MENA Faces More Than Just Environmental Repercussions in the Wake of Hydrocarbon’s Effects

MENA (the Middle East and North Africa) has been at the center of the climate change vortex for a while now. In March of 2022, a first-of-its-kind MENA Climate Week was held by the United Nations.

MENA (the Middle East and North Africa) has been at the center of the climate change vortex for a while now. In March of 2022, a first-of-its-kind MENA Climate Week was held by the United Nations. Back in 2016 when ISIS militants set fire to oil wells in Iraq, the media covered the aftermath and the effects on the Iraqi people for a time. Unfortunately, the media’s coverage didn’t last quite as long as the gloomy effects have lingered. Since that time, there have been people dealing with ongoing health problems, severe burns, respiratory issues, cancer, and gene mutations that will likely cause a surge in the number of birth defects for years to come. This post-conflict time has been termed the ISIS Winter. And a long winter it has been. As the UN has observed the persisting problems in that region, they’ve begun to map out a plan for intervention and amelioration of the issues. But it’s not going to be a quick fix. Along with the detrimental health fallout from the conflict, MENA inhabitants also have the worry of rising temperatures caused by hydrocarbon use. The Paris Agreement’s participating nations are invested in keeping the global temperature increase to 1.5°C by the year 2100. However, we’re speeding toward that number in a trajectory that could get us there in just ten years. While that temperature rise is dangerous to all of us, it’s especially treacherous to those in the MENA region. Any increase at all could exacerbate existing challenges with droughts and food production shortages. People in that region may soon have to rely on food imports. Yet the food supply chain’s inconstancy will be another hurdle to the populace’s survival. We may very well see domestic and international migration from those parts of the world sharply increase. The Middle East and North Africa have many coastal cities that are in danger of being flooded within the next three decades. Large cities like Jakarta, Karachi, Luanda, and Abu-Dhabi are less than ten miles above sea level. With 7% of MENA’s population living in areas that are five miles or less above sea levels, major industries like tourism, fishing, and farming will be devastated. The subsequent crush of people moving into already over-populated cities will likely be formidable. Though the Middle East and North Africa may exist outside of our daily cognizance, it’s important to remember that climate change adheres to no political or geological boundaries. While MENA is in an extremely precarious position, we all face the threat climate change. And, as global residents, we are all stakeholders in MENA’s future.