One Billion People Displaced By 2050 Due To Global Warming

London, England (AHN)-At least one billion people run the risk of fleeing their homes by 2050 due to devastation brought about by global warming, which can be considered as the largest population displacement in modern history.

Delegates in an ongoing conference in London will be warned by experts that that the steady rise in temperatures across the planet could trigger mass migration of unprecedented levels. Water shortages and crop failures are cited as the major cause of displacement in Africa, Asia, and South America. These are seen to lead to massive starvation brought about by soaring food prices.

The conference, organized by the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR), will feature a presentation from the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) warning that the countries worldwide should start preparing for a huge movement of people due to climate change.

Rising sea levels may cause havoc in coastal communities in southern Asia, the Far East, the south Pacific islands and the Caribbean. North and west Africans could head towards Europe, while the southern border of the United States could come under renewed pressure from Central America.

According to Craig Johnstone, the UNHCR deputy high commissioner, a "global-scale emergency" whose effects would accumulate over the next four decades is in the offing. He estimated that between 250 million and one billion may lose their homes by 2050.

"Climate change is the most serious long-term threat to development in poor countries, and if unchecked millions of people may be forced to migrate to escape the effects of drought, flooding, food shortages and rising sea levels," Hilary Benn, the Environment Secretary, said.