07.07.2005
A research team at the University of Brighton, led by Dr David Nash of the School of the Environment, has been awarded nearly £8,000 by the British Academy to build an historic picture of climate change in Lesotho and look at its implications on long-term climatic change within the region.
Determining long-term climate trends is now an issue of global importance. It is high on the international agenda as the impacts of climate change and its contribution to poverty in Africa dominate the headlines with the start of the G8 summit. It is hoped that this research at the university will help inform future debate and action on these issues.
However, the identification of trends depends on analysing meteorological data and many areas lack data prior to the 20th century. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) regards collecting this information as vital, especially to a landlocked country such as Lesotho which is vulnerable to climate change and recurring drought.
In the absence of rainfall data the team will use proxies such as historical documents stored in archives in Lesotho, Paris, London, Oxford and Cambridge to establish a record of rainfall patterns before instrumental weather information was collected. Documents will be scrutinised for direct evidence of climatic conditions such as the occurrence of drought, and indirect evidence such as harvest failure will be noted.
Dr David Nash, research leader said: "Understanding historical variations in the frequency and severity of drought and other climatic anomalies may help us predict future trends, and provide information for decision makers to ensure sufficient water and grazing supplies. It will also contribute to understanding over the causes of land degradation and soil erosion in the highlands of Lesotho. The research will also help raise public awareness and misconceptions that drought, erosion and severe snow storms have only occurred in the recent past."
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