Charles Santiago
As we marked World Environment Day on 5 June, Malaysia faces a grim reality. A new El Niño is on its way, and it promises to be harsher than anything we have seen before.
The year 2024 was already the hottest in recorded human history, with global temperatures 1.55C above pre-industrial levels.
Here in Malaysia, people are already scorching heat, sometimes touching 40C, during daily commutes in air-conditioned cars.
When El Niño last struck
When El Niño hit in 2016, temperatures soared above 37C, and the consequences were swift. Over 250 schools were shut, and some 100,000 students were sent home.
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By April 2024, during the next El Niño episode, 45 cases of heat-related illnesses had been reported, including two deaths from heatstroke.
The coming El Niño is expected to be even more severe.
Reefs bleached, ecosystems lost
The marine toll has been devastating. Over 50% of coral reefs in several of Malaysia’s marine parks were affected by mass bleaching. Many of those corals suffered mortality.
Ecosystems that took centuries to build were severely damaged in a matter of months because the ocean got too warm.
A crisis on every front
El Niño disrupts weather patterns, bringing droughts, water shortages, crop losses, haze from regional fires and pressure on food prices.
It is a public health crisis, a food security crisis and a cost-of-living crisis all at once.
This is made worse by supply chain disruptions linked to the US-Israel war on Iran, which has pushed up oil prices and resulted in shortages of goods, burdening ordinary people.
The response needs to be whole-of-government and whole-of-society. That means expanding public transport, recycling and conserving water and energy.
It means protecting workers who are exposed to the sun, especially gig workers, with shade, water and rest breaks.
And it means prioritising water for farms and homes before it runs out.
Charles Santiago is a former MP for Klang.
AGENDA RAKYAT - Lima perkara utama
- Tegakkan maruah serta kualiti kehidupan rakyat
- Galakkan pembangunan saksama, lestari serta tangani krisis alam sekitar
- Raikan kerencaman dan keterangkuman
- Selamatkan demokrasi dan angkatkan keluhuran undang-undang
- Lawan rasuah dan kronisme
