Question

South Korea and North Korea are in the news so much, that our discussion board this week will focus on articles regarding either North and/or South Korea. As always, do not copy and paste but summarize a recent (preferably 2018-2019) article about either country. Provide the URL.

Answer 1

Ans. One of the biggest environmental problems that has taken place recently in North Korea is a drought, which is one of the worst drought in the last 38 years. The country has received inadequate rainfall, about 56 mm. It has led to the drying up of the reservoirs of fresh water. The country was already suffering from poverty, malnourished children, security concerns, awaiting sanction of funds. The drought has worsened the situation even more. Similar events have taken place in the past years with even lesser amount of rainfall. However, this time it has worsened to a great extent, previous drought of 2015 is also a cause behind the catastrophic condition.

The most extreme consequence of the drought is the shortage of food. About 10 million people are not getting enough food. The situation is so bad that the natives are living on a mere 300 g of food per capita per day, at present. The drought has affected the agricultural yield due to lack of rainfall, especially the staple crops like maize, wheat, barley, corns, potatoes etc.

Another reason behind this consequence is poor harvesting since the year 2008. This has been due to multiple factors, the foremost being climate, then insufficient resource availability like fuels, fertilizers and other resources required for harvesting and lack of economic help from the Government and international agencies. The Government used the required funds upon nuclear testing rather than investing in the agricultural inputs. As of now, South Korea is sending funds and resources to North Korea, but the United Nations, is yet to provide its help to the country.