13. Increasing Atmospheric Extreme Events and Role of Disaster Risk Management: Dimensions and Approaches

Under most future emission projection scenarios, global temperature rise is imminent. Rising temperature is closely interlinked with balance in energy and water budget. As per the Clausius–Clapeyron equation, atmospheric moisture rises as 7% per °C rise. This means that both temperature and precipitation extremes such as heatwaves, floods and droughts will be more frequent and intense. Multiple atmospheric extremes events such as heatwaves with low moisture availability could have severe compounding impacts, e.g. increased risk of forest fires, droughts and dust storms. Moreover, global population is increasingly becoming more urban. Most future urban population growth is projected to be in the densely populated cities in Asia and Africa. Temperature and precipitation extremes are often exacerbated due to the presence of dense urban areas and are presented as urban heat islands, CO₂ domes, urban flooding, smog, etc. Cities, in general, show more vulnerability towards atmospheric extremes.

In order to mitigate such disasters, it is crucial to identify vulnerable hotspots and demographic groups most likely to be affected. The chapter outlines various disaster mitigation and adaptation strategies. Importance of science and decision support systems, data availability and sharing, early warning systems, timely information dissemination and post-disaster management are highlighted.