CLIMATE CHANGE FORCING MIGRATION
Dec 9th, 2009 by admin
Large-scale migration prompted by the impacts of climate change and environmental degradation is already happening, according to researchers. The International Organization for Migration released a new report yesterday indicating that internal and cross-border human movement is already taking place as a response to sudden or slow-onset natural disasters. Contrary to fears that climate change will cause millions of the world’s poorest people to flee to richer nations, the report found that most environmental migration has been happening within countries. Movement is mainly between rural areas or from rural areas to cities. The report also highlighted the lack of data on migration and climate change. Current estimates suggest the number of environmental migrants could range anywhere from 25 million to up to one billion people by 2050.
