Climatic and other environmental changes are set to impact many sectors of South African society. Decision-makers in these sectors need information on the impact and risk of global environmental change.
SARVA, a new atlas of local risk and vulnerability in the context of global environmental change, will be further rolled out in 2011. The Atlas is aimed at equipping decision-makers with information on the impact and risk associated with global change in the region. It provides easily understood global change sensitivity and vulnerability information at regional, national, provincial and municipal levels. It also helps support national initiatives such as the National Disaster Management Framework.
The Atlas provides an electronic geographical information system and involves SA researchers from various disciplines to continuously update the content with new research. It captures data related to aspects such as groundwater, surface water, forests, biodiversity, human health, crops, demographics, economics and social dimensions.
The SARVA project is sponsored by the Department of Science and Technology (DST) and is project managed by the CSIR, with key content and technological inputs from South African institutions and research groups.
|
