ATTOCK, Oct 6: A member of governing council for the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), Malik Amin Aslam said that rapid weather changes are emerging around the world at an alarming rate and its effects will be felt in Pakistan.

This he said while addressing a seminar arranged by the Educator Club Attock, held at the district council hall, which was attended by people from all walks of life, including former MPA Syed Ejaz Bukhari, president Pakistan medical association, Dr Aslam Marwat and Principal Army Public College, Chaudhry Ghulam Hussain.

Mr Amin, who is also former minister of state for environment, further elaborated that the last two years were termed catastrophic for Pakistan with the country experiencing glacial outbursts, resulting in overnight formation of the Attabad Lake.

This was followed by the worst summer floods, which ravaged the country’s rural infrastructure and left Pakistan’s already feeble economy reeling.

As if the menacing floods were not enough, an unaware and ill-prepared Pakistan has been jolted by a climate-triggered epidemic, dengue fever, he informed. This disease of the tropics was hitherto uncommon in mostly arid and temperate climate of Pakistan.

Vulnerable countries like Pakistan will just have to learn to live and cope with most of the climate-induced damages in the future, he observed.

Our policymakers should face up to the reality that the country cannot run away from the effects of a changing climate.

In the past 40 years, nine out of top ten natural disasters in Pakistan have been climate-triggered, which clearly point to the magnitude of the challenge.

Melting of glaciers, cyclonic storm surges, tropical epidemics, flash floods, droughts, cutting trees and variable monsoons are all an inevitable future reality for Pakistan forced upon us by the trends of global warming.

However, this can be prevented if the government devise a comprehensive policy on environmental issues of the country, he stressed.

Otherwise all such issues raise concerns about our seriousness in confronting one of the most pressing challenges of our generation, when we are fast running out of time on this crucial front, he added.

Speaking on the occasion, chairman Educator Club, Syed Qamaruddin congratulated Amin Aslam on being elected as member of IUCN’s governing council, which is a great honour for the country.

Later on, Mr Qamar awarded shields to Mr Aslam and also to students of Army Public College.