-Leste during the year 2022 created long-term food security issues for the affected population. So, enhancing the resilience of food systems in the region must be highly prioritised.
WMO added the countries in the region have acknowledged this in their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC). At least 15 of the 20 countries in the region prioritised agriculture as their focus sector for climate adaptation, followed by environment and water in their NDCs.
Globally, sea level rises at an average of 3.4 millimetres per year in response to ocean warming and land ice melt. Sea-level rise in the region was slightly higher than the global mean rate. In several areas, the sea level rises approximately 4 mm per year.
Despite La Nina conditions, marine heatwaves occurred in various parts of the region. The most prominent and persistent ones occurred in northeast Australia and south of Papua New Guinea in the Solomon and Coral Seas and lasted for over more than six months, flagged WMO in the report.
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