Climate change might increase the prevalence of zoonotic diseases, according to professor Mikdat Kadıoğlu, a renowned Turkish meteorology expert. Speaking to the Demirören News Agency (DHA), Kadıoğlu said zoonotic diseases linked to climate change, especially those transmitted from mosquitoes and tick-borne diseases may increase in the coming years.
Kadıoğlu said experts in the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) associated an increase in epidemics around the world to global warming and changes in agricultural practices, pointing out the rising cases of Lyme arthritis and malaria. He added that Turkey, a country located in the Mediterranean basin, is among countries to suffer the negative impact of climate change and will see increasing temperatures and less precipitation.
"Sea levels will rise and there will be more thunderstorms and hail, along with tornadoes and forest fires. A four to six degree increase is predicted for temperatures in Turkey within five decades and it will be felt most in the Mediterranean and Aegean regions," he warned. "An 11% increase in rainfall is predicted for the Black Sea region and it will decrease 50% in the Aegean and Mediterranean regions. Turkey has been a country where two-thirds of the lands were arid and it will be three-fourths in the future. There will be less water and more vaporization," he warned.
