AWAINA ARBEE New Straits Times 11 Jan 16;
PUTRAJAYA: The government will provide water supply to areas which are expected to be affected most by the El-Nino phenomenon.
Agriculture and Agro-based Industries Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Shabery Cheek said the government is prepared to face the weather changes, which is predicted to last until March. “We will be providing water supply such as water pumps to areas that are predicted to be most affected.
“Crops, especially water-based crops will be most affected by El-Nino," he told reporters after an event with the ministry's staff in Wisma Tani, here, today.
El Nino is a warming of the sea surface temperatures which occurs six months in a row every two to four years in the eastern Pacific Ocean.
It can cause a chain of climate change worldwide, among them heavy rainfall in some areas and prolonged drought in others.
In Malaysia, the phenomenon is expected to reduce the rainfall intensity by 20 to 60 per cent starting this month.
Its impact is expected to be felt by all the states in the peninsula, Sabah as well as in the Miri and Limbang divisions in Sarawak by the end of this month.f
