• Military Menu                       

• Introduction
• Systems
• Facilities
• Agencies
• Industry
• Operations
• Countries
• Hot Documents
• News
• Reports
• Policy
• Budget
• Congress
• Links

• WMD
• Intelligence
• Homeland Security
• Space

Reunion - Climate

Reunion has two seasons, the summer and the winter austraux. The first was from November to April. Temperatures can exceed 35° C and the air is very wet. It is during the summer that the rainy season takes place, from December to March, and that is when the cyclone risk is highest. The austral winter begins in May and ends in October. Temperatures are milder and average around 20° C on the coasts. However, it can snow in the heights of the island during this period. The piton of the furnace was covered with a white coat during winter 2006.

Some 82% of the population of the Reunion Island is concentrated on the coastal strip, where the population density is three to four times higher than the island average. Rising sea levels, the diminishing protective role of the coral reef and an increase in tropical storms intensity will have a potential impact on the infrastructure of the low-lying areas. The Reunion tourism sector would appear, at first glance, to be less vulnerable to climate change than that of the Caribbean or Polynesian islands, because it is not exclusively dependent on the quality of the beaches and the coral reefs.

Climate change adaptation is an urgent priority for many island states and regional governments, yet funding is limited, so the implementation of available and affordable solutions is crucial. Often, the solutions that nature provides are cost-effective and more relevant to local communities, especially in developing countries. This includes measures such as integrated water management, sustainable forest management interventions and the use of natural flood defenses, among others.

With its pitons, circuses and ramparts classified as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, La Reunion is one of 34 hot spots of biodiversity in the world. The Réunion Region, responsible for the economic strategy and sustainable development, carries out actions to raise public awareness about issues related to environments conservation and the development of new energy sources for several years, through its “Reunion Island, solar island and land of innovation” program.

There are very few scientific data about the observed or potential impacts of climate change on the biodiversity of the Reunion Island. Island experts who were consulted do not believe that climate change poses a serious threat to the island’s biodiversity. Indeed, actual or potential threats brought by climate change may seem negligible when looked at against the direct impacts suffered by the island’s biodiversity, such as direct destruction of habitats or the growth in the number of invasive alien species. Nonetheless, it is more than likely that over the next few decades, climate change will seriously affect the island’s natural forests.

A rise in temperatures could lead to the uphill migration of plant species, resulting in the potential degradation of montane forests and an increase in opportunistic species to the detriment of more fragile species. That said no predictions have been undertaken to assess the possible impacts of climate change on terrestrial biodiversity of the Reunion Island.

Climate change could also have a negative impact on public health, through an increase in the number of vectorborne diseases or the development of micro-algae that are harmful to human health and marine breeding grounds.