Scientists ‘must understand climate changes’

Rawalpindi, Carbon dioxide is one of the main contributors to overall climate changes. Everybody has to play its role and agriculture scientists must be ready now and try to understand the importance of climate changes, said Dr. Riaz Hussain Qureshi, Advisor Quality Control Higher Education Commission (HEC). He stated this while addressing the concluding session of two-day International workshop on ‘Carbon and Water Exchanges in Plants under Changing Climate Conditions’ here at Arid Agriculture University Rawalpindi (AAUR). Dr. Qureshi said that communities living in various parts of country and the world-over were not fully aware of the consequences of the big role of climate changes in Agriculture. He was of the view that duty of Agriculture Scientists was to create awareness about the climate changes, adding that Pakistan was also a part of globe and changes taking place around the world could impact the country in the long run. “Pakistan’s temperature was going to rise in the years to come, there is a chance that the country might receive more rains, which accompanied by melting of glaciers would create serious problems in the country,” he said, “It is time that we set our cropping patterns according to new requirements,” he remarked, and warned that Pakistan was going to face water shortage. “We have many species of plants, which are growing successfully in deserts like Cholistan and that grow without any protection in very hot and dry conditions. We have to select such type of species, which can survive in these conditions and our planning should be for next 30 to 50 years,” he added. Earlier, in his welcome address Vice Chancellor AAUR, Dr. Khalid Mahmood Khan said, climatic change refers to green house emission and carbon dioxide is main one and we have to reduce it according to Kyoto Protocol. He said although Pakistan is low gases emitting country but still we need to arrest climate changes at this time. He said Pakistan Economy is based on one river Indus and our whole life depends on Indus river system. He further said that water sources are melting down to Indus and if the glaciers are reduce by a large amount or quantity than ultimately we will be felt out no water. So we have to take certain step at this time to overcome this problem, which Pakistan can be, face in future.