5. Indonesia
> Deaths: 150,000
> Population: 239.9 million
> Affected population: 30 million
> Pct. of GDP lost on climate change/emissions: 5.3%

Annual deaths due to climate change and carbon emission in Indonesia are expected to reach 200,000 by 2030. The costs of dealing with global warming are expected to rise immensely in the coming years, too. On climate change alone, DARA projects that Indonesia will have to spend 7% of its GDP in 2030. An example is maintaining the country’s biodiversity — reversing the destruction of Indonesia’s natural ecosystem through activities such as logging and natural changes due to irregular weather — which cost Indonesia $10 billion in 2010 but is expected to rise to $90 billion by 2030.

4. Pakistan
> Deaths: 150,000
> Population: 173.6 million
> Affected population: 20 million
> Pct. of GDP lost on climate change/emissions: 3.3%

DARA estimates that 250,000 people will die in Pakistan in 2030. That’s 100,000 more than in 2010. Air pollution is expected to be particularly deadly in the country, as are floods and landslides. In 2010, massive floods that spread through the country killed thousands and displaced hundreds of thousands. Climate change is also projected to lead to famine in the country. Hunger killed an estimated 10,000 people in 2010. By 2030, DARA estimates 25,000 people will die annually due to starvation.

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3. Nigeria
> Deaths: 200,000
> Population: 158.4 million
> Affected population: 20 million
> Pct. of GDP lost on climate change/emissions: 6.3%

Nigeria, with a population of more than 158 million people, loses 200,000 people annually due to climate change and pollution caused by carbon emissions as of 2010, a figure that is expected to remain the same through 2030. An additional 20 million people were considered to be affected by the changes annually. Approximately 150,000 people in Nigeria die each year due to indoor smoke ingestion, which exposes people to risks such as tuberculosis and lung cancer. DARA believes the reason for the indoor smoke is partially because of uneven electricity distribution, which forces many Nigerians to heat their homes and cook by burning fuels.

2. India
> Deaths: 1 million
> Population: 1,224.6 million
> Affected population: 250 million
> Pct. of GDP lost on climate change/emissions: 3.2%

As of 2010, climate change and pollution cost India $128 billion. By 2030, climate change alone is expected to cost about $680 billion a year, while pollution will cost India another $129 billion annually. The effects of climate change and pollution are hardly limited to the nation’s economy, as within the next 20 years, DARA projects that the number of deaths due to these factors will reach 1.5 million annually. Already, these factors are estimated to cost 1 million lives and adversely impact one-quarter of a billion people, per year. Hunger, brought on by diminished access to food as the climate worsens, is expected to kill 250,000 people annually by 2030.

1. China
> Deaths: 1.5 million
> Population: 1,338.3 million
> Affected population: 100 million
> Pct. of GDP lost on climate change/emissions: 1.4%

1.5 million people die each year in China due to climate change and carbon emissions, with another 100 million people affected by these factors each year. Most of those deaths, nearly 1.4 million, are the result of carbon pollution. The costs for China have been staggering as well. In 2010, climate change cost the country $72 billion, while carbon emissions cost the country $71 billion. By 2030, those figures are expected to rise to $727 billion and $451 billion, respectively. A report by the Chinese government released in Jan. 2012, warned that global warming could cut grain output in the country by some 5%-20% by mid-century and will lead to “severe imbalances in China’s water resources” over the coming years.

Michael B. Sauter, Alexander E. M. Hess and Sameul Weigley

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