Damage from climate change over EUR 5 billion

BELGRADE - The total material damage caused by extreme climate and weather conditions in Serbia since 2000 is estimated at over EUR 5 billion, Minister of Agriculture and Environmental Protection Snezana Bogosavljevic Boskovic said on Monday.

More than 70 percent of the losses was caused by drought and high temperatures, the minister said at a public hearing dubbed "Climate change is reality in Serbia and the EU - challenges, responses and possibilities," organized by the Serbian parliament's Environmental Protection Committee.

Bogosavljevic Boskovic also said that more than EUR 1.3 billion was spent to repair the damage from severe flooding in May 2014.

By this year's end, the Ministry should make an assessment of long-term investments in shares to reduce risk and adapt to changed climatic conditions, primarily in the field of hydrology and water resources, forestry and water management, the minister said.

She pointed out that by the end of 2018, objectives of reducing the effects of climate change at the national level should be defined.

Photo Tanjug Video (archive)