Climate change algorithm created

LETHBRIDGE, Alberta, April 6 (UPI) -- A Canadian-led team of scientists has developed a mathematical approach to the relocation of people that will result from climate change.

University of Lethbridge Professor Sajjad Zahir and colleagues Ruhul Sarker of the University of New South Wales and Ziaul Al-Mahmud of the Lethbridge Community Network have devised an algorithm to address the problem of population relocation.

The team said its approach will help governments decide what fraction of a population would need to be relocated and how many people could stay behind for effective adaptation to climate change.

The researchers said their algorithm takes into account people's preferences, various costs and planning priorities, with the ultimate aim of ensuring that the issue of relocation is addressed fairly and is economically viable.

"To make adaptation a success, part of the population must be prepared to adapt to new or different work opportunities and living conditions and others may have to be relocated in a planned way to new locations that require accepting different working and environmental conditions," the researchers said. "Our methodology lets us find the fraction of people who would be relocated and who would stay in an optimal manner."

The project is reported in the International Journal of Mathematics and Operational Research.